
HELLO,
I'm Rich Shope and I am currently a fourth grade teacher at Kitty Hawk Elementary. My passion is teaching gifted education and advocating for this population of students.




Current Assignment
Teaching Gifted and Talent Pool fourth grade math students at Kitty Hawk Elementary.
Teaching fourth grade at Kitty Hawk Elementary School.
TESTIMONIAL
"Rich Shope has a way with his students that I have come to admire sincerely. He recognizes their individual strengths and challenges both academically and personally, and presents material in a way that captivates the students attention. He is able to command the attention of a very large class size, no easy feat, and his blend of a controlled environment along with humor and his sheer enthusiasm for teaching makes for an atmosphere that I believe is perfect for encouraging curiosity and learning, giving positive reinforcement all along. While my son has always been a strong student (we at one point considered moving to allow him to attend a specialty school), this year under Mr. Shope’s guidance he has had the desire to go above and beyond the “bare minimum” for the first time that I’ve seen, and his confidence has soared."
- Lindsey
TESTIMONIAL
"...the story of Mr. Shope I most want to share that I will cherish forever is the experience our older son Robert had in his class. We moved to the Outer Banks when Robert started 3rd grade. Robert was a bright kid, but one that honestly didn't know how to apply himself and wasn't overly excited/engaged in school (even with a great teacher in Diane Childress in3rd). In 4th grade, Rich Shope would say that he and Robert started off their year together a bit rocky. But, I would tell you (as would Robert) that the year with Mr Shope in math and homeroom was the turning point for Robert. During the year, Mr. Shope recognized the potential in Robert and really pulled it out of him - by the end of the year, we couldn't keep Robert out of a book and he had a voracious interest in learning. He loved his math and was learning to gradually take his time to really problem solve and understand the logic behind things. He blossomed with Mr. Shope. It was a night and day change from his previous years, and it has been a consistent trend that hasn't wavered since. While Robert had not qualified for Mrs. Hardy's class previously based on our being new to town and not performing at that level, Mr. Shope saw something special in Robert and took the time to nurture it. It makes me so proud to share that Robert is now a rising 8th grader and he is in all honors classes and is a straight A student - I truly believe that Rich Shope is one of the root causes of Robert's success. While Robert might have already had the sheer intellect, it was the gift of teaching of Mr. Shope that inspired and brought it out in him.
- April