"I am a teacher that likes to learn. Did I always like learning, no. You might be surprised to read this, but it wasn't always the teachers that helped me be comfortable with, or love learning. It was the people that I went to for help, my tutors, that guided me on the path to loving what I learned. They didn't make it about having to pass a test, or having to learn things to pass a grade. All that my tutors ever desired from me was my personal feeling of success. They had nothing riding on my grades. They merely cared about me, on how I was doing, and how they could help me by making my work easier. That is all I ever strive to do, even as a teacher.

Yes, I do want my students to learn the topics at hand. That is very important. But it is more important to me that my students not be struggling to understand the things that they are trying to learn. If they are constantly feeling like they are fighting a losing battle in keeping up with the expectations everyone else puts on them, how are they going to feel confident about learning new topics? I want to help my students jump these hurdles, by giving them tools to succeed, and exploring others if the ones I provide do not work. There is nothing worse than feeling like you are a failure no matter what you do, and I want to help as many students as I can to get through those difficult subjects, and possibly even enjoy learning.

I have a Masters of Education in Elementary Education. I have been teaching in fifth and sixth grade classrooms for 3 years, with many more years of student teaching and volunteering in all grade levels from K-6.

Not only am I a qualified teacher with certification, and 3 years of teaching experience under my belt, but I am also a published author of children's stories. The stories my children and I have written together have inspired many of my students to go on writing themselves. It is a wonderful experience seeing the look they get in their eyes when they realize they can actually write and come up with amazing sto" less...