"Hi I'm Mercedes!

I graduated with honors from Berea College with a major in Communication and a minor in health. I started tutoring and working with students during high school at my church in a program called Whiz Kids. We worked with 2nd graders who had been identified by their teachers as needing help to be on target with their other class members. In addition, I tutored high school students in various subjects. After college graduation, I moved to Chiang Rai, Thailand. There I worked as an ESL teacher with grades 4,5, & 6. In this position, I taught grammar, vocabulary, writing, and conversational English. I created lesson plans, tests, and homework. We also did a variety of group projects, interactive lessons and presentations, all intended to keep the students engaged while building their confidence and to gauge their understanding of the English language. I learned to adapt and be flexible, according to the students' needs, and to modify lessons as necessary. During my classes, I used props such as toys, food, flash cards, music, and pictures to make the learning environment more dynamic and to foster an environment of excitement while learning more difficult topics. I remained in Thailand for over two years.

Upon my return to the USA, I was hired to teach English to Adult Learners. I created lesson plans, and accompanied the students on field trips so that they could have first hand experience with the language, to learn applicable life skills that had been taught in class. For example, when we talked about food, we went to restaurants and practiced the vocabulary and useful phrases that we had just studied in class. In addition to the field trip, they also had to create presentations: the students would pick a dish, make the dish, and then explain how they prepared it.

I recently returned from Istanbul Turkey where I taught kindergarten for approximately 6 months.

I love teaching English! I understand the difficulties that come with learning a new language. I am here to" less...