Biography

M.A.   University of South Florida  St. Petersburg Campus

B.S.  University of South Florida  Tampa Campus

A.A.  St. Peterburg College

My interest include sewing, family, reading, traveling, biking, and swimming.

My Teaching Philosophy

“ There is no clear-cut path that the brain takes when making sense. There are many roads the mind can travel as it burrows through layer after layer of meaning. Good readers don’t read every document, book, or magazine article the same way. They are aware of their thinking and consciously apply reading strategies that will help them cope with the demands of the task.”(Chris Tovani, I read it, but I Don’t Get It). 

Reading and writing is a process that involves many steps. There is no one-way to teach either. My philosophy is that reading and writing can be accomplished through a balanced literacy approach. I have developed this philosophy as a result of attending many workshops about the different components involved with reading and writing. In the past reading and writing have been viewed as separate subjects. They have been presented in isolation. Balanced literacy points out the importance of placing emphasis on writing and its relationship to reading. Balance literacy encourages teachers to use trade books and increase the amount of attention use to integrate language arts when teaching reading and writing. The teachable moments become more valuable in the classroom. I believe that as a teacher I would be doing a disservice to my students if I did not allow those moments to take place.

My daily goal is to work with my students to become life long learners of reading and writing. Learning to read and write is an on going process. According to the balanced literacy model reading is a process that involves pre-reading, reading, re-reading, assessing and sharing. Readers are also writers, they write about what they know. In the writing process the students pre-write by choosing a topic and gathering information. They write a first draft. They revise the draft, which requires making changes in their writing. The student edits his or her writing before it is published. I believe that a teacher should approach teaching reading and writing with a wealth of background knowledge.

Both the students and the teachers’ background knowledge are important. It is imperative that teachers realize that reading strategies are consistently changing to meet the needs of all learners. Professionally, I work with struggling readers daily. I have tried to figure out what is the easiest and most consistent way for these students to learn. Brain research is just one part of reading research that has an impact on how students learn to read and write. The brain is a very complex organism that is very important to learning to read and write. The different parts of the brain control certain parts of the body. The temporal lobe controls the auditory functions of the body. The occipital lobe primarily controls the visual aspects of the body. The pariental lobe is the sensory controlling device, and the frontal lobe controls the speech area. As an educator you might say why is this information important. It is important because the traditional methods of classroom instruction are not reaching every child.

However, Multiple Intelligence strategies that many teachers use help determine how the student learns best. This information will help in preparing lessons to meet the needs of the students. In my classroom I have discovered which students are visual, auditory, or kinesthetic learners. Having this knowledge helps with assignments an enable me to reach my students when we are reading or completing a written assignment in the class. Using these strategies every student in my class experience success. They are presented with lessons that will allow them to perform in a way that they feel comfortable and experience success.

My philosophy is supported by the academic success that my students experience as they become life long learners.