I was born and raised in Watertown. Nothing exciting about my childhood, I was a good student and athlete. I feel like I have been a student my whole life! I have two associates degrees from Jefferson Community College(JCC), math/science and early childhood. My bachelors degree is early childhood administration (at one time I thought I wanted to be a director of a daycare, not anymore). My NYS teaching certificate is for birth through 2nd grade. I am currently enrolled in a master's program at SUNY Potsdam in the literacy specialist program. I have worked at Jefferson Campus Care since 1993. It is an early education center located on the campus of JCC, so I guess you could say I have come full circle. I never knew I wanted to work in early childhood. I was looking for a job, saw an ad in the paper, and applied. Once I started working with your children, I was hooked! I have seen so many changes in the early childhood field since I started, it is amazing how far we have come.
I am married with two sons, ages 14 and 23, and a dog. I am also a proud grandma to a beautiful 5 month old boy. I love to go camping (our favorite place is Cranberry Lake), canoeing, boating, fishing, hiking (my husband and son are Adirondack 46ers, I am working on it), and cross country skiing with my family. I also like to sew and make crafts. I have a craft business and attend many local craft fairs from October through December. I like to reuse materials to make upcycled items. My favorite materials are sweaters and jeans. I make mittens, hats, and bags from discarded clothing. I also like to read, when I have spare time. One of my favorite authors is Anita Shreve. She often writes of personal relationships between people. Some of my favorites are Rescue, Sea Glass, and The Weight of Water. In these stories, we realize that in a single moment something can happen and our lives can change completely.
I love reading children's books and circle time has always been a favorite part of my work day. My favorite are rhyming books. I like to see the children "reading" the books to themselves or friends during choice time. Scholastic book orders are a great place to find good, inexpensive children's books. If you do not receive order forms from your school, ask your child's teacher about them. We have bookshelves full of children's books at my house, even though my boys are older, I can't seem to get rid of them! My sons also enjoy reading for pleasure, and we all just finished the Maze Runner series. It is fun to have discussions about the books with each other, almost like our own family book club.
Meghan
I was born in Potsdam, NY where my dad and his family grew up. I was raised in a small town in Northern New York by my mom and dad. I have one older brother. Contrary to popular belief, we are not twins, though we are very close! Now that we are grown up, we still live only a mile away from each other. I loved school as a child, and would always come home and play school. My first class was made up of my two parents and several stuffed animals and barbie dolls. As I grew up, I became more interested in sports (soccer and track), but always had that love of school deep in my heart. I also started lifeguarding in the summers, and from that job I realized how much I loved being around kids and their great energy and imagination.
Given my interest in school, I decided to pursue Childhood Education and Special Education at St. John Fisher College in Rochester, NY. I am currently enrolled in SUNY Potsdam's Literacy Specialist Program, and have a teaching job at a local elementary school teaching Pre-K. I spent a year subbing while I was getting my masters full time, but I'm so happy to have a class of my own. I love reading to my students, and giving them the opportunity to open a book and tell a story of their own as they flip through the pictures. It's interesting to see the research and textbook information I've learned within the past couple of years from school come to life when reading with Pre-Kers.
My favorite author is Jodi Picoult. I've read the majority of her books, though I still have a few to cross off the list. Her characters and stories are so dynamic, you never know what is going to happen next, and that is what keeps me hooked as a reader. I also enjoy reading modern education articles and books. Recently, I read Spark: The Revolutionary New Science of Exercise and the Brain by John J. Ratey, and I highly recommend it to anyone - not just teachers.
Children's literature is a passion of mine. Both of my parents were very supportive of my love of reading, and always were taking me to the library or bookstore to read to me. I've seen how that has positively impacted my education, and hope to instill a similar passion of reading to my students.
Danielle
My name is Danielle Alexandra Smith and I am 23 years old. I was born in Massena, NY, and raised in the small town of Brasher Falls, NY. Here is a digital story that will tell you more about my family and I:
For my undergraduate and graduate education I attended SUNY Potsdam with the major in Childhood/Early Childhood education, and will be receiving my Master of Science in Education as a Literacy Specialist at the end of the semester. My greatest passions in life are my family, friends, teaching, and literacy. I couldn't imaging doing anything else with my life other than helping shape the minds of our nations children. My grandfather is my greatest influence and my teaching role model. He has been my inspiration to be the kind of teacher 'you needed when you were young'. To become the most effective teacher, with the most compassion and love to offer my students.
I have a great love for children books, and have a bit of a collecting problem. Every where I go I find a children books that just speaks to me in some way. Whether its a timeless classic or the only copy ever sold, every book means something to someone and it has something to offer the reader. Every time I pick up a book I think about how I could use it in my classroom to inspire or teach my students. And sometimes I spend hours at the thrift store searching for interesting books, and come across some of the most interesting children books from the 1960's! Reading to children and seeing them engage in the adventure of a story is a truly amazing sight.
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