Gordon Eckersley

Gordon Eckersley (Mr. E)

Mr. Eckersley  graduated from Layton High in 1970 where he played football, basketball, and ran track.  He served as student body president, and sang bass in the show choir, Laytones.  Soon after graduation Mr. E. went on a mission to Montreal, Quebec, French speaking.  After his mission he completed his bachelor's degree at Weber State in psychology.  Previous to his junior year at Weber, Mr. E. Married Debbie Monsen from Washington Terrace.  Together they had six children, who have given them 17 grandchildren with a great-granddaughter on the way.  After college Mr. E. became a seminary teacher and loved his 36 year career.  In 1983, Mr. E. received an M.Ed. in guidance and counseling form BYU.  In 2013 Mr. E. retired from Church Education and became a mentor at Ascend where he has loved every year, every class, and every student.

  • 6th & 7th Grades

    Students will read 6 to 7 books a semester. Two in history, two in leadership, and two to three in literature. It is well paced so the students don't get overwhelmed by the amount of reading they have to do at any one time. Those with reading disabilities may need some help. Students are held accountable for their reading through spot checks. Students are supposed to mark books as they read, if they do and they have marked their books, mostly underlining, they get a Jolly Rancher or something similar. Each reading is followed by a class discussion, where more marking and writing in the margin takes place. During discussion time students are asked to share their thoughts, share what they have underlined, debate an issue, role play, memorize major principles, write in the margin, and write short essays. Sometimes games are played to review the readings from our history book.

    We get to know each other very well and Mr. E. requires the students to use his and each other's names. We also learn 50 people skills and will practice them in class and hopefully outside of class.

    Learning is based on repetition, practice, and memorizing with only a small amount of testing. We call our class, "The Foundation Class," because it truly is a place where they will learn foundational principles of success. They will learn growth principles, social skills, and leadership principles. They will learn how to succeed, how to fail forward, and how to become lifelong learners.

  • 7th Grade

    Description goes here