Autobiography

 

In my life I strive to be surrounded by creative energy and youthful vitality.  That’s why I lived in a housing co-op in downtown Madison for ten years where most of my housemates were involved in student and/or community organizations.  That’s also one of the main reasons I want to be a middle school teacher.  Where in the world can you find more creative energy and youthful vitality than in our middle schools?  
When I’m around kids I get invigorated.  One of the best compliments I ever received was from a middle school student who was attending a summer camp where I was working.  Somewhere between playing ultimate frisbee, tag and hold-the-teacher-under-water-as-long-as-you-can, one of the students named Dee Dee turned to me and asked, “Man, where do you get your energy?”  I didn’t tell him at the time, but I got it from him and the other kids.          
My underlying desire to become a teacher started with my first experience in the public schools.  Before fourth grade, I had attended a private alternative school with all grade levels together in one room.  I was able to focus on the subjects that interested me the most--I explored science and math extensively--but this was ultimately detrimental to learning English.  When I began fourth grade I couldn’t write in cursive, and I used horrible spelling and grammar.  My teacher took it upon herself to keep me after school several nights a week to help me catch up.  If she hadn’t taken me under her wing, I’m not sure where I would be today.

My fourth grade teacher was very perceptive regarding her students’ needs as well as responsive to those needs.  She took time out of her busy schedule to help me get back on track.  This is one of the most important qualities teachers can possess: the ability to sense their students’ needs and then find the time to help with these problems, whether they are educational or emotional in nature.

I began to realize that I wanted to be a teacher when I reached high school.  I took a class that gave me credit for tutoring at the elementary school I had attended.  This was my first direct experience with teaching, and I loved it.  I also tutored other high school students during study halls and once in a while after school.  It was gratifying to see the look in their eyes when they finally understood what we were reviewing.  I took on tutoring as a serious challenge: I wanted the student working with me to understand the material as well as he/she could.  When tutoring, I always learned something new. I hope this will continue throughout my teaching career.

After high school, I tutored at Sherman Middle School in Madison.  This was through a Centro Hispano program which worked with at-risk students.  In the summers of 2001 and 2002, I had the opportunity to work as a summer camp counselor at Georgia O’Keefe Middle School.  For a year-and-a-half I worked as a Special Education Assistant at Savanna Oaks Middle School.  During these experiences I discovered repeatedly that there are many different ways of learning.  Not all students process information the same way.  That’s why it’s important for me as a teacher to have many teaching styles available to me.  I also realized that students have a harder time learning if they are not engaged or interested, something I know from my own experience in school as well.  Many students think that what they are learning has no relevance to their lives.  Showing connections between the curriculum and the real world on a daily basis is a goal for me in my teaching.

All of my experiences working with children have solidified my desire to be a teacher.  I know how hard it was for me in middle school even though I had an amazingly supportive family.  Most children don’t have such support in their familes, and in fact, some of their families appear dysfunctional.  I feel that for many children middle school is our last hope of helping them find themselves and boosting them towards becoming integral parts of a caring, productive society.

I’m an optimistic person who is excited about the future.  One of the main reasons for this is that I look forward to and enjoy seeing our youth evolve into mature adults who carry ideals of love, compassion and the will to succeed.  I will do whatever is in my power to help them on their journey, a journey which is mine in return.