What seems like a lifetime ago, the eighth graders created a more practical and quantifiable class covenant.
- Greet everyone.
- Invite someone to your lunch table.
- When you see someone being mean, just step in.
- Give the benefit of the doubt.
- Try to talk and hang out with people who I don’t normally.
As we have shifted over to distance learning, the covenant is no longer as viable as it once was. However, the main idea behind the covenant is still the same: inclusiveness. So how do we translate this idea of inclusiveness when we are not in the same physical space? What does inclusiveness look like during a virtual classroom setting or virtual closing meeting? Although inclusiveness was the main idea in our original covenant, is it relevant now? Is there another main idea that would be better suited for distance learning? These are questions we are grappling with now so we can end this extraordinary year well.
Sam Choi
Teacher, Grade 8; Science, History, and Ethics, Sixth to Eighth Grades
Mr. Choi has been teaching for over twenty years. Prior to Mustard Seed, Mr. Choi taught at a high school and a middle school for students with language based learning differences. He has also taught at an after school tutoring center and a standardized test prep center.
Over his career, Mr. Choi has taught high school Chemistry, Anatomy and Physiology, Computer Programming, Algebra I and II, Geometry, Pre-Calculus, and US and European History. He has also taught middle school PE, Health, Earth Science, Physical Science, Life Science, Pre-Algebra, Algebra, World History and Language Arts, as well as Ethics, Civics, Economics, Christian Studies and Geography.
Mr. Choi enjoys running, watching movies, and cheering for the Kansas City Royals and Chiefs; he has been an avid fan of these teams since 1980.
He is married to Abby Hall Choi and is the father of Noah (MSS Class of 2027) and Jacob (MSS class of 2030).
Mr. Choi was born in Pusan, South Korea, and emigrated to the United States in 1980 with his parents and older brother and sister. He first lived in Kansas City, Kansas and then moved to San Diego, California in 1986. In 2007, Mr. Choi moved to Jersey City, New Jersey. He quickly discovered that living in Southern California does not equip one to survive anywhere outside of Southern California.
