Who I Am |
Hello, and thanks for stopping by! Here's a little about me:
I am a believer in antiracism work personally and in the classroom.
I love to read, and recommend books regularly at @westwindreads and @miss.f.recommends on instagram.
I am currently a grade 5 teacher at Magrath Elementary School with Westwinds School Division No. 74! I've been here since 2016, in a bunch of very different classrooms: a class of 130 students (and 5 teachers) in a gym during a school renovation (I have lots of fun stories about that), in a class of 75 (with 3 teachers) as we half-transitioned into the renovated building, and finally in my very own classroom (the biggest in the school) ever since. I did my very first year at Green Hills Academy in Kigali, Rwanda. I taught Grade 7 English, Grade 9 IGCSE (Cambridge English), and Grade 11 IB English. I've loved the unexpected turns that my teaching career has led me to.
I am a graduate of the University of Lethbridge in the Faculty of Education. I completed B.A./B.Ed. Combined Degree in General Humanities, specializing in Special Education. My Humanities streams are English, History and Drama. Both degrees were completed with Great Distinction. Additionally, I have an unofficial minor in Japanese. I am originally from Sundre, Alberta, which is a quiet little town located in the Central/Northern foothills of Alberta, just north of Calgary.
Pursuing a career as a teacher has been a dream of mine since childhood. With great patience, my friends in elementary school endured my constant attempts to play "classroom" on play dates. Before I was of legal working age in Canada, I volunteered as a leader of my local library's summer literacy program; when I was of working age, I coordinated and delivered the program myself to several different age groups (0-5, 6-8 and 9-12). Throughout high school, I spent many afternoons after class tutoring fellow classmates. In my university career, I have had the great pleasure in the last year and a half of teaching language labs for my Japanese teacher, Dr. Abigail McMeekin, inclusive from beginner to advanced conversation levels. Additionally, I have worked with Dr. McMeekin on two separate research projects (a CAETL project and a Chinook Research scholarship project) to develop curriculum to meet the needs of the current technology-hungry and savvy generation. This included building a class website from scratch, including building content and incorporating a variety of technology tools for language learning. You can view the class website here (the 1100-3001 levels are under construction summer 2014!). I was also part of a panel of student markers for Dr. Victor Rodych's Logic 1000 class. In a nutshell, I feel very strongly that a teaching career is exactly where I belong.
I spend my free time reading, writing, knitting, sewing, homesteading or sinking myself into a good TV show. I also enjoy going on long walks, watercolor painting and the occasional video game. I am currently trying my hand at the more daring pursuit of riding a motorcycle -- a fascinating study of physics in action, and a large step outside of my comfort zone. I also take great comfort in nurturing a beautiful garden, complete with herbs, vegetables, a variety of cacti and other succulents, and flowers. I also have quite the zest for travel -- there is something ever so magical about immersing oneself in a completely foreign culture.
Some of my favorites:
I am a believer in antiracism work personally and in the classroom.
I love to read, and recommend books regularly at @westwindreads and @miss.f.recommends on instagram.
I am currently a grade 5 teacher at Magrath Elementary School with Westwinds School Division No. 74! I've been here since 2016, in a bunch of very different classrooms: a class of 130 students (and 5 teachers) in a gym during a school renovation (I have lots of fun stories about that), in a class of 75 (with 3 teachers) as we half-transitioned into the renovated building, and finally in my very own classroom (the biggest in the school) ever since. I did my very first year at Green Hills Academy in Kigali, Rwanda. I taught Grade 7 English, Grade 9 IGCSE (Cambridge English), and Grade 11 IB English. I've loved the unexpected turns that my teaching career has led me to.
I am a graduate of the University of Lethbridge in the Faculty of Education. I completed B.A./B.Ed. Combined Degree in General Humanities, specializing in Special Education. My Humanities streams are English, History and Drama. Both degrees were completed with Great Distinction. Additionally, I have an unofficial minor in Japanese. I am originally from Sundre, Alberta, which is a quiet little town located in the Central/Northern foothills of Alberta, just north of Calgary.
Pursuing a career as a teacher has been a dream of mine since childhood. With great patience, my friends in elementary school endured my constant attempts to play "classroom" on play dates. Before I was of legal working age in Canada, I volunteered as a leader of my local library's summer literacy program; when I was of working age, I coordinated and delivered the program myself to several different age groups (0-5, 6-8 and 9-12). Throughout high school, I spent many afternoons after class tutoring fellow classmates. In my university career, I have had the great pleasure in the last year and a half of teaching language labs for my Japanese teacher, Dr. Abigail McMeekin, inclusive from beginner to advanced conversation levels. Additionally, I have worked with Dr. McMeekin on two separate research projects (a CAETL project and a Chinook Research scholarship project) to develop curriculum to meet the needs of the current technology-hungry and savvy generation. This included building a class website from scratch, including building content and incorporating a variety of technology tools for language learning. You can view the class website here (the 1100-3001 levels are under construction summer 2014!). I was also part of a panel of student markers for Dr. Victor Rodych's Logic 1000 class. In a nutshell, I feel very strongly that a teaching career is exactly where I belong.
I spend my free time reading, writing, knitting, sewing, homesteading or sinking myself into a good TV show. I also enjoy going on long walks, watercolor painting and the occasional video game. I am currently trying my hand at the more daring pursuit of riding a motorcycle -- a fascinating study of physics in action, and a large step outside of my comfort zone. I also take great comfort in nurturing a beautiful garden, complete with herbs, vegetables, a variety of cacti and other succulents, and flowers. I also have quite the zest for travel -- there is something ever so magical about immersing oneself in a completely foreign culture.
Some of my favorites:
- Books: The Hobbit, The Lord of the Rings Trilogy, The Help, The Bronze Horseman, Night, Room, Eat Pray Love, Mrs. Peregrin's Home for Peculiar Children, The Kite Runner, The Importance of Being Ernest, The Memory Keeper's Daughter, Supermassive Change, Flower Children, The Secret Life of Bees, The World More Full of Weeping, Stephen King, Jodi Picoult, The Fault in Our Stars
- Movies: The Hobbit Trilogy, The Lord of the Rings Trilogy, Juno, The Princess Bride, Where the Wild Things Are, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo Trilogy (Swedish version), The Rocky Horror Picture Show, Rock of Ages, Samsara, Detachment, One Week, The Way, All Marvel Movies
- TV: The Office (US version), Community, Flight of the Conchords, 30 Rock, Parks and Rec, Game of Thrones, The Inbetweeners, The IT Crowd, The Big Bang Theory, Sherlock, Adventure Time, Bob's Burgers, Spy, That 70s Show, Orange is the New Black
- Music: The Lumineers, Of Monsters and Men, Mumford and Sons, Branches, Daughter, Bon Iver, Queen, Men Without Hats, Men At Work, Bedouin Soundclash, Band of Horses, Cage the Elephant, Death Cab for Cutie, Florence + the Machines, Kings of Leon, Matthew Good Band, Mother Mother, Said the Whale, Train, The Trews, David Bowie, Walk off the Earth
- Video Games: Little Big Planet (1 and 2, Vita version, Karting), all Mario games, Pokemon (all colours), Chrono Trigger, Rayman (Origins and Legends), Lego Lord of the Rings, Tearaway, Portal, Limbo, Fez, Journey, Flower
- Food: Ice Cream, Watermelon, Wraps, Grapes, Cherry Tomatoes, Pizza, Seafood, Sushi
- Colour: Green, Orange
- Season: Summer/Fall