I distinctly remember my first day in Mr. Freeburg’s Modern Literature class. He started off with the syllabus and going over his own set of wacky rules, which included “If you know you or someone else in the room smells, come up to the board and spray them with this air freshener” and “I don’t go rummaging around in your backpacks or purses, so don’t go digging around in my desk drawers; the back of the room is my purse.” Mr. Freeburg had the whole class laughing and smiling, while also teaching everything on the curriculum with time to spare at the end. Mr. Andrew Freeburg is a different type of teacher. He is someone who stands out from the other instructors by the way he acts and by how he teaches.


Mr. Freeburg can definitely be considered strange at times; when students stump him with questions or mention something he never thought of, he punches at the air and kicks a fake cherry blossom tree he keeps in the corner of the room. If a predetermined number of students contribute new thoughts or questions into the group discussion, he gives us all As on upcoming quizzes or tests without taking them. He calls his students nicknames and playfully mocks us, but in a comedic way that isn’t hurtful and is never taken to heart. But most of all, he listens to us and accepts the differences between students and how they learn. These odd actions tend to raise a few brows, but it’s memorable to his students and he keeps their attention.


Mr. Freeburg has a very different way of teaching his students. He does this to both keep the students’ attention and to effectively teach them. He gave us a variety of projects throughout my time in Modern Literature, and he said we could surprise him with how we presented our projects as long as it met the requirements; in fact, for one project I presented a speech to go with a big drawing I made myself, and another student decided to write an opera involving the topic and sing it in front of the class. Mr. Freeburg also asked if any of the students didn’t wish to present to the class, and he’d take time out of his day after class or after school to watch presentations from those shy students.


He had us do very fun in-class activities to prepare us for the next book we were going to read, including looking for hidden messages in magazine ads, playing some of his favorite hard rock and metal tapes from his teen years, and playing fun games that got us laughing every time. Mr. Freeburg is a favorite among Arrowhead students because he realizes what students want and he adapts his teaching styles to fit the students’ wishes.


I can guarantee that you’ll never meet another individual like Mr. Freeburg; he’s the most down-to-earth, humorous, engaging teacher I know. He has a Tumblr account; he skateboards even in his middle-aged years; he listens to hard rock music; and he has the most likeable personality of any teacher I’ve ever had! I truly believe Mr. Andrew Freeburg is worthy of winning the greatest teacher contest, for his memorable teaching and unpredictable actions are some things I will never forget.