How INGDA Teacher Litha Sonner Shows up for Her Students 

Litha Sonner is an algebra and consumer math teacher at Indiana Gateway Digital Academy (INGDA) who recently celebrated her fifth-year teaching. After working in IT, Litha went back to school to become a math teacher and began teaching in 2019 at an in-person Project-Based Learning (PBL) school. 

“I was very involved. I went to every play, every game,” Litha says. “Teachers need to show up for students to show we care.” 

After that school closed and Litha had the opportunity to come to INGDA, she was hesitant. She was worried she wouldn’t be able to connect as well with students or get enough support from other teachers or faculty. 

She quickly found that her worries were unfounded. 

A Supportive System 

From Enduring Connection Calls (ECCs) to meeting with families, small groups, and individual check-ins, Litha feels more connected at INGDA than in any brick-and-mortar school.  

“Teachers are only required to conduct ECCs with our homeroom students, but I do them with anyone who is not doing well in my class,” she says. “At INGDA, we have the time and space to conduct one-to-one sessions with students who need extra help.” 

Those sessions make a difference. Litha recently had a ninth-grade student in her algebra class whose math skills were only at a 3rd-grade level. Litha conducted one-to-one sessions with the student once a week to bring her skills up to her grade level. She ultimately passed algebra with a C and recently graduated from INGDA. 

Litha herself has individualized support, as well. 

“I’ve never had an administration this good,” she says. “Administrators are always available and will answer almost immediately. I can even write to the principal directly when needed, and she responds. It helps that she used to teach math, too, and understands the realities of teaching every day.” 

Space to Open Up 

Litha has noticed that students are more willing to open up online, saying, “The screen is like a protective wall; they open up about everything. I never experienced this in a brick-and-mortar school.” 

This also translates to social connections among students. They connect on a shared space known as K12 Zone, and Litha started hosting a regular social club with on-camera cooking parties in 2021. It began because she saw there were students in her last digital math classroom of the day who would stay logged on for hours just to hang out with each other. 

Now, it is much more than a simple social club. Open to and led by INGDA high schoolers, the students vote on the group’s leader, who will choose upcoming discussion topics. Litha and her colleagues even gave the group an official name: Dragon Leaders. They’re discussing opportunities to mentor middle schoolers soon. 

Flexibility to Teach and Learn 

Litha takes a different approach to teaching her consumer math classes than algebra. Algebra is a more traditional teaching method, whereas consumer math is much more flexible. Lessons last 10-15 minutes, and Litha dedicates the remainder of class to help with assignments. 

“Attendance fluctuates based on time of day,” she said. “Students can go back and listen to lessons at a later time and do their assignments when it works best for them.” 

She also tries to assess what individual students need, whether that’s pictures to show certain concepts, or extra motivation to care about their work. Litha believes when parents share in the care and experience of their child’s education, learning outcomes are higher. 

“That’s why I love to contact parents to tell them about how their child has improved, not just for the negatives,” she said. “It can motivate the whole family to care a little more and try a little harder.” 

As Litha says, “students are like medicine for a bad day. I get up every morning excited to start working.” 

And, INGDA is equally excited to have Litha on staff to educate the next generation of leaders. 

If you’re interested in a flexible and personalized learning environment for your student, learn more and enroll in INGDA today!  

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