Ahead of the 2024 school year, PS’s The Educators is spotlighting 24 public school teachers around the country who are making a difference.
Christina Torres is a fourth-grade teacher at The Bilingual Bicultural Mini School in New York City and has six years of teaching experience. She believes in being a lifelong learner, and as a single mom of two, she hopes that same passion is instilled in her children and her students. Keep reading to get to know her.
What inspired you to be a teacher?
There was a point where I realized students were not getting the whole picture within their education. Students, I felt, were getting the basic or surface-level teaching and not getting the context of the reasoning behind why they were learning what they needed to learn. I wanted to bring about that change and foster a “forever learning” kind of experience within my students’ education. Ultimately, I want to give back to students the way I was given an education that I truly value.
What’s the most rewarding part of your job?
The most rewarding part of being an educator is that with every interaction with students, it is guaranteed that they will return to their parents a different person on a daily basis because they will have learned something new that changes whatever they knew before they walked into my classroom. Another rewarding part is how I have been able to cultivate relationships with other teachers in my school that allow space for them to learn from me and I from them. I appreciate that as an aspiring leader and colleague.
Who was your favorite teacher and why?
My favorite teacher is actually a professor I had in college, Regina Bernard. I double minored in Latin American Studies and took every class around Puerto Rican history and current events. She challenged the way we thought and wanted us to truly delve into the inequities of people of color socially and academically. She planned assignments that would force us to strategically combat those inequities.
What’s your go-to teaching uniform?
Anything stylishly comfortable! I’m working all day and moving around literally every minute of the day and even working when I leave the school building, so always comfort all the way, but always cute!
What do you always make time for because it makes you feel good?
Skin care and healthy dinners. Every three days I have to exfoliate and face mask. I will invest in all my Summer Fridays and Kopari skin care because it truly brings me joy every three days. I have to feel good, and what you put into your body is very important to living a healthier lifestyle, especially when everything is so fast-paced between being a single mom of two and a teacher. So vegetables are always a must in our household with a baked protein, and we are happy!
What’s your morning routine on a school day?
I love an early-morning stretch, shower, and coffee is a nonnegotiable to get me through the day. I always like to make sure my materials are organized the day before to ensure a smooth transition into the next day.
How do you practice self-care?
Aside from my three-day skin-care routine and healthy dinners, I take the weekends to indulge. I always make sure to grab dinner with a friend most Saturdays, and Sundays are my reset internally and externally. It may seem tightly organized and structured, but I think that’s a reflection of how much organization makes me happy and at peace.
What are you watching?
“Mayor of Kingstown” and “Presumed Innocent.” Totally recommend.
What are you reading?
“What We Talk About When We Talk About Love” by Raymond Carver, and of course the new Houghton Mifflin Harcourt reading curriculum that’s been mandated by the city.
What’s your fitness routine?
Every day before or after work, whichever allows the time better. Intermediate yoga and core work are my current focus.
How do you keep from getting sick during the school year?
Healthy eating and organize, organize, organize to minimize stress, which also can sometimes affect my getting sick. I also am a bit of a neat freak, so we all at home and in class “maintain our stations” with weekly cleanups and disinfecting.
What’s your go-to feel-good music?
My playlist with a mix of old-school R&B, pop (old and new), and a bit of alternative.
Anything else at all you want to share?
History has an interesting way of repeating itself in various ways. Our students during these times are the most vulnerable and deserve to be given context to why and how those histories may reoccur. It’s up to us to provide them with that. Because we are not here to teach them; we are here to empower them as they take the next baton in leading our world with both knowledge and compassion. We cannot properly prepare these individuals for such a task if we too are not well-equipped and taken care of. Educator or not, but especially educators: find the things, activities, people that bring you pure joy and refill your cup that rejuvenates you in every aspect of your life. Wherever you fall short of that, find your “why” and get back to refueling that as much as possible.
Yerin Kim is the features editor at PS, where she helps shape the vision for special features and packages across the network. A graduate of Syracuse University’s Newhouse School, she has over five years of experience in the pop culture and women’s lifestyle spaces. She’s passionate about spreading cultural sensitivity through the lenses of lifestyle, entertainment, and style.
