Final Learning Specialist Proposal

For the last seven weeks I have been working on putting together a technology proposal as I prepare to take on the role of a learning specialist in a school. This project has taken me through multiple steps to prepare a completed project proposal. Below is the proposal I put together.




Overall, the process has been a super positive one. I have enjoyed working through each of the steps in order to complete my proposal. I enjoyed the fact that each step had specific requirements so that I knew exactly what needed to be done and when. It really helped me keep my ideas organized and made sure that I wasn't missing anything when I put together the final proposal.

There really haven't been many challenges or negative parts to this process. If anything, it was difficult to find coworkers that were willing to help me by looking over my proposal. As we all know teachers are very busy. My coworkers are as well. Once I found a couple that were willing to help me, they were really excited about what I had planned for our school.

This brings me to the most positive aspect of this process. I really liked getting all the positive feedback from my coworkers and principal. It really helped motivate me to keep working on making my proposal effective.

I am really excited to see what can come of this proposal. Although my class is over, I really would like to see my plan play out in my school. My plan is to make my school less paper based by beginning to integrate Google Classroom more. I would like to continue to work on this throughout this year. I do believe that it will make a huge difference in instruction at my school. It will help us reduce our paper usage which was my initial reason for creating this plan.

I'm also really excited to continue to grow in the roll of learning and instructional specialists. I think that it is an incredibly important roll in a school. A learning specialist has the ability to make such a big difference in their school. They are a great resource for their staff.

Learning Specialist Proposal Reflection

For my next class in the program towards my Masters in Arts of Education, I am working on creating a Technology Specialist proposal to implement in my school. We are working through the ADDIE model to create a technology plan to solve a problem in our schools. The ADDIE model is a an instructional design model that teachers can use when they are creating lessons or units. This ADDIE model requires teachers to analyze the learner, the context they are trying to teach, and the environment that they are teaching in.

My Proposal 

For my proposal, I decided to solve my schools paper shortage. This year myself and the teacher in my school have been given a paper limit. Each of us it quickly moving through our paper allotment, and fearing for what we are going to do when we run out of paper. For this reason, I have decided to work on implementing paper saving methods into the classrooms. I am planning on using Google Classroom to help reduce paper, as well as our interactive Mimio projectors. These are all tools we have always had access too, but they aren't used as frequently as they should be throughout the school. 

The Process

The process has been good so far. The only challenge I really had was coming up with the problem to solve in step one. I had a lot of different ideas, but some of them seemed like way to far of a reach for my first proposal as a technology specialist. I really feel like so much good can be done through this position, but I wanted to start with something that was more within reach. The other projects can come later on in the future. 

I am still very excited to work on implementing my proposal. I really do think that my school will benefit from paper reduction strategies. This is a great thing to implement in any school, not just schools with a paper shortage. I think that the students will really enjoy this as well. They will get to become more familiar with the Chromebooks, specifically Google Classroom, which is a great tool for life in general. I can't wait to see the outcome of this proposal. 

So far I have enjoyed speaking to my coworkers about the proposal. They seems like they really liked they idea, and they had also thought about starting something similar, but didn't know how. They liked that someone was taking the initiative to solve the paper problem because it has become such a sour subject in our school. Everyone is excited to see what will come of this, and that makes me really excited about it. I haven't really had any negative experiences yet. 

Role of the Technology Specialist 

I think that the role of the technology specialist is incredibly important. They are learning specialists that really target the use of technology in the school. I know first hand that teachers are really busy. They don't always have time to think about ways to incorporate technology. Having a technology specialist there to help design the instruction to best incorporate 21st century learning strategies is a priceless addition to a school. I'm really excited to see how I can help my school by taking on this role now and in the future. 

EDU 776 - Reflection

Wow! It is so hard to believe that this course only began about seven weeks ago. It has flown by, and I feel like I have learned so much and grown when it comes to technology in education.

I have had knowledge of how to incorporate technology into my classroom ever since I worked in a one-to-one iPad setting. I always thought I knew quite a bit since we had a lot of technology training through that school. Since I moved out of that school, however, I felt as though I went backwards in my technology use. After finishing this course I feel a new sense of encouragement to work with what I have and build hands-on, student centered technology back into my teaching.

Image Source

I really enjoyed learning about all the possible tools there are for use in the classroom. Some of the great tools that I was introduced to during this course were; Screencastify, Nearpod, Thinglink, and, Blogger itself.  I really hope to be able to incorporate Nearpod and Thinglink into my classroom this year. I even learned about ways I can further use technology that I already use in my classroom such as Class Dojo.

The week about our Digital Tattoo was possibly my favorite and the most shocking. It was really interesting to dive into my online "tattoo". I couldn't believe all the information that was publicly out about me online. I can't wait to bring that type of online responsibility lesson back to my students so that my students can really start becoming aware of what they put online and how it might effect them in the future.

I was pushed beyond my technology comfort zone personally as well. While I had a blog when I studied abroad about seven years ago, it was very basic. I learned so much about how to create a blog as well as a website during this course. I learned how to have and take part in a PLN (professional learning community). I can't wait to keep using my professional Twitter to grow as an educator and connect with other educators around the world. I think all three of these elements will help me grow as an educator and help me if I ever try to branch out and find a new job.

I always knew that technology had an important place in education. I know now that it is becoming more and more important to incorporate into instruction and teach about in schools.

Social Media

This week was all about social media, how it is used in schools and classrooms, and how educators can use it as a tool to enhance their instruction. After taking a look at a few articles surrounding social media, there was one that really struck me. It was called, The Power of Storytelling.

This article, seemingly written by an administrator of a district in Wisconsin named Joe Saneflippo, spoke about storytelling and how it has always had a place in our schools, but it has changed over time. He starts with a striking story about a kindergartener who assumed, when she saw him taking pictures and recording video, that he would be posting them on Facebook. He said, "she smiled the entire time and said she couldn’t wait to get home to check the Facebook page."

Image Source 

He goes onto say that storytelling is an innate part of human nature. Everyone wants a story. When we are children it is a story before bedtime. When we get older it is the stories we tell to fellow adults over dinner or watch on tv. Saneflippo mentions that in schools each and every child of the school has a story to tell. As teachers it is out job to help tell them. This means we have to adapt to the new ways of storytelling. Students are less likely to share their own stories.

With today's technology we have storytelling at our finger tips. It no longer requires sitting down to actually talk with someone. Saneflippo says, "The reality is meaningful conversations take place all the time…they just happen in smaller pieces and on our time." This happens through Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, etc.

Saneflippo states that students these days are less likely to share when asked the question "how was your day?" This changes however when a parent references something specific they saw that the child did, something the teacher or school posted for the families to see. We as teachers have the responsibility to help facilitate this storytelling for the students.

My Thoughts

When I first read this article, I was struck with how true this actually is for life in general, not just for schools. I know in my daily life, what is posted online often sparks a lot of meaningful conversations. These conversations are about things people probably wouldn't have shared before the internet.

Students are the same way. They have grown up with storytelling at their fingertips. They can click on a Youtube video, a Facebook post, etc and get an entire story in seconds. This is what they are used to, and we have to use that same tool in schools. Teachers have the ability to get a lot of storytelling started through the use of social media. It keeps the parents connected to the classroom, and gives them something to talk to their children about.

Like I said in a previous post, I have been using Class Dojo to post weekly about what our general focus is for the week, and daily about homework and reminders. I think I might start posting even more specifics and even pictures about what we are doing. This way the parents can get a better idea of what we are doing in school. If I can help promote better relationships and more storytelling for my students, I will feel like I am being an effective educator beyond the classroom. It's crazy how much power social media can have.

Digital Tattoo

Wow! This week's activity was very eye opening. I didn't know that there were so many different places that my information could be published online. This week I completed a data mine on myself. What this means is that I used a handful of different search engines and looked up myself.

My Data Mine

The first place that I searched was Nuwber. I started by typing in my first and last name without a location. There were a lot of search results. I thought I found myself on the second page because it had my name and the name of the city I grew up in, but when I clicked on it, it wasn't me. It was a women with a different address, phone number, and past addresses. This did remind me that there was another Elizabeth Van in my town. She went to my same doctor, and they once got our records mixed up even though we were very different ages. Once I added my location I came up as the fifth and tenth results. They had my name, age, location, the last place I lived, my parents' names, and my siblings names. 

After that I searched my Twitter and Instagram user name "blou_van" in google. I was surprised to see that the first results were links to hashtags that I used to use in college even though my twitter is private. When I clicked on images I was really shocked. Images of my college roommate, sister, and a few other college friends showed up. There were also a few pictures that I had posted and the twitter page of my college. 

Google Search Results (Image Source) 

I next went to Pipl. I think I found this one the most shocking. They had my current Facebook profile picture, my age, location, where I studied abroad, my usernames, and all of my immediate family members names. They a place of work for my as well, but it was two years old. At the bottom of the page they had links to my (very outdate) Linkedin, Facebook, Pinterest, and outdate Foursquare account. 

I went to Radaris. This website had a lot less information. They had an outdated location, and my age. They had a list of relatives that included my siblings, including my sister-in-law (the first time I saw her name), my step-mom, mom, but not my father. 

When I googled my names as "Elizabeth M. Van", I didn't come up in any of the first few pages of Google. There was one image of me when I clicked on images. 

I went to Truthfinder and Instant Checkmate last. These two sites looked almost the same from the moment I opened them. Both of these websites had my locations (current and past), my name, age, and immediate relatives. What I found interesting on Instant Checkmate is that my sister in law showed up right below me. She has the same name as me (other than middle) since her last name changed when she married my brother. Her information was also correct. 

Reflection 

This was really eye opening to me. The information that I found throughout these searches was generally very similar across all the search engines. They generally knew my name (first, middle, last), where I live currently, where I have lived, and my immediate family members names. Pipl, by far, had the most information. It doesn't really bother me that this information is out there. These are all things that could easily be figured out based on my Facebook page. 

School Setting

I definitely think this is something that needs to be taught in the school setting. In fact, just last week, the technology specialist in my school came into my room and did a lesson on internet safety with my 4th grade students. I think as soon as the kids begin to get their own pages or become active on the internet they should get some sort of age-appropriate lesson on internet safety.  These kids grow up with the internet in the palm of their hands, and if they don't know how to use it safely and protect themselves from an early age, they could run into a lot of trouble as they grow up. 

PLN Experience

I have had a personal twitter account for years now. I can't even tell you how long. I was very active on it when I first opened it sometime in college. Since then my twitter activity has decreased to the point where I mostly just use it to read news. I will occasionally retweet something I really liked.

I have just recently learned about PLNs or Professional Learning Communities. Basically a PLN is a community of fellow educators that have come together to reflect on teaching, share experience and ideas in the world of education, and help each other with professional topics. In order to dive into the world of PLNs I opened up a professional twitter account. After weighing many different twitter handles I landed on @TeacherMsVan. It's simple, professional, and easily identifies who I am.

Image Source

Initially I was worried that I would have a hard time finding people to follow and joining into a PLN. I was incorrect, because after creating my handle I instantly found a few other users that I wanted to follow. As I followed more and more people, companies, and educators I found that my feed was becoming full of so many inspiring posts, great teaching ideas, and tools.

Resource 

One resource that I discovered through Twitter was the Mystery Science page. I have been using Mystery Science for about a year now, and I feel like I am just discovering what it has to offer. By finding their twitter (hosted by the program) I was able to see more Mystery Science in action.  It's great to have a reference for what some of the activities are supposed to look like, and see how other teachers have incorporated them into their classes. From their page I discovered the Next Generation Science Standards page. This again is a great resource for teaching science. I can't wait to dive deeper into these pages, as well as others, to really see what they have to offer. 

#TwitterChat

After I got more and more comfortable with my new professional twitter, I decided it was time to participate in a #twitterchat. I took a look at a list of possible education chats and instantly felt overwhelmed. There were so many. How was I going to choose which one to participate in. I noticed that an account I had already followed, @TeachWriteEDU, had a twitter chat on Monday nights called #teachwrite. I decided I would try out this chat since teaching writing is something I am trying to work on in my own classroom. This seemed like the perfect place to start. 

Hosts and hashtag for the Twitter Chat (Image Source) 

I jumped right in when I saw that the chat was beginning. At first I was nervous because it seemed like most of the chatters already had a professional relationship going between themselves. They were quickly responding to each other and answering question. I was really pleasantly surprised once I did tweet. I quickly received likes, retweets, and comments on my thoughts. Below are a few screen shots of my participation in the chat.

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This was my original tweet which was in response to one of the first questions posted on the chat. 

Responses to my tweet (Image Source)

After my first tweet got such a wonderful response, I continued to participate in the Twitter chat. 

My second tweet in the #Teachwrite Chat (Image Source) 

Reflection 

Overall, I found that participating in PLNs through the use of Twitter was a very rewarding experience. During my Twitter chat I felt that I got great and uplifting responses from some fellow educators. I found that participating was a lot easier than I thought it was going to be, and that people were very receptive to what I had to say. 

Going forward I would like to continue to grow my PLN through Twitter. I would like to continue to participate in Twitter Chats. There are so many amazing resources and educators out there. The PLN is such a great tool to use when you are looking to learn something new, or get help with something you are struggling with. 

If you haven't already, go follow my professional twitter @TeacherMsVan. 

Web 2.0 Tools

This week, I took the opportunity to dive into a Web 2.0 Tool that I have heard of, but never got the chance to explore. The tool was Nearpod. Below is a screencast about Nearpod. Take a look at it before you try out the app yourself.

What is it? 

Nearpod is an interactive learning tool for teachers and students. Teacher can use to it discover pre-made lessons or create their own lessons. Nearpod is used to engage students in a lesson by giving each child the lesson onto their own personal device. 

How it works

Teacher's chose a lesson or create their own. They assign the lesson to the students who sign in by using a class code. The students then take part in the lesson through their own device. They may be required to answer quiz questions, open-ended questions, fill-in-the-blank questions, and more. The teacher can instantly see the student work and use it to assess learning.

Nearpod activities to add to lessons (Source) 

Benefits to Nearpod

As I was exploring Nearpod, I found that there seems to be quite a few benefits to using this tool in your classroom. 

• One of the benefits that really stood out to me was the ability to see instant results. If you assign your kids a quiz or activity with questions, the application grades it for you. This frees up so much time for the teacher. 
• Another benefit to using Nearpod is that the teacher is able to control what the students see and when. When the students log into a lesson, the teacher sets the pace. This way no student is able to rush through the activity without actually working through it. 
• A third benefit is the collaborate tool. This is great for kids who may not like to raise their hands in front of the whole class. They can post to collaborate and share their ideas without being out of their comfort zone. 

How I plan to use it

I feel like I have only brushed the surface of Nearpod. I really think that I will be able to use this in my room. My room currently is mostly boys and I am finding that they really need to be hands on to comprehend the task. I think by incorporating Nearpod a few times a week I could really reach those boys. I love the idea of having instant feedback and for the kids to get quick responses to their work. I always seem to fall victim to a growing pile of papers to grade. I'm hoping Nearpod can help alleviate some of that. 

Educational Technology Research

This week, I took a dive into some research done about educational technology. The research study that I focused on was Project Tomorrow's Speak Up report. In this report, data is collected from students, teachers, librarians, administrators, parents, and community members. These people come from both private and public schools, as well as urban, suburban, and rural areas.

The data that really struck me was located in a blog post about teacher-parent and school-parent communication. This information was based off a survey of 30,000 parents and their opinions on communicating with their child's school. Below is one piece of data that I found very interesting.

Teacher-Parent Communication Data (Source) 

This infographic provides information on the way parents would like to have their child's teacher communicate information home. It states that only one in three parents are not satisfied with the way communication home is done. I think one in three not being satisfied is too many unsatisfied parents, but I don't really find this data that surprising. As a school teacher, I see that a lot of my colleagues really lack in the area of parent communication. I am in no way perfect at it either.

When looking at the rest of the data, I do agree with e-mail being the most effective method of communication. Specifically when you work in a low income area, like I do, e-mail becomes the best way to communicate because a lot of parents do not work a traditional nine-to-five job. I don't necessarily agree with face to face meetings only being 45% effective. I think that a face to face meeting or two are needed throughout the year to really discuss a child with their parents.

Like I said earlier, I know that parent communication is something that I need to work on. This year I began using Class Dojo, and it has already been a game changer when it comes to parent communication. It combines the e-mail and text communication into one very convenient location. Also, it allows any message I send home to be translated into Spanish (or other languages). This is huge for me and my classroom because I have 14 students this year whose parents only speak and read Spanish.

This infographic also brought up school to home communication, and had very similar results. Below is the data from that portion of the research.

School-Parent Communication Data (Source)

Again, this data is also reflective of parental opinions of school communication. It shows very similar results with only one in four parents saying that they are not satisfied with the way their child's school communicates, with e-mail being the preferred method. 

I am not one that often looks at data, but after looking at this today, I feel like reading data is something all teachers should do. It really can be eye opening to what is going on in education. 

Active Learning

This week, I took a look at active learning, how it can be implemented in the classroom, and how it benefits the 21st century learner. So, what exactly is active learning. Active learning is when the "students take responsibility for their own learning and engage the material through reading, writing, talking, listening and reflecting." This means that the teacher takes a step back and becomes more of a facilitator in the activity.

Active Learning Example

I took a look at one specific example of active learning this week. In the Thinglink Illinois Project students completed many different active learning activities before they reached their final project goal. Below is a link to a brief Padlet.com overview of the activity.

Active Learning Padlet (Source) 

In this activity, students were to follow guided notes in order to research the regions of the United States. From there they created a Thinglink project about Illinois which later got included into their five page website about the regions. I feel like this activity very clearly ties into active learning. The students who completed this project were able to take responsibility for their own learning. They had to follow along with their teachers guided outlines and directions, but the way they created their projects was up to them. It is clear that the teacher is simply the facilitator in this activity. They set up what the students needed to do in the beginning, gave them the resources to be successful, and then let the students create.

When looking at their finished projects in the original blog post, it is clear that the students were successful in completing the requirements. It looks like they not only learned a lot about the regions, but also a lot about technology. I do think that teachers should keep active learning in mind when they are planning lessons. Today's students are a different type of learner. They don't respond well to a traditional lecture or note taking. When active learning is incorporated into a lesson plan, the students are more likely to be engaged and feel like what their learning is relevant to them. I think that is pretty clearly seen through this Thinglink activity.

My Experience with Active Learning 

I have a little experience with active learning myself. One of the schools I worked at previously was a one-to-one iPad school. When each student has their own technology it makes active learning a lot more attainable. For example, my fourth graders needed to learn about the explorers who discovered America. I created an assignment where my students chose an explorer, researched based on a guided notes sheet, and then created a narrated presentation about it. Below is one example of a student project.

I also have personally taken part in active learning during professional development. At the same school I was previously talking about. Our staff completed a handful of BreakOut EDU activities as training, and to practice so we could potentially them in our own classrooms. Unfortunately, I never used one in my classroom, but I hope to at some point in the future.

After learning all about active learning this week, I can not wait to get started in planning lessons and activities for my current class that allow for active learning.

Virtual Field Trips

If you have every wanted to incorporate virtual field trips into your classroom, take a look at the presentation below. I created an overview all about how to implement and use virtual field trips in your classroom!

Mapping My Digital Space

Wow! This weeks activity was very interesting and reflective. As soon as I read about it I felt inspired to begin. This week, we were to take a look at our digital space and reflect on it using the ideas of David White. White explains our digital space as a continuum between being a "visitor" and being a "resident".

Visitor

As White explains, a visitor is someone who uses the web as a tool for their life. They don't leave much of a digital trace behind. If they do it is something visible to one person or a few. The main reasons visitors use the digital space is to search, read, watch videos and shop. 

Resident

A resident, on the other hand, is a web user who uses the internet as a "network of places." These users leave a digital trace behind them, and they create for themselves a digital persona. These types of people are very active on their social medias, join in on digital discussions, and comment visibly on the web. 

My Digital Space 

Brainstorming 

When I sat down to map my digital space the first thing I did was make a list of all the websites, apps, and digital tools I use. I was actually very surprised at the amount of websites and apps I use on a daily basis. I split my list up into both personal and professional. I noticed I definitely use more a variety of digital tools in my personal life. However, there were a few that overlapped into both spaces. 

Building My Map

I began by setting up the four quadrants White describe in a digital map. One continuum on the map is "Visitor" and "Resident" as described earlier. The other is personal and professional. When I began to put blocks on my map, I decided I needed a way to distinguish between things I use more frequently than others. I decided to use size. 

My Map 

Below is my digital space map at this point in time. 

My Digital Space (personal photo)   

Reflection 

I was actually very surprised by the results of this activity. Going into it I thought I would be more of a resident than a visitor. However, my map is showing that I tend to be more of a visitor. There are apps and website I use daily, but leave zero visible trace behind. For example, Youtube. I follow and watch quite a few youtube channels daily, but I never post anything or comment on the videos. So while Youtube is a big part of my digital space I am a visitor in that sense. 

Also, I have accounts on all the typical social media websites (Snapchat, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram). I placed them all overlapping both the visitor and resident sides of my grid because I use them as both. Twitter, for example, I very often use, but I mostly use it as a news source. Occasionally I will retweet or post my own tweet, but mostly I just scroll through and see what others are staying. The same goes with Snapchat. Facebook and Instagram I am much more visible on in comparison to the first two. 

Another thing I found interesting is the apps that overlap between personal and professional. For example Pinterest and Instagram. I use both those apps to search for both personal and work related ideas. I like to follow other teachers on Instagram, and I have quite a few boards on Pinterest that are classroom related. 

Finally, in my professional world I don't use quite as many digital spaces. Google docs is a big one that use to collaborate with my teammates. Almost everything I create is visible and editable by others at my school. Class dojo is the only website I feel that I am 100% a resident at. I use this daily to communicate with parents. I make a visible post or two on it daily as well as send individual messages to parents. 

Overall, I found this activity very rewarding. It was really interesting to reflect on my own digital uses. I'm interested in trying this again in a year to see what has changed. 

Technology Frameworks - The Technology Integration Matrix

This week, I am going to reflect on myself as a teacher. Specifically, I'll be assessing my use of technology in the classroom through the use of The Technology Integration Matrix.

TIM tools logo
(https://tinyurl.com/ychxl36g) 

What is it? 

The Technology Integration Matrix, according to their website, allows teachers to assess how they are using technology to enhance learning. It is broken up into five different characteristic that are found in a meaningful classroom environment. These five characteristics are active, collaborative, constructive, authentic, and goal- directed. A teacher that uses this evaluation system can rate themselves in these five categories based on their level of integration. I am going to take a look at each category and rate my own classroom and how I used technology currently and in the past. 

TIM Matrix (https://tinyurl.com/y7oy8fc8) 

Active 

This category of the TIM matrix is all about the students being actively engaged in a lesson through using technology as a tool. The students shouldn't only be passively using the technology. In this category, I would place myself in adoption, or second stage of integration. In this stage, the teacher is still the main facilitator of a lesson using technology. Students are led step-by-step through projects or activities. When I use technology for projects, I have normally provided my students in the type of technology to use, a set of pre-determined websites to visit, as well as lead the students through the activity on the Mimio.

Collaborative 

This second category is all about the students working together on technology instead of on their own. I would place myself in the third level of integration, adaptation. In this category, the teacher provides times for student to work together using technology. The teacher normally chooses the tool, and the students are allowed to explore the tool with a partner. When I worked in a one-to-one iPad classroom, my students worked this way very frequently. I would give them a topic, give them a tool (iPad app), and allow them to discover and use the tool how they would like to present their topic. These activities were always one of mine and the students favorites. 

Constructive

In the third category of the TIM matrix the teacher is responsible for using technology to connect new information to prior learning. Again, I would place myself at the second level of integration, adoption. At this level, a teacher is beginning to allow the use of technology to build on knowledge. Examples would be digital graphic organizers. I have done activities with sites such as Storyboard That, or Kidspiration. 

Authentic

In this category, students are using technology to link technology to the world. At this very moment I would place myself very low on the scale in probably either the first or second level of integration. There are times when my lessons use technology and discuss the world beyond the classroom, but it not as frequent as I would like. My school is beginning a new program this year called, PenPal Schools. I believe once I am able to integrate this into my instruction I would be able to move up in this category. 

Goal Directed

In this final category, students should be using technology set their own goals and track their own learning. For this category I would place myself in the entry level of integration. My students use technology programs frequently, but they are all programs that self-track. The student do not need to do anything to monitor their learning. 

Final Reflection

After reading through the TIM matrix and evaluating myself through it's eyes, I feel like I have a long way to go when it come to technology integration. While I feel like I use technology quite a bit in my classroom, I can see now that I am the one using it, and I need to release some of that to my students. I am interested in trying some new activities, using some new tools and then coming back and reevaluating myself on the scale to see if I have grown. If you haven't already, take a look at your teaching based on the TIM matrix. It is has been really eye opening for me.  

All About Me

Hi everyone!

I'm Elizabeth! I am working on my Master of Arts in Education through Dominican. This is my third to last course, and I can't wait to complete my masters and be able to add it to my resume.

College Graduation (personal photo)

I graduated from Marquette University in Milwaukee, WI in 2013 with a degree in both Elementary Education and Spanish. After graduating, I taught fourth grade for two years in Milwaukee. I worked at a small private school on the south side of the city. After that, I moved back to Illinois (I'm originally from Naperville) and taught fourth grade for two years at a private school in River Forest. These two schools were drastically different from each other, and I learned so much working at both of them. 

Currently, I work at Jefferson Elementary School in Berwyn. This is my second year at Jefferson. Last year I taught second grade, and this year I am back to teaching fourth grade. Personally, I enjoy working with the older kids. I learned so much during my one year as a primary teacher, but I am very glad to be back up in the intermediate grades. In my class, the majority of my students are English learners. I am able to use my EL certification, earned through Dominican, to help develop and grow my students in all academic areas. My favorite subject to teach is Math.

My fiancé and I right after
he proposed in Door County!
(Personal Photo)  

When I'm not at school, I loved to spend time with my friends and family. I just got engaged in June so a lot of my summer was spent working on wedding plans with my fiancé, Ryan. Also, I enjoy reading in my free time. Some of my recent favorite books are The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls and The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas. I will read all types of books, but mystery/suspense books or young adult fiction are two of my favorites. When the weather is not too hot I love to go for walks outside or go into the city to enjoy the lake front or a Cubs game.

I am really looking forward to learning more about how technology can be used in my classroom and hopefully implement some of it this year for my fourth graders!

Thank you for reading my post, and I'm excited to get to know all of you as well!