It’s almost certain that a majority of CdM students check up on the school’s main Instagram account regularly to determine schedules and events, but this time the Instagram account’s story was flooded with a three-part vlog by none other than Mr. Gardner. Gardner is a teacher here at CdM who teaches 11th-grade U.S. History as well as 7th and 10th-grade English. He starts his day at 5:50 a.m., slightly before sunrise to head off and get his regular morning coffee from Starbucks. Who doesn’t “love a good little trip to Starbucks,” he mentions, not forgetting to thank the employees working there. The vlog is filmed with a BeReal-style camera setting as Gardner wondered, “Should I be filming myself, or where I’m going? I found that dual camera on Snapchat.”
He continues his morning by arriving at the nearly empty school which he finds quite relaxing with “no students, no problems.” Mr. Gardner heads straight to his classroom to plan out the week and do some light reading to pass some time. He continues throughout his day, making sure to vlog his visit to his good friend Mr. Reynolds’ classroom for a quick, very enthusiastic, hello. He spends lunchtime in his classroom, making sure to give some screen time to his students, and indulging in none other than a lovely Starbucks meal acquired early that morning. After finishing the school day, he heads off to coach some football practice and ends his vlog with a small goodbye while walking out of campus. Students found the vlog itself entertaining as well as Gardner’s humorous commentary throughout. Nicole Maya, a junior here at CdM as well as one of Mr. Gardener’s U.S. history students states, “I admire that he wakes up at 5 every morning,” she laughs, while adding, “he’s productive.”
The entire Instagram story takeover seemed natural, but it was soon discovered when questioning Gardner himself that “ASB asked [him] to, so [he] just..did it.” He continues that he was “100% peer pressured into doing this.” When asked if he would ever consider being a full-time teacher vlogger, Gardner responded, “There’s literally zero desire in me to be a vlogger or influencer of any kind.” Though this most probably eliminates any hopes of seeing Mr. Gardner become a regular face on CdM’s Instagram, the time he took to “take over” the Instagram and film his day (for the enjoyment of anyone lucky enough to have witnessed the story) is immensely appreciated.