‘Helping students make connections’

FITCHBURG — A city educator is sharing her passion for learning through a series of books she wrote inspired by field trips taken with her students that her son tagged along on when he was younger.

Becky Colo has been teaching for 16 years, 14 of those at Longsjo Middle School as a math and science teacher and currently as a math instructional coach.

“I love helping students make connections between what they are learning, the world around them, what they are interested in, where they see themselves in the future,” she shared about what drives her.

Fitchburg Public Schools Mathematics Curriculum Director Tammi Chandler divulged that throughout her time in the district, Colo has organized many STEM focused field trips for her students.

“She decided to capture these experiences through writing and has partnered with a publisher to author five books,” Chandler said of “The Science of Survival,” a decodable series written by Colo that is specifically designed for upper elementary and middle school students who need structured foundational reading support.

Colo said the idea for the books came from field trips she has gone on with her Longsjo students.

“When he was little, my oldest son would often join me on field trips to museums, colleges, and hiking trails,” she said of Lucas, who is now 10. “He would get to know and learn from my students, and I wrote these books to capture both the relationships they built and the learning that happened on those trips.”

She conveyed that the titles “Beneath the Surface” and “Adapt and Thrive” based on a field trip to the New England Aquarium, “Growing, Changing, and Surviving” and “The Wonders of Evolution” were inspired by a field trip to the Beneski Museum of Natural History at Amherst College, and “Survival Secrets” is a nonfiction companion to those books “that further explores animal traits and how they support survival.”

“As part of the series, each book also includes targeted phonics skills to build mastery across the series,” Colo revealed. “While reading these books about field trips to local museums, students will be strengthening their literacy skills and building scientific knowledge.”

The books were published in February and they each touch on different science topics – earth conservation, climate change, animal traits, and evolution. They are available for purchase directly through the publisher Storyshares by visiting shop.storyshares.org/products/the-science-of-survival-decodable-series-bundle and Colo plans to do more.

“I still have a few other field trips that I would love to write books about down the road,” she said.

Colo grew up in different towns across Central Massachusetts — Worcester, Shrewsbury, Northborough, and Petersham – and settled in Templeton eight years ago with her husband and their three sons. While she is definitely looking forward to summer break, which officially kicks off after the last day of school on June 26, the dedicated teacher thoroughly enjoys her role at Longsjo and the variety it brings.

“As a math instructional coach, I partner with the math teachers at Longsjo to support our students,” she said. “My job can look different day to day depending on what the teachers on my team are working on and need for support. I run professional development sessions, work directly in classrooms with students and teachers, support decision making with student data, and facilitate work toward school and district goals.”

When asked why her job is important and what the benefits to the students are as a results of what she does, Colo had this to say.

“Facilitating the sharing of ideas and building partnerships between teachers across the department helps all of us continue to improve instruction to better meet the needs of our students. I’m always learning from the teachers I work with and sharing that learning with others. As we all learn from each other, we’re all better educators for our students.”