Gardens third-grade teacher Tahnisha Bernard with her students, a cheering section for her Super Bowl-bound brother, Rocky Bernard.

  Green and yellow, the favorite colors of the Gardens Elementary Gators, are sharing the decorating stage this week with the red and blue of the New York Giants, the new favorite football team at Gardens -- at least, until after the Super Bowl on Sunday.
  Tahnisha Bernard, a third-grade teacher at Gardens, will be flying to Indianapolis on Friday to watch her brother, Rocky Bernard, face the New England Partiots in Super Bowl XLVI.
  Rocky, a defensive tackle for the Giants who played college football at Texas A&M, will be playing in his second Super Bowl. Six years ago, he posted a career-high 8 1/2 sacks in a loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers.
  "This time," Tahnisha says, "will definitely be different."
  Tahnisha teammed up with Gardens staff on Thursday to present a "Steps to Success" lesson for her students. Principal Celia Fleischman and assistant principal Vicki Lenio explained Bernard's career path, from his high-school days at Sterling High in Baytown, to his studies at A&M, to his success in the NFL.
  Bernard has two sisters teaching in the Pasadena ISD. His younger sister, Azuree Bernard, is a first-grade teacher at Jensen Elementary.
  "I'm so proud of him," said Tahnisha, Bernard's older sister. "He's been working hard for this for a long, long time."
  Bernard is finishing up his 10th season in the NFL. He was a fifth-round draft choice of the Seahawks in 2002.

Gardens assistant principal Vicki Lenio, school Principal Celia Fleischman, librarian Brenda Putnam and teacher Tahnisha Bernard present a "Steps to Success" lesson to Bernard's class in the cafeteria on Thursday.

Lenio and Fleishman post terms and signs to explain Rocky Bernard's journey to the NFL.

Go Rocky! Students and staff give a cheer for the Super Bowl-bound New York Giant.