As a kid, I used to come home and try to teach our housekeeper the Latin I had learned in school that day, so my brother always said I would become a teacher. I grew up visiting all the historic places in and around the nation's capital, so being fascinated with and loving history was basically a given. Political Science was a natural outgrowth of that in college. I loved teaching U.S. History, Geography and U.S. Government. I taught in the Gifted Academy in our high school until retirement and took my Government classes to the state finals in the We the People Simulated Congressional hearings for many years. I loved taking classes on the Constitution in the summer as well as enrichment extended learning at historic sites like Mount Vernon, Montpelier, the House of Representatives. I was in the inaugural class of the House Fellows, 2006, learning about the history and workings of the House of Representatives; I had an NEH grant to study Washington and his role in the making of America at Mount Vernon; I spent an extended weekend of rigorous academic study focusing on James Madison and his role in the development of our government, at Montpelier; and another extended weekend at the Civil Rights Institute in Birmingham, Alabama. (Among other experiences). I have traveled enough internationally to use my experiences as springboards for discussion, examples, and comparisons.
I like to focus on vocabulary as the foundation of any subject area. If one cannot speak or understand the language of the subject, the student cannot grasp an understanding of it. I am adept at using real world examples and applications for drawing the student to the subject. I try to make learning fun and enjoyable, rather than dull, boring and repetitive.
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