Rachel Houghton credits her own childhood experiences for pushing her toward her teaching career. “A big part of my becoming a teacher was my love of children’s literature,” she describes. “My mother was a children’s librarian for almost 40 years, and my father read to me each night before bed.” Her parents’ influence is evident in her 15 years in DCPS, including the last 11 at Peabody. Ms. Houghton is eager to provide similar positive reading experiences for her young students, saying, “as an early childhood teacher, I have the potential to create more lifelong lovers of literature.” As she describes her favorite parts of her job, such as “watching a child’s eyes as they travel across a line of print and widen as they realize they are reading,” Ms. Houghton’s passion for literacy is obvious.

Ms. Houghton spends a lot of her time modeling important behaviors for her students, such as respectful language and putting in their best effort, because she values social development as highly as academic development. “I treat my students the way I hope other teachers treat my own two children,” she says, referring to her son, who attends Watkins Elementary, and her daughter at Peabody. A Master Educator remarked, “Her capacity to respond to the needs of young children through her own reflection and professional development make her a role model for teachers of young children.”

Last year, 100 percent of Ms. Houghton’s pre-kindergarten students met both their literacy and mathematics goals. She serves on Peabody’s Academic Leadership Team and as a grade level team leader, while also participating on a variety of committees, including the Foodprints Garden and Cooking Committee. She praises her colleagues for recognizing the importance of early childhood education, and for their shared belief that young children can achieve at great levels. Her classroom may be rigorous, but she insists, “Peabody students rise to these high expectations.”