My passion for science began in sixth grade. I had a phenomenal teacher who opened my eyes up to how to apply science to the world around me and changed my perspective on school. Instead of thinking about biology as “the study of life,” I came to see it as “the study of things around me.” Memorizing facts and terminology can be extremely difficult but understanding both the flow and logic behind biology and chemistry and their relevance to our lives makes the material not only easier, but...
My passion for science began in sixth grade. I had a phenomenal teacher who opened my eyes up to how to apply science to the world around me and changed my perspective on school. Instead of thinking about biology as “the study of life,” I came to see it as “the study of things around me.” Memorizing facts and terminology can be extremely difficult but understanding both the flow and logic behind biology and chemistry and their relevance to our lives makes the material not only easier, but also more fun. I later fostered this love of learning at UC Santa Cruz where I received a BS in Biology. My fondest memories at UCSC, where earned a bachelor’s degree in biology, were holding tutoring and study sessions in chemistry, biology, and physics. I enjoyed seeing my friends and peers succeed, and I found myself motivated to help others around me excel. I love bonding with and seeing my students grow. I love seeing that look of understanding and amazement as things finally clicked into place. I am so proud to get to know them as students but also as such wonderful and interesting people.
My teaching philosophy is to try and break down the big ideas into smaller bite sized pieces and gradually, like with Legos, put the knowledge that has just been learned back together into a big picture, looking at all of the little pieces and connections. I want to guide my students through learning until they build the confidence and study skills to do it themselves; I see my job as being to teach, not to do their work for them. I enjoy the 1-on-1 tutoring environment as I can customize my approach with each student. With a visual learner, we can draw out the steps of mitosis. With an auditory learner, we can create a fun saying for each of the steps. With a kinesthetic learner, we can pretend each of our hands are the chromosomes going through the steps of segregation. Overall, I work to build strong relationships with my students so that I can not only teach them the material, but also make the learning experience fun.
