Tuesday, Nov. 9, 2004 | 8:19 a.m.
Scott Panik went to a Green Valley High School faculty meeting last week without expectations. He left named Nevada Teacher of the Year.
"It was very overwhelming. I certainly didn't expect to get that award. It's quite an honor," Panik said.
Panik, 31, is in his 10th year as a physics and earth science teacher at the high school.
"I think I'm pretty passionate about what I teach. If I want the kids to be excited about learning, then I think I need to be excited about teaching," Panik said.
He tries to have a more informal and fun atmosphere in his classes so his lessons are like conversations.
"I think I have a pretty good sense of humor, I think that helps too," Panik said. "I can poke fun at myself. The kids are free to laugh in class. In fact, if they're not laughing at least once in class I feel like I've done something wrong."
Green Valley senior Janiece Norman, when asked what made Panik different than other teachers, said he is fun and can make hard science interesting.
"It's not boring, which is kind of amazing," Norman said. "He's really a good teacher, otherwise people wouldn't be taking him for two years."
Norman had Panik for two physics courses, one of which was Panik's popular advanced class for possible college credit. The lessons stuck with Norman, who rattled off the laws of motion without hesitation.
Panik said that is his ultimate goal as a physics teacher, to have students take what they learn outside the classroom.
"I've had kids go to shows that are in 3-D for prom, and they tell me they were explaining how 3-D works to their date," he said.
Every year Panik has a catapult contest and a mouse trap-propelled car race in applied physics. He asks students to bring in and play musical instruments for a lesson on the physics of sound.
He said he chose to become a teacher in part because of good teachers he had.
Panik, from Rochester, N.Y., holds a bachelor's degree in physics from the State University of New York. He has a master's in educational leadership from UNLV.
Panik will compete with teachers from across the nation for the National Teacher of the Year award.
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