With the recent celebration of Carnevale, what better way to recognize Italian culture at BHS than get insight from Mrs. Sagarese, an Italian teacher here at BHS! Mrs. Sagarese has been an Italian teacher for many years, and a favorite of many students! Everyday she brings Italian culture and knowledge to all of her students, and never fails to make class fun! Her comforting, fun and engaging classroom environment are some of the many aspects that make her such a special Italian teacher. 

The Eagles Cry: How many years have you been teaching at Bethpage High School? Were there any difficult moments as you first started teaching here?

• Mrs. Sagarese: “I started here in 2012, so that was around 14 years ago. I think the hardest part was since I started working at Our Lady Of Mercy private school at first the shift from private to public school was a big change with the differences in standards and how I created lessons. Although I must say, the public school system is a lot better at least in my experience.”

The Eagle’s Cry: What is your favorite part about teaching/being a teacher?

• Mrs. Sagarese: “My favorite part about being a teacher–espically an Italian teacher–is being able to connect through culture. I like being able to share personal stories and hear stories from others.”

The Eagle’s Cry: As an Italian teacher, what do you feel is the most important thing for your students to learn in Italian class? The grammar? Culture? History? 

• Mrs. Sagarese: “I think the most important aspect to learn is the culture. Grammar is good to learn and be able to express ourselves through but connecting to our own, and other cultures is very important and understanding that it is not about perfectionism.” 

The Eagle’s Cry: Did you have auy goals as you became a teacher here? Did you achieve them?

• Mrs. Sagarese: “Outside of the classroom, being able to create experiences and allow students to participate in Italian culture through events and clubs. When we had trips to Italy, that was always a big goal. I was happy to do that.” 

The Eagle’s Cry: What trips have you wanted to take your students on that you haven’t been able to yet? Why this trip?

• Mrs. Sagarese: “I do have a 6 year old but if we were to pick up trips again to Italy, I think the goal is to have students see what they don’t always hear about because there is so much more to see in Italy than just Rome and the most popular places, which are obviously great to see as well. But I think if we were to go back I would like to take the students somewhere new, where they could learn something completely new.” 

The Eagle’s Cry: What do you feel is the main difference between Italian and American culture? 

• Mrs. Sagarese: “I think we live in a society where it is all about what you achieve–we live to work and prioritize it. Whereas in Italy, they focus more on the day to day and try to enjoy the moment more. Here in America, we really live to work.”

The Eagle’s Cry: With Carnevale happening over the past month, do you celebrate Carnevale? If so, how?

• Mrs. Sagarese: Where my family comes from, we don’t traditionally celebrate Carnevale, but my mother always makes one of the authentic, Carnevale desserts, Chiacchiere. Our family doesn’t celebrate it much, but we definitely hold the food traditions.” 

The Eagle’s Cry: What do you believe is most important for your students to get out of (or learn) each year in Italian? 

• Mrs. Sagarrese: “It really is to ask yourself: Can you say you’ve progressed and expressed yourself better, not focusing on perfectionism. When we hear people speaking with accents, they are at least trying–It is tough to really achieve.”

The Eagle’s Cry: In what ways do you feel is best to keep your students motivated and engaged in the lessons or class?

• Mrs. Sagarese: “When it comes to languages, you have to see it and feel it which is hard to do. Learning and understanding the culture and languages comes with as many authentic things we can see or hear. Making crafts, watching videos can make a big difference in engagement, which I love to do when I can get the chance.”

The Eagle’s Cry: What do you see as the biggest challenge in teaching Italian, or for students to learn Italian –if there is any– and how do you work around it? 

• Mrs. Sagarese: “The biggest challenge is students can feel defeated too quickly. It’s hard to accept that you can’t be a perfectionist. Language learning is tough and we assume English is easy, but we aren’t alone so it is best to try to not feel the defeat because you can express yourself in different ways.”

The Eagle’s Cry: What do you believe inspired you or encouraged you to teach Italian to high school students? Was this your plan while still in school, or did you decide later on? 

• Mrs. Sagarese: “I didn’t know I was going to go into Italian when I went to college. I didn’t know what I wanted to teach. It has always been a passion of mine, not everyone is connected to their heritage. I wanted to inspire people to look into their heritage, or other heritages more.”

The Eagle’s Cry: Our school just had their Carnevale celebration. What was your favorite part about our celebration this year? What is your favorite part about the event in general?

• Mrs. Sagarese: “I like that these events are a great way to show the community what there is with our culture, the tradition and events. I like to see the families and kids that come, even if just through some crafts and food. It’s also nice to see alumni enjoy their time with the culture and language of Italian, they clearly held onto it after high school.”