Fun Facts

I recently moved from Chicago and am loving the Austin heat! In addition to that, I am loving the live music in this city, as I have been singing for over 10 years now. Warm weather and music are great friends of mine, but Harry Potter books and movies take the cake for things that make me smile!

About Me

I graduated in 2012 with my Bachelor's in Elementary Education from Loyola University in Chicago. I worked in a middle school for a year in a suburb of Chicago and am hoping to get to know the education system in Austin before fully re-entering the classroom.

As part of my teacher training at Loyola, many of my classes included a "clinical portion" where we had the opportunity to actually work with students in various subjects. My Math for Teachers course had a clinical component where students would take the bus after school to get tutored in math ranging from kindergarten all the way through 8th grade. This was the first class I took in college that actually had us working with students, as well as the moment in my college career when I knew I was in the right place. I absolutely loved when students would learn some tricks or concepts to make math easier for them, as well as some of the great tricks they would pass on to me. I believe that in a learning environment, the roles can ALWAYS reverse between the teacher and the student!

After working with many students, I began to realize that the best way students learn is if the material is relevant. For example, in many English/Language Arts classes I took many literary discussions of books we read did not actually begin with the characters or scenarios in the book at all. Rather, we shared our initial reactions and personal experiences and then related them back to the literature. In the same way, I try to tailor material to each individual student's interests and experiences in order for the lesson to be more memorable and effective. This is especially great in a smaller learning setting, such as austin">tutoring.