Welcome Parents!
Retrieved from Microsoft Word
I strongly believe that parental involvement is key to the education of every child.
You as parents know your child better than anyone, so I welcome and
encourage suggestions on what you feel would be helpful to your
child's individual education. On this page there are a number of resources,
examples of classroom
related projects, and an explanation of experiences
I have had
with children in
various schools. Please feel free to explore!
My Experiences Teaching Children
I have been involved in teaching children from the time I was in junior high school. My church held a Story Hour class for young children (ages 2-6) once a week while the moms attended their Bible study. I co-taught in Story Hour and assisted in leading lessons, acting out Bible stories, leading songs, doing crafts, and providing March 30, 2006hers at a Friendship Club, which is a Bible study for individuals with disabilities that was held at a Westwood Christian Reformed Church in Kalamazoo. At Friendship I worked one-on-one with a student by reviewing the lesson taught in the group setting and doing a craft or worksheet with the student to reinforce the group lesson.
In high school
I volunteered in the preschool classroom at Croyden Avenue School, which is a school for students with disabilities. The volunteering possition turned into a part time job, and I have now been there for four years. In that amount of time I have had experience working in three different classrooms with students ages 3-13 who have severe mental impairments. At Croyden we focus on the individual abilities of each student, and we work individually and in group settings with the students on reaching their goals and objectives written on their Individualized Education Plans (IEP). I was also able to have one of my practicum rotations at Croyden in a classroom for early elementary students with autism. In addition, I have had experience substitute teaching in several different classrooms at Croyden Avenue School.
The Bert Goen's Learning Center in VanBuren County was my practicum placement for the first semester of my Junior year. I was in a classroom for students with severe multiple impairments from ages 6-16, and here I was introduced to active learning, which is a curriculum that allows the students to explore various objects and textures. I also had some teaching experience at Loy Norrix High School in Kalamazoo. For this practicum placement I split my time between a science class for students with learning disabilities and an English class for students with disabilities. I taught lessons in each class along with working individually with the students.
I spent a couple of hours each week in the 1st-3rd grade classroom at Reformed Heritage Christian School in Kalamazoo, and my focus during that time was literacy. I did read alouds, worked with reading groups, taught grammar and writing lessons, and lead journal writing activities. Currently I am at Richland Elementary School in a kindergarten classroom. Here I am working primarily with one student in assessing him in literacy and math and preparing and teaching lessons to help him increase his understanding of letter sounds.
Helpful Websites for Parents:
Parent Involvement in Schools
Tips for Parents
Homework Tips for Parents
Family Education Page
My Projects:
Kids Domain Project
Publisher Newsletter
Kid Pix Movie about me
Links to visit:
WMU Homepage
College of Education Homepage
EDT 3470 Homepage
This will get you to the WMU Homepage
Last Updated:
March 30, 2006
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