4th Grade

Hi, I am Philip Heyrend. I currently teach 4th grade at Neil Armstrong Academy. I love teaching and have taught for over 20 years in 4th, 5th, and 6th grades. I love 4th! I graduated from the University of Utah and Utah State Universities. I am married and have 3 wonderful children (1 boy and 2 girls). We have 2 cats at home, and we live in Tooele. I love teaching at Neil Armstrong and have found it to be a very special school, not like any of the others that I have worked at before. It is definitely because of the faculty, students, and families that are a part of our learning community.

Hi! I'm Nicole McCrea, and I've had the privilege of teaching at Armstrong for the past 14 years. I absolutely love teaching fourth grade and all the curiosity, growth, and excitement that comes with it. My favorite part of teaching is seeing my students experience those wonderful "aha!" moments when a concept they've been working hard to learn finally makes sense. I enjoy creating a positive, engaging classroom where learning is both meaningful and fun, and I love organizing and planning activities that help my students make lasting memories while they learn. I look forward to helping each of my students grow in confidence, discover their potential, and have a fantastic year! Outside the classroom, I've been happily married to my husband, Jim, for 26 years, and we have one wonderful daughter. As a family, we love to swim, travel, watch movies together, and spend time with our pets, which include several fish and a rabbit. In my free time, you'll often find me working in my garden. I like to joke that I'm a "domestic horticulturist" because I love growing potted flowers and plants. Halloween is my favorite holiday, and every year I have fun creating a new spooky theme in my front yard to delight all the trick-or-treaters who stop by. Whether I'm in the classroom, in my garden, or dreaming up my next Halloween display, I enjoy planning, creating, and helping things grow!