When Coach Castro (better known as “Mary Jane” to the sixth grade girls), was in sixth grade, he was an average student. He kept busy, stayed out of trouble and liked sports. Maybe that is why he is a P.E teacher. A few days ago, I interrupted his floor hockey class, but he still agreed to be asked a few questions. The native of Queens, N.Y moved because the teaching jobs here were better and easier to find. I am pretty sure that he could have found a PE teaching job up in Queens though. Before he took up teaching, he played professional soccer and attended a college called SUNY Cortland. Despite his impressive background he does not coach any MMS teams. However, he did coach two C.A.S.L. teams. Both of those teams finished number one in the state. I see a MMS coaching job in his future. Despite that, it’s not just soccer that he likes tied for his favorite sport is basketball. His favorite sport to watch is football. Although one of his favorite sports is basketball, he does not care about the NBA lockout, and prefers college basketball.

Even though he looked very happy when I interrupted him in the middle of his floor hockey and appears to love his job, he says that he would like some jobs more than the one that he has currently the job he would like the most would be a college coach or becoming a doctor. The MMS teachers are all pretty close but he says that he is best friends with the PE teachers at MMS; Coach Hill and Coach Calabrese. From time to time when for some reason, we cannot do our real electives, we play games. These games usually involve throwing dodge balls as fast as you can at or near another player. His favorite of these games is called Greek Dodge. This is pretty much like regular dodge ball, except you play for points, by achieving certain tasks. His favorite elective to teach, he says is probably flag football. His favorite NFL team is the Giants (hence his birthplace).

He has been teaching at MMS for seven years. That is at least twice as long as any students have been here at MMS. He has also been teaching two years longer than our principle. He chooses to teach P.E because he likes kids and he enjoys sports. Finally, I asked him if his name was Mary Jane, he never answered. Coach Castro, the former average middle school students and professional soccer player, obviously has lots of teaching and coaching talent. He is also a very nice man and a very fun PE teacher. I hope that that after reading this blog you know coach Castro more than you did before.