TAMPA, Fla. — Sheena Howell is one of those teachers with an endless supply of energy and ideas.

This fifth-grade teacher at Oak Park Elementary is famous for her writing boot camps. Her students even dress the part at times learning there lessons while singing, rapping, whatever it takes to make the lessons fun.

"We know it, we show it. Writing is success." Those wordsare reverberating in a song that is sung strong and loud. You can hear it down the hallways.

"I thought to put in into a boot camp song so they will remember it," said Ms. Howell, often times teaching the class from on top of a table in front of a white board. "So when we are testing or doing school work they have a song that they can chant to themselves so that they will remember it."

She also puts the students on a football field from time to time.  She gives them quizzes and for every correct answer her students are allowed to move forward.  The first student to answer the most questions correctly ends up the winner.

These kind of techniques are apparently working in this school where only one in five students are reading at grade level.  Here's what some of her students are saying.

"When I got to fifth grade I got way better!"

"I used to be below level in reading.  And ever since she became my teacher I’ve gone up a lot of levels in reading."

"My writing is amazing!"

Sheena's inspiration came in second grade in a school where she was bussed each day from what she says people used to call the projects.

"Mrs. Jackson was the only black teacher I saw in this mostly white school," she said. "She was very inspirational so I fell in love with teaching at that age."

When we told Sheena about her A+ teacher nomination award it was almost too much for this humble teacher to handle.

With teachers in her eyes she says, "I take pride in my job so when I hear some of the stuff they said about me and the parents… it was overwhelming. I'm honored because teaching is a job that's not celebrated enough."

Congratulations Sheena Howell for letting us honor you.