Judy Warren teaches AP Human Geography to freshman through seniors and describes her teaching style as “abstract random.”

Because she is a kinesthetic learner, she incorporates many hands-on activities in her lessons, encouraging students to problem solve and use their heads. This includes teaming students up and putting them in the shoes of the people they are currently studying.

One of her popular activities includes having students create their own countries from scratch. They must make internal decisions, such as coming up with a national flag, and they must also interact with other teams: how much space will each team take up in the classroom? Will they invade other countries to reach the resources in another region? This activity shows the students that the ideas they study in Human Geography are relevant to life outside the classroom.

Warren is passionate about encouraging pupils to be themselves and live the best they can. This includes not only her students, but also people she encounters in passing. She often jokes about becoming a Walmart greeter because of her constant optimistic disposition.

“What I’ve realized is that you have to live a life you want to live. You can’t hold back. You gotta do what makes you happy,” Warren said. “That’s made my life fun.”