I've been teaching for almost 20 years in the very urban and ESL environment of East Vancouver. 10 years in Kindergarten and the rest in Grade 1 and 2. I spent a year teaching Kindergarten in New Zealand in the year 2000. I am a classroom teacher who loves to teach music. I am also a teacher-mentor who loves to work with Student Teachers.
My teaching style has evolved the years. I strongly believe in demonstrating and supporting respect for all people in the class. That said, I also believe in structure and firm boundaries. I believe that children work best in an environment where they have a lot of choice to do hands-on activities. Children need plenty of opportunity to walk around and to talk when learning. I also strongly believe that children learn to read when they read every day, especially struggling readers.
I am a current Artisan Award winner from Stampin' Up!
I have three university degrees. A B.A. in English Language where I studied the history and development of the English Tongue, not the literature developed from it. I also have a B. Ed and a Masters of Education. I specialized in Primary education and curriculum development. I also have 10 years of classical piano training from the Royal Conservatory of Toronto.
In my former life as a single, carefree woman, I did a lot of travelling and had a lot of adventures. Now I work full-time as a teacher, have two children (oldest is in Kindergarten) and have a passion for papercrafting and scrapbooking as well as a passion for playing and watching Ice Hockey.