Mr. Teacher
Ozzie Tollefson attended a one-room country school from first through eighth grade. He was raised on an 80-acre farm in northern Minnesota by his Norwegian mother, who saw five of her sons go off to war. Mr. Teacher, though a work of fiction, draws heavily on Ozzie’s experiences growing up during World War II. Ozzie is retired after 48 years in education, 15 as a classroom teacher in New Jersey, and 33 years as a touring assembly program performer. Using his background in teaching and theater, he produced and performed educational programs on a number of subjects, including dinosaurs, whales, and Native Americans. He has given over 6,000 performances in 1,500 schools in 17 states. There are over one million people who have seen Ozzie’s programs.