WINTER PARK, Fla. — Orange County A+ Teacher Kristin Cooper-Otto says she knows she’s setting the stage for a lifetime of learning. She uses her imagination and creativity during the school year to make her kindergarten classroom at Brookshire Elementary School a magical place. 

Whether it’s reading, writing, drawing or even dancing, Cooper-Otto's students learn a lot together, and that is priceless, which is why she treasures every moment.

“The thing about teaching is you never know how big of an impact you make because you may affect one student, but then that student goes and affects others,” she says.

That’s exactly what happened to her, she says.

“My second-grade teacher was my favorite teacher because she made each one of us feel so special and that we mattered,” Cooper-Otto says.

It’s something Cooper-Otto has done, too, for the past eight years for her students.

She says her students' social and emotional learning is a big focus for her, even for her former students she passes in the hallways.

Cooper-Otto says, “I see them and I say, ‘I am so proud of you,' and their whole face changes and I really love being here.”