About Me

      

 Autobiography

       My name is Stephanie A. and I am currently a junior at Florida Gulf Coast University. I was born and raised on Long Island, New York. In August of 2009 I moved to Florida and started my first semester at Florida Gulf Coast University to pursue a Bachelors Degree in Elementary Education. I love to return to New York a couple of times a semester to visit family and old friends.  I also enjoy visiting some of my favorite restaurants and going into Manhattan to attend a Broadway show or take a walk in Central Park. I have grown to love my new life in Florida and hope to start my teaching career in Naples.

       I had a very positive school experience from Kindergarten through second grade. I was a very engaged and confident learner and was motivated and excited to attend school each day. Once I reached third grade, however, I began to experience difficulty with reading and spelling. This weakness made me very self-conscious and reluctant to participate in class lessons, discussions and activities. My classroom teacher did not attempt to meet my emotional or academic needs. She was insensitive and made comments that led to a lack of self-esteem and a dislike for school. I began to fall behind many of the students in my class. Fortunately, in fourth grade I had a teacher who changed my life. She was very patient and kind and worked with me to introduce skills and strategies that would help me to meet with success in the areas of reading and writing. She was kind, encouraging and supportive. My fourth grade teacher helped me to become a confident reader and a successful learner.

       Throughout junior high, grades five through eight, I was an average student. My junior high had a tracking system and a team approach to teaching. I was not placed in the highest track of students, and most of my teachers did not set high expectations or take much interest in students other than those who were in the “honor” classes.  As a result, I was not motivated to learn and did not feel the need to perform at a very high level.  As a result, I did not have a very successful academic experience. This experience still has an effect on me today as I am not as strong in the content areas as I should be. I now work extra hard to gain knowledge about the content areas so that I will be effective as a future educator.

       I attended a Catholic high school where good character, morals and values were instilled in me.  In addition, there was a heavy emphasis on community service, academics and the arts. My high school education was instrumental in creating and developing the person and the student that I am today. My teachers were always supportive, understanding and had high expectations. These teachers were responsible for my receiving honors each semester and graduating at the top of my class. It was during high school that I realized the importance of a well-rounded education, as well as the importance of service to school and community. High school was the highlight and turning point in my academic and social life.

       I currently do not work during the school year as I am aware that I need to dedicate much time and effort in order maintain good grades.  I do, however, work each summer waitressing at an Italian restaurant in New York.  I also worked as a sales associate at Bloomingdales last summer. These jobs have enhanced my interpersonal, organizational and communication skills and have allowed me to assume responsibility for earning money to help pay for books and other materials during the school year.

       I have had numerous opportunities to work with youth over the past six years. Experiences included babysitting and volunteering at Brightest Horizons in Fort Myers. Brightest Horizons is a child development center for underprivileged children. Working with the children at Brightest Horizons was a rewarding experience that I will never forget. I was given the opportunity to work with children of all ages, at all developmental levels and from diverse ethnic and economic backgrounds. Although I was different from these children in many ways, I was able to connect with them on levels that I never imagined.

       I am the youngest of three children and have two, older brothers who are 24 and 26 and who are my best friends. I grew up in an Italian family that enjoys the customs, traditions and foods of this culture. Food and cooking with family play a central role in our family life.  Our holidays reflect the traditions and recipes that have been handed down from generation to generation. Holidays are large gatherings that include grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins.

My Teaching Philosophy

       My philosophy on education is that children learn best in a supportive and caring classroom environment that allows for hands on learning.  I believe in utilizing multi-sensory teaching techniques that appeal to all learning styles and allow children to utilize their strengths to learn and practice skills and concepts.  Activities that provide visual, auditory and kinesthetic experiences allow all children to grow as learners. Lessons should include: incorporating music and movement, using manipulatives such as unifix cubes during math lessons, providing hands-on learning for science activities and incorporating technology that allows multisensory experiences.  I believe in creating a classroom community that promotes respect and where children feel comfortable to take risks. It is important to create a classroom where expectations are clear and the teacher is a positive role model for students. Directions should be clear to students. I believe that providing teacher modeling and demonstrating are important, as well as time for practice of a new skill or concept.
    I feel it is important to give students time to relax and unwind throughout the school day. Providing time for independent reading, listening to classical music and interacting with peers allows student opportunities for independent and interactive activities that are risk free. I also believe that character education is necessary in teaching students good character traits, creating a caring classroom community and in teaching them the importance of giving back to their communities. It is important to demonstrate and provide examples on how students can be contributing members of their classroom community and their local community as well. It is important to share personal experiences of community service and to provide students with ways that they can become involved in their own communities.

                                             My Journey to Teaching and Goals

      I’ve known I wanted to be a teacher since I was in Kindergarten. Kindergarten was the best experience of my life. I looked forward to going to school each morning where I could learn and play with children all day long. I could not imagine that there was any place in the world that could be more inviting, fun and comforting than inside my classroom. Kindergarten was the first year that my mother started teaching, as well. She would often take me to school to help set up her classroom or to visit during special events.  It was here that I began to see Kindergarten from a teacher’s perspective. Once I saw my mother teach, her love for her students and their love for her, I knew immediately that I wanted to follow in her footsteps. As I’ve grown older, my passion for teaching and my love of children have continued to grow. This passion has reinforced the career choice that I seemed to have made when I was only five years old.

            My two main passions in life are teaching and children. I believe that an education is the most important thing in a child’s life. A child’s emotional, social and academic growth is the foundation that helps to create the person that they will one day become. I believe it is important that children are taught in a way that engages them and helps them develop a love for school and learning. It is also important that children feel that they are valued and important and that they are encouraged to excel and meet high expectations. I believe that children who do not develop a love for school and who are not supported will not perform to the best of their abilities. I cannot wait until the education of children is in my hands. I hope to make a difference in each and every one of my student’s lives. I love children and could not imagine going into a field that did not involve working with children to help them reach their full potential. There is no more rewarding feeling than seeing how you have helped a child grow both emotionally and academically. I want to help each and every child in my class to achieve their dreams. I believe that children today lack positive role models. I believe that I will be a positive role model that my children will look to for guidance and support. I would be grateful for any opportunity to provide children not only with the skills, knowledge and strategies that they need to become successful, but also with the right amount of love, guidance and support that they need to continue to grow.

            A special experience I’ve had working with a child was with my ESOL “buddy” this past spring semester at Veterans Memorial Elementary School. I worked with my student each week for an hour. In the beginning of the semester this student was struggling with spelling. He was also very shy and would tell me that no one in the class liked him. By the end of our 10 weeks together, he was not only able to spell all of the words he was unable to spell earlier, but was able to spell additional words as well. I also talked to him each week affirming how great he was and gave him positive feedback about the excellent characteristics he possessed both as a student and a classmate. This positive reinforcement and support helped us to form a connection. Each week I went to his classroom to pick him up I saw the excitement on his face when he saw me and knew it was time to work. Seeing his excitement and enthusiasm to work with me and realizing the power I have to make a difference in a child’s life, solidified my decision to become a teacher.

            A special teacher who was a role model for me was my fourth grade teacher. She was kind, understanding and helped me succeed when I was struggling in the area of literacy. She never gave up on me and would work with me outside of class when I needed extra help and support. This teacher taught me to never give up and showed me how smart I actually was. I believe my fourth grade teacher played an important role in helping me become the person I am today.

            I currently do not have any teaching experiences, however I taught two lessons in my Block 2 semester. Although I only taught two lessons, this experience gave me the opportunity to see how my life as an educator could be. I had the opportunity to develop a lesson and implement it in a classroom setting with real life problems and instances. This experience gave me the opportunity to realize the importance of implementing accommodations into lesson plans and the importance of using formative and summative assessments.

            I want to start out teaching in the classroom, but hope to eventually move on to become an ESOL Specialist. I want to work with ESOL children because I feel this work is not only essential to student learning, but gratifying and rewarding. I hope to begin my teaching career in Florida in a district that will provide an opportunity to work with a community of students with diverse learning needs.

            I believe that I possess important strengths and talents that will be beneficial in working as an educator. I work well with others and possess excellent interpersonal and communication skills. These skills will be helpful in working with students, parents and peers. I also possess excellent organizational skills. This strength will be useful in planning lessons, arranging classroom materials, maintaining student records and maintaining good home-school connections. I am also a good listener and am very understanding and sympathetic. These qualities will be helpful in building positive relationships with my students. I am also an extremely creative person. This talent will be beneficial when planning lessons and assignments, creating a warm and inviting classroom environment and in planning engaging hands-on learning activities.

I look forward to the opportunity to follow my passion and to apply my talents and strengths to become a teacher who has a positive impact on many students during my teaching career.