My name is Tony Marino and I am currently teaching sixth grade at Pershing Elementary. I grew up in Southern California and relocated to Fresno to pursue a degree in Business Administration at California State University, Fresno. Following college, I worked 15 years in the business sector and gained a lot of knowledge and experience that helped me transition into the educational field. I decided to make a career change and began teaching at Pershing Elementary in 2007, when the school first opened. I taught my first six years in fourth grade and then made a change to sixth grade, which I have really enjoyed ever since. MULES (Madera Unified League of Elementary Schools) has provided me an opportunity to build different relationships with my students, through all the different sports I have coached the last 15 years.

SUCCESS!! If I had to choose one word that would sum up everything I strive for day in and day out, that’s the word. My favorite joke I love to use in class all the time is, “Don’t Do Your Best, Do My Best.” As much as it makes me laugh each time I say it, the true message is always there. Having high expectations for my students with a combination of 100% effort is the formula for success in my class. In addition to having high expectations, building positive relationships is a must. When students know that you believe in them and that you care, they will begin to thrive. Whether it be a small task in front of them or an enormous test… just, “Do My Best.”

I have always felt that teaching reading or math is a simple process. I have never created anything new or reinvented the basics of teaching. I stick to the curriculum and provide the tools, the resources, and the knowledge for my students to reach their level of success. There are no days off. We show up ready to work and ready to succeed. I simply do what I feel is needed for each individual student to support and help them. I tell my kids all the time, if you want to be the best runner in life, you simply wake up each day, go outside, and RUN. Teaching is absolutely no different. Just TEACH!