Issue link: http://educator.cta.org/i/1449741
L A S T S U M M E R Terron Nolan conquered his No. 1 fear — jumping out of an airplane — and went skydiving. He made a video of it and added it to The Fearlist, a series on his YouTube channel Grit&Integrity, which showcases Nolan facing his worst fears. ere are videos of him holding a snake, riding a horse, jumping off a 45-foot pole, and doing standup comedy. "Skydiving was so awesome," says Nolan, a sixth grade teacher at Robinson Elementary School in Fresno. "And it was really scary." Nolan was inspired to create e Fearlist in 2018, based on conversations with his students. "I noticed many of my students struggle with fear," says the Fresno Teachers Association (FTA) member. "ey fear their environment, because when they leave their homes, they have to walk through scary situations to come to school. ey are fearful of the future and of change." Many of them live in a nearby apartment complex and deal with the challenges of poverty, broken families and neighborhood violence. "I told my students, 'I will share all of my fears if you face one of yours.' And they took me up on the challenge." A student was terrified of spiders and touched one. Another was scared of public speaking and entered a student body election and made a speech. A student dared to admit his dream of becoming a doctor — and his fear of not being able to go to college — and scheduled more challenging classes. As students faced their fears and shared the results with classmates, Nolan noticed their behavior improved. ey became more confident. They stopped worrying about speaking up in class and started participating in discus- sions. Angry outbursts diminished. " Th e fact that th ey c oul d lean on th eir t each er — who was going through the same process of facing his fears — helped us to bond ," he says. " Students abso- lutely loved the videos and seeing me freak out. To see an adult scared but facing his fears over and over had an impact. It gave them the courage to face their own fears, sometimes in small steps." "Mr. Nolan's skydiving made me want to face my fear of heights," says student Tristan Shouman Rangel. "Having him as a teacher has had a great impact on my education." Says classmate Alondra Torres Diaz, "Mr. Nolan made me want to face my fears. Being in Mr. Nolan's class made me open up to more people." W hen school shut down in 2020 due to COVID-19, fears that were unimaginable suddenly became a reality. Terron Nolan conquers his fears so students can, too By Sherry Posnick-Goodwin Got Grit? Nolan, shown in a video on his YouTube channel, says handling a snake was the "day my heart stopped." 14 cta.org Spotlight