At Tuesday morning’s pep rally, teacher Estelle Moore shook her green and gold pom-poms every time the Greencastle Elementary School principal revealed that another classroom had posted strong attendance numbers in April.
Moore — known on this Silver Spring campus as “Momma Moore” — didn’t realize this celebration was actually for her.
Principal Kurshanna Dean leaned into the microphone just as it seemed the pep rally was wrapping up.
“It’s not just about attendance,” Dean said. “This is also an opportunity for us to recognize a very special teacher.”
Moore’s eyes stayed focused on her second graders, who sat cross-legged on the auditorium’s floor. She still didn’t seem to know she was the honoree.
“This person has been doing it for 52 years,” the principal went on.
That got Moore’s attention. Her eyes snapped to the front of the auditorium, where a curtain parted to reveal her husband, her son and education leaders waiting to surprise her for Teacher Appreciation Week.
The high-pitched woohoos of 7-year-olds filled the room, reaching a fever pitch when Moore received a giant $5,000 check to thank her for five decades of service.
“We love you, Mrs. Moore!” the kids screamed.
Moore, the consummate educator, turned it into a teaching moment.
“You know, love is reciprocal,” she said. “When you love someone, they want to love you back.”
“I love you, too,” she told the children.
Decades of teaching
Classroom 120 was quiet, even as strange grown-ups milled around after the pep rally.
Members of the Montgomery County Public Schools teachers union — joined by National Education Association leadership and district staff — watched as Moore’s second graders dutifully filled out their math workbooks.
The kids stayed focused even as a gaggle of reporters put cameras in front of their tiny faces.
“They know they’ve got work to do,” Moore said.
She’s built a classroom that feels peaceful and safe and calm, her students say.
“Even when I was stuck on something, she helped me and believed in me,” 8-year-old Dream Todd said. “Mrs. Moore taught me to always keep trying.”
She encourages good behavior by handing out fake money, which the kids can cash in for treats from a “store” they call Mrs. Moore’s Dollar Tree.
Her classroom — at least the 10th one she’s set up — is full of motivational art. “Kindness Starts Here” is posted beside a sign encouraging kids to “Look ahead, not back.”
She’s wanted to run her own classroom since she was 4 years old. Her dream was to make a difference in the lives of children.
“It’s not just a privilege,” she said. “It’s an honor to be a teacher.”
She isn’t ready to retire, even as she’s reached her 80s. She wants to make it to 90 years old, still working at Greencastle Elementary.
“I am healthy,” she said. “The only thing I need is that walker — and I’m trying to get away from it.”
Decades of love
Moore has been a teacher for more than 50 years. She’s been Charles Moore’s wife for even longer than that.
He comes in the summertime to set up her classroom. He spends his weekends making copies at Staples. He’s intimately aware of the rising cost of ink.
“This is my man,” Moore said, leaning into her husband after the pep rally.
He teases his wife that the reason Greencastle keeps her around is because she spends her whole paycheck on the school.
So he probably wasn’t too surprised by her response when she was asked what she’d do with her $5,000 gift.
“I’m going to buy something for my kids,” Momma Moore said.
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