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Fulton County Schools Bus Driver Leads A Classroom On Wheels

Fulton County Schools Bus Driver Leads A Classroom On Wheels

 

As a bus driver for Fulton County Schools (FCS), Lisa Jacobs knows her role means more than ensuring students get to and from school on time. She drives a classroom on wheels.

Each morning, Jacobs says, “we have about 12 to 15 minutes at the school before the school opens. I do little activities with the kids.”

Those “little activities” with her students at Lake Windward Elementary School grew into a big idea. Recently, they became published authors with a book titled, “Come Ride With Us On The Red Elephant Bus.”

Jacobs says, “I heard of teachers writing books before -- and I’m like, ‘why not?’”

Jacobs, known to her students as Ms. Lisa, worked on the book with all 42 of her students in kindergarten through 5th grade. The process started in November of last year and wrapped up in April, followed by a book reveal at Lake Windward Elementary in May.

All of Jacobs’ students from Lake Windward had a role in the creative process. They wrote, illustrated, and edited the book. Before and after school, Jacobs says, “we’d get ideas, and we’d bounce ideas off each other.”

Jacobs says her students decided to focus on her bus route’s daily routine. She says she wanted them to share, “how it works – through children’s eyes.”

On board the Red Elephant bus, each day of the week features a theme. Alongside colorful illustrations, readers are treated to stories about the different days.

Mondays, students are encouraged to talk about their weekend in “Tell Me Something Good.” The week wraps up with a big highlight – “Dance Party Friday.” One student writes, “Ms. Lisa taught us the moves to the Macarena!”

Plenty of fun packs the other three days of the week. Every moment serves a serious purpose, focusing on social-emotional learning to more traditional topics. One of them is language arts, a process aided by the publication of the book.

Jacobs says she is grateful for her FCS family, who helped make the book a reality.

While “teacher” is not officially part of her title, she certainly is one. Jacobs says she holds a lesson from her students to heart.

“If you put your mind to something, you can do it. They see that, and now I see that through them too,” she says.

You can learn more about “Come Ride With Us On The Red Elephant Bus” here, using the PIN 8310293.