After my graduation from Michigan Lutheran Seminary in 2002, I attended Delta College and transferred to Saginaw Valley State University completing with honors a Bachelors Degree in Elementary Special Education with an endorsement in Cognitive Impairments and an English minor.
Student teaching gave me experience teaching a semester in a regular 2nd grade classroom and a semester with third-sixth grade CI students. My substitute teaching experience includes Young Fives, ECDD, first-fifth grade classrooms, Learning Disabled Resource Room and the Millet Learning Center. Over the last six months I enjoyed the experience of student teaching in a Second Grade classroom at Hemlock Elementary and a Third through Sixth Grade CI Classroom at Freeland Elementary School.
My tutoring experiences have been on a volunteer basis. One of the Second Grade students I student taught at Hemlock Elementary struggled with math and reading. I worked with her after school for an hour two days a week giving her supplemental reading to do along with sight word cards to review. I also worked with her using an educational website www.starfall.com. This website helped her do fun language arts activities. In math, I worked with her on her homework breaking down concepts to help her understand those better using classroom manipulatives. Zion Lutheran Church has a volunteer program, Tutoring At Zion (TAZ) in which I worked with students who struggled with reading and math. I volunteered this past year every other Saturday. The children would bring in their homework from school they needed help with or parents would send instructions to the tutors on specific areas to work with their child. The church also had supplemental materials to help teach different concepts.
My teaching style is hands-on and creative. I also teach according to student’s learning styles. I have compassion towards children and I want them all to succeed no matter what it takes on my part. My passion in life is to teach children.