Daniel James L'Esperance

Daniel teaches fourth grade at Mark Twain Elementary School. He holds a Master's Degree in Talented and Gifted from the University of Connecticut. Miss Smith, his ninth grade English teacher, taught Daniel how to write songs and encouraged him to learn to play the guitar and write music. "She helped me feel capable. I never wanted to leave her class." Daniel is still an active guitarist, singer, and songwriter, often incorporating these talents as a teaching method in his classroom. A student believes Mr. L'Esperance should receive an award because "his classroom is fun, you get to do puppet shows, and you write a lot." Daniel is the author of Puppet Teacher, a "how to" book designed to promote the use of puppetry in the classroom.