I am a recent graduate of the University of Connecticut with a bachelor's degree in English and a minor in Spanish. I graduated Cum Laude with an cumulative G.P.A. of 3.62. I particularly excelled in the area of English Literature where I developed and fine-tuned the skills of literary analysis, writing composition, and language dissection. I am passionate about language, language learning, and literature.
In addition to coursework in literature, I also attended classes on Language Acquisition and Child Development. I have assisted students of all ages and backgrounds. While in high school and college I held the position of camp counselor and assistant camp director. Here, I planned and administered activities for children ages 4-12.
In the summer of 2007 I traveled to Costa Rica and completed an internship through Cross Cultural solutions. While in Costa Rica I worked in a multicultural and multilingual context expanding my Spanish conversational skills as well as my ability to explicate and teach English. I assisted and English teacher in a Costa Rican public school. After observing her and her techniques I began teaching my own classes, creating language worksheets, activities, and games.
While in my senior year of my undergraduate education I participated in a program on campus known as Conversational Partners. I worked closely with a Korean English Language learner. My partner, Hyun, was a 54 year old art teacher from Korea who came to the United States for a year long intensive English program. We met several times a week to work on conversational English skills. I would assist her with her homework as well as explain English's idiosyncrasies and cultural norms. In addition to these weekly meetings we would also go out and practice real world English. We developed a friendship through our meetings and still communicate today.
I believe that Language learning, whether it be a second language or improving upon skills for a first language, should be facilitated in a relaxing and patient environment. In all of my tutoring and teaching experiences I have always maintained a high level of patience while at the same time inciting active participation from the student. My number one priority is the learner's understanding. I will exhaust all avenues to create understanding. I am a student of language so I understand how challenging and frightening it can be.
I am currently a Teaching English as a Second Language master's student at Hunter College. I would be happy to assist anyone in the areas of Literature, English Language, Reading, or subjects at the Elementary level.