Dear Families,
Since I will be spending a good deal of time with your children, I thought you may be interested in learning a little bit about myself! I graduated from MSU with a double major in Child Development and Elementary Education. I always knew I wanted to be a teacher. While in school, I volunteered at the Eastminster Child Development Center and worked a few other jobs. I had the opportunity, with my double major, to have two student teaching experiences. My first was for a semester with pre-school aged children (4-5), and my second was a year long internship in a third grade classroom at Red Cedar Elementary in East Lansing. Both experiences allowed me to learn from exceptional
teachers. After graduating, I was hired to teach first grade in Haslett. I taught first grade for three years and kindergarten for one before making a family decision to stay home with my young children. While I was home, the teacher in me was still eager to get out! I cared for very small groups of pre-school and kindergarten aged children right at home along side my children. Well, my children started to grow and I knew the decision to get back into the classroom was quickly approaching.
I taught kindergarten for four years in DeWitt. I am so happy to be teaching at Red Cedar Elementary in East Lansing, where my teaching career began. I am currently completing my Masters degree with Michigan State University and I will have my degree in curriculum and instruction with a focus on literacy in December.
My oldest son, Nathan, is 13 years old. He will be starting his 8th grade year. He is excited about all the junior high has to offer. He loves lacrosse and running in his spare time. My daughter, Abigail, is 11 years old. She will be starting her 6th grade year. She loves writing and is excited to learn how to play both piano and saxophone this year. She even has her own pet bunny named Oreo that she adores! My youngest son, Alex, is 8 years old. He is looking forward to getting back to school and his friends! This year he will be in third grade. My youngest daughter, Caroline, will turn 18 months old in September. She is an absolute doll and gets a ton of attention from her older siblings. My husband, Todd, works for the company, Bendex and while he travels a lot for work, on his down time he is able to work from home.
Being together as a family is important to us! We enjoy spending time with grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins. We enjoy camping all over Michigan, especially around Lake Michigan! This year we also traveled to some fun places for Nathan's travel lacrosse team with some great families and great adventures. You may
have seen me running with my children biking along side a year ago, but since breaking my leg last April, running will be traded in for family biking instead. Running taught me how to pace myself, set goals, and meet them; a gift that will never be taken away. Every year I had done the Bayshore run in Traverse City with a group of
amazing DeWitt ladies! This year I still went along to support my amazing friends and I hope they will have me back next year as well. I also love to read in my spare time, however, my book club friends would tell you I never go ( I am way too busy with kids, school, and grad school!).
Besides family, teaching is my passion. I love getting to know different children and their families each year. In fact, I call my children my classroom family. We take care of each other and help insure success for all. I believe parents and teachers are partners in education. In kindergarten, parents are just as much my responsibility as my students and I promise to be there for you. Together we will communicate on what we know and what we observe to help your child reach his/her fullest potential. Your questions are always welcome. I look forward to our time together!
With warm regards,
Melissa
Since I will be spending a good deal of time with your children, I thought you may be interested in learning a little bit about myself! I graduated from MSU with a double major in Child Development and Elementary Education. I always knew I wanted to be a teacher. While in school, I volunteered at the Eastminster Child Development Center and worked a few other jobs. I had the opportunity, with my double major, to have two student teaching experiences. My first was for a semester with pre-school aged children (4-5), and my second was a year long internship in a third grade classroom at Red Cedar Elementary in East Lansing. Both experiences allowed me to learn from exceptional
teachers. After graduating, I was hired to teach first grade in Haslett. I taught first grade for three years and kindergarten for one before making a family decision to stay home with my young children. While I was home, the teacher in me was still eager to get out! I cared for very small groups of pre-school and kindergarten aged children right at home along side my children. Well, my children started to grow and I knew the decision to get back into the classroom was quickly approaching.
I taught kindergarten for four years in DeWitt. I am so happy to be teaching at Red Cedar Elementary in East Lansing, where my teaching career began. I am currently completing my Masters degree with Michigan State University and I will have my degree in curriculum and instruction with a focus on literacy in December.
My oldest son, Nathan, is 13 years old. He will be starting his 8th grade year. He is excited about all the junior high has to offer. He loves lacrosse and running in his spare time. My daughter, Abigail, is 11 years old. She will be starting her 6th grade year. She loves writing and is excited to learn how to play both piano and saxophone this year. She even has her own pet bunny named Oreo that she adores! My youngest son, Alex, is 8 years old. He is looking forward to getting back to school and his friends! This year he will be in third grade. My youngest daughter, Caroline, will turn 18 months old in September. She is an absolute doll and gets a ton of attention from her older siblings. My husband, Todd, works for the company, Bendex and while he travels a lot for work, on his down time he is able to work from home.
Being together as a family is important to us! We enjoy spending time with grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins. We enjoy camping all over Michigan, especially around Lake Michigan! This year we also traveled to some fun places for Nathan's travel lacrosse team with some great families and great adventures. You may
have seen me running with my children biking along side a year ago, but since breaking my leg last April, running will be traded in for family biking instead. Running taught me how to pace myself, set goals, and meet them; a gift that will never be taken away. Every year I had done the Bayshore run in Traverse City with a group of
amazing DeWitt ladies! This year I still went along to support my amazing friends and I hope they will have me back next year as well. I also love to read in my spare time, however, my book club friends would tell you I never go ( I am way too busy with kids, school, and grad school!).
Besides family, teaching is my passion. I love getting to know different children and their families each year. In fact, I call my children my classroom family. We take care of each other and help insure success for all. I believe parents and teachers are partners in education. In kindergarten, parents are just as much my responsibility as my students and I promise to be there for you. Together we will communicate on what we know and what we observe to help your child reach his/her fullest potential. Your questions are always welcome. I look forward to our time together!
With warm regards,
Melissa