~My Background~
~ What draws me to teaching is simply the opportunity to show my students the world. Not strictly in the geographical sense, but the world of literature as well, and mathematics, and science, and the myriad of cultures that populate the world, as a way to aid their discovery of what sparks their interest and perhaps a new and lifelong passion.
~ My classroom teaching career began in 1997 when I was hired to teach 5th grade in the Olentangy Public School District, an area just north of my hometown of Columbus, Ohio. I had just completed the M.Ed program in Early and Middle Childhood Education at the Ohio State University and was quite delighted to find a job right away.
~ Previous to my education studies, I worked as an historical interpreter at Plimoth Plantation Museum in Plymouth, Massachusetts for six years. As many of you who have visited the Plantation already know, being a costumed role player involves talking with visitors about the social customs, religious beliefs, and family life in the 17th century. Luckily for me, this work gave me the opportunity to visit hundred of classrooms throughout New England, and inspired me to bring my teaching skills to the classroom, where I felt I could make a difference and bring a form of experiential learning to the classroom. And the joy works both ways, because it gives me such pleasure to see children develop a deep curiosity for a given subject and grow in their confidence as lifelong readers and writers, as well as see the happiness in their faces when their creativity shines.
~ Before working at Plimoth Plantation, I graduated with a Master's degree in History Museum Studies from Cooperstown Graduate Programs and S.U.N.Y Oneonta and a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Notre Dame. It's been quite a journey that's landed me in Scituate, Massachusetts and I'd so delighted to have been teaching here since the fall of 1999.
~ These days I am quite active in community theater; I've become a die-hard Patriots fan; and I'm the proud caretaker of two pugs, Badger and Bear ( whom you'll see featured in this website). I reside in Marshfield, not too far from the beach, which is always quite appreciated by someone who was raised in the Midwest. I lead a great life, and so much so comes from the joy that comes with teaching 4th grade!
~ My classroom teaching career began in 1997 when I was hired to teach 5th grade in the Olentangy Public School District, an area just north of my hometown of Columbus, Ohio. I had just completed the M.Ed program in Early and Middle Childhood Education at the Ohio State University and was quite delighted to find a job right away.
~ Previous to my education studies, I worked as an historical interpreter at Plimoth Plantation Museum in Plymouth, Massachusetts for six years. As many of you who have visited the Plantation already know, being a costumed role player involves talking with visitors about the social customs, religious beliefs, and family life in the 17th century. Luckily for me, this work gave me the opportunity to visit hundred of classrooms throughout New England, and inspired me to bring my teaching skills to the classroom, where I felt I could make a difference and bring a form of experiential learning to the classroom. And the joy works both ways, because it gives me such pleasure to see children develop a deep curiosity for a given subject and grow in their confidence as lifelong readers and writers, as well as see the happiness in their faces when their creativity shines.
~ Before working at Plimoth Plantation, I graduated with a Master's degree in History Museum Studies from Cooperstown Graduate Programs and S.U.N.Y Oneonta and a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Notre Dame. It's been quite a journey that's landed me in Scituate, Massachusetts and I'd so delighted to have been teaching here since the fall of 1999.
~ These days I am quite active in community theater; I've become a die-hard Patriots fan; and I'm the proud caretaker of two pugs, Badger and Bear ( whom you'll see featured in this website). I reside in Marshfield, not too far from the beach, which is always quite appreciated by someone who was raised in the Midwest. I lead a great life, and so much so comes from the joy that comes with teaching 4th grade!