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Vermont's Teacher of the Year champions activity, play and 'brain breaks' for students

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Connor Cyrus
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Robyn Newton, a physical education teacher at Vergennes Union Elementary School, was named Vermont’s 2023 Teacher of the Year.

Robyn Newton, a physical education teacher at Vergennes Union Elementary School, was recently named Vermont’s 2023 Teacher of the Year. The Agency of Education said she was chosen for her ability to make physical education joyful and instructional, while fostering the skills and confidence needed for healthy development and lifelong fitness.

Newton's selection highlights the importance of giving students breaks to be physically active, or “brain breaks,” which allow them to synthesize what they have learned and return to the classroom refreshed. As Vermont schools recover from the pandemic, high-quality physical education, unstructured play and “brain breaks” are critical to student success and well-being, the education agency said.

Host Connor Cyrus talked with Newton about her 27 years of teaching, what inspires her and what she hopes to accomplish as she travels around the state meeting with other teachers in the coming year.

Broadcast live at noon on Wednesday, Oct. 5, 2022; rebroadcast at 7 p.m.

Have questions, comments or tips? Send us a message or tweet us @vermontedition.

Connor Cyrus joined Vermont Public as host and senior producer in March 2021. He was a morning reporter at WJAR in Providence, Rhode Island. A graduate of Lyndon State College (now Northern Vermont University), he started his reporting career as an intern at WPTZ, later working for WAGM in Presque Isle, Maine, and WCAX Channel 3, where he covered a broad range of stories from Vermont’s dairy industry to the nurses’ strikes at UVM Medical Center. He’s passionate about journalism’s ability to shed light on complex or difficult topics, as well as giving voice to underrepresented communities.
Tedra joined Vermont Public as a producer for Vermont Edition in January 2022. Before moving to Vermont, she was a journalist in New York City for 20 years. She has a master’s degree in journalism from New York University.