Hi everyone!  I’m so excited to be your 5th grade teacher this year!  This is my 16th year teaching.  All of them have been here at Short Pump Elementary!  This is my 2nd year teaching 5th grade.  (I  previously taught 4th grade for 12 years.  I also taught 3rd grade for 2 years.)  I am excited to work with all of you and to help you grow as students.   

         My mission for this year is to provide a safe, positive learning environment where students will be able to think critically and meet their potential socially, emotionally, and academically.   

 

Here are some fun facts about me:

• Where did I grow up?
  • Vienna, VA (a suburb of Washington DC!)

 

• Where did I go to college?
  • University of Virginia (UVA)-  GO HOOS!!!  I earned a Bachelor’s degree in Economics and Spanish.  After a few years of working in marketing, I decided that I wanted to be a teacher!  So I moved to Richmond, and went to Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) where I earned my Master of Teaching degree.  GO RAMS!  🙂

 

• Who is in my family?
  • My husband and I have 2 wonderful children, William and Clara.  Will is 7 years old (he will be 8 in September) and is in 2nd grade in Chesterfield County (where we live).  He loves Legos, Star Wars, robots, and Minecraft!  My daughter Clara is 5 and is in kindergarten.  She loves art, playing outside, Disney princesses, and unicorns!  Mr. Jacobsen is also a teacher!  He teaches middle school English in Chesterfield County.

 

• Do I have any pets?
  • We have a cat named Buddha.  He is around 15 years old!

 

• What do I love about teaching?
  • Teaching is such a wonderful job because I get to work with kids and help them learn every day!  I enjoy seeing the excitement on my students’ faces when they learn new information and work through challenges to figure out problems.  Even though it can be a challenging job, I couldn’t imagine doing anything else!

 

 

Here are some of My Favorites!

-Hobbies:  reading, mountain biking, hiking, and kayaking!

                           

-Sports teams: Washington Football Team (Mr. Jacobsen loves the Baltimore Ravens too, so I also cheer for them), Washington Nationals (Go Nats!), and all UVA teams, especially basketball!

-Books:  Historical fiction books are my favorite!  I also love all of the Harry Potter series, and classics like Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Charlotte’s Web, Hatchet, and Island of the Blue Dolphins.

-Food: Italian, Greek, Indian, and sushi!  (I also love salty snacks like chips and pretzels!)

-Restaurants:  The Boathouse, CAVA, Glory Days, Panera, Starbucks, & Sweet Frog!

-Things to do with my family:  Explore the outdoors!  We love visiting the many great state parks here in Virginia, biking the Capital Trail, and enjoying trips to the James River!