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Hi everyone!  My name is Amanda Gager, and I am currently a first and second grade teacher in a multiple disabilities classroom in Ewing Township, New Jersey.  This is my fourth year teaching in the district.

I am sorry I am a little late to the party, however, I am excited to have this opportunity to learn more about executive functioning and work and learn with all of you! The first time I heard the term executive functioning was in one of my special education masters classes. I remember the professor describing it as a little metaphorical suitcase that everyone carried around and helped us process information. I honestly do not remember much more about the subject so I am really excited to take this course and explore the ways I can help my students build executive functioning skills in the classroom.

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Hello Everyone, my name is Nicole Harris.  I am the principal at Parkway Elementary School in Ewing Township.  I have been a VP for 10 years and am currently in my 10th year as a building principal.  Prior to becoming an administrator I taught first grade for 4 years.  I am interested in gaining a better understanding of Executive Function in terms of how it develops naturally in students and how we as teachers can help students further develop their own levels of EF .

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Hello! I am very excited about this VLC. Executive Function is an area I have had an interest in for some time. While I have read a few books on this topic, I would like to learn how to effectively bring EF skills into the classroom.
I am a teacher of fifth grade special learners at Parkway Elementary School. I'm terrible at keeping track of time, but I've taught at Parkway for about ten years. I also taught at Trenton Community Charter School for about two and a half years prior to Parkway

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Hello! Sorry I am late to the party! I am a 7th grade ELA teacher in Milton, MA. My school / humanities department are focusing on how teaching / fostering executive function skills in our students can possibly help students achieve academically and improve their behavior. So many students in the 7th grade struggle with these skills and I am very excited to learn ways in which I can help them develop and grow as learners!

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Hello Everyone! I have been a teacher for 17 years at Rio School District. I have spent 9 of the years teaching 2nd - 6th grade and 8 of those years as a Teacher on Special Assignment in many different capacities, but all in support of teacher learning and growth. I am looking forward to expanding my skill set in working with teachers as well as hope to pass on important knowledge and strategies about executive function that they can use with their students. Because I am also a mom of 3, with my 10 year old twins attending the school district I work, the urgency for application increases. I can't wait to keep growing my brain with you all!

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Hello! I am Leslie Pimentel. I have been a teacher for 24 years in California, where I have taught 1st, 3rd, 6th, 7th & 8th grades.  This is my first year out of the classroom, which has been and continues to be a HUGE adjustment.  I am a district TOSA(teacher on special assignment) focused on Math implementation of our newly adopted curriculum.  I have only recently heard the term "Executive Function", but with a little research I have come to realize how much of it I have incorporated into my own teaching practice and with my own children throughout the years!
I am looking forward to continuing my development as an educator through this course and see this as an awesome opportunity to continue moving forward with my own growth mindset!

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Hello! I am currently in my 9th year of teaching.  I am a Special Educator teaching 8th grade Language Arts, social studies, and Learning Center.  This is my first year at Byram Hills in Armonk, NY.  Previously, I have taught a combination of gen ed English grades 8 and 9 and Special Education classes grades 8-12.
My goal is to learn how to redesign lessons and units to meet the needs of students that struggle with Executive Function.  I am looking forward to this coursework and to meeting new people.

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Hello everyone! I have been teaching for 25 years. I taught preschool for 2 years, and have spent the other 23 years in second grade in Byram Hills. Although I have many years experience teaching at this grade level, I am always striving to improve upon my own teaching. I also have three children of my own, and want to help them to continue to be successful in school and life.

Over the years, I have had many children with Executive Functioning disorders. My goal for this course is to truly understand what EF difficulties look like, from the child's perspective. What does it feel like to be a child who has difficulty in this area? Then, how can I use that understanding to best fit their needs? Having a true understanding of EF means that I can better use resources and create a classroom that fits the needs of all children.

I look forward to learning with you!

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Hello!  My name is Nicole Siegel.  This is my 10th year teaching.  I taught 1 year of 5th grade, 8 years of 4th grade, and this is my first year as a 3rd grade teacher.  I work in the Ewing Township School District in New Jersey.

My goals for this course is to help my students feel more successful in the classroom and to be a more effective teacher. I have at times debated about getting a masters in special education, because I have witnessed students every year struggle for various reasons. Teaching in an elementary setting has brought to light how young some students have learned that "school is hard". It makes me sad and I want to help instill a confidence in their abilities with executive function strategies.
Disclaimer: I am a new mother (1 1/2 year old at home) which has also changed my perception of teaching.  Also, it has altered my schedule on when I can complete work.

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Hi there! This is my 5th year teaching 5th grade at Antheil Elementary School in Ewing, NJ. Our district recently departmentalized so this is my second year teaching exclusively math and science/social studies.

One of my goals is to learn more about executive function. To be honest, the first time I heard of it was along with the invite to join this VLC. I would also like to know how to strengthen and develop executive functioning in my students.

I look forward to posting my first ever padlet and participating in my first VLC!

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Hi All!  My name is Maria Petsos.  I currently am a Special Education Supervisor (Pre-K to 5th grade) in Ewing Public Schools.  I have been in the district since 2009 where I started as  an LDTC (Educational Diagnostician).
My goals for this course are to gain a better understanding of Executive Function and how to support students and teachers. As a supervisor it would be beneficial to learn all that is possible about Executive Functioning and how it impacts student learning. It is the hope that this class will provide me ways in which to provide training to staff on this topic. It is an area that we discuss in meetings a lot but not sure that we fully understand the etiology and ways in which to intervene effectively.  I look forward greatly to learning all that I can!

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Hi!  My name is Melissa Shaw.  I am in my 17th year teaching.  I have taught second, third and fourth grades as a classroom teacher.  For the last 6 years, I have been an Early Intervention Specialist focusing on Math in grades 2-5.  I teach in Ewing, NJ.

My goals for this course are both professional and personal.  As a teacher, I want to gain a better understanding of Executive Function and how to best help my students.  I want to learn strategies to implement into lessons and routines to help all students be successful.  As a parent of a child with ADHD, I want to also learn strategies to help him continue to be successful in school.  I have found that having a child that can struggle at times has opened my mind and understanding for my students.

Disclaimer - I am also nervous about using all of these different formats and will try my best.

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Hello everyone!  My name is Lauren Rudowski and I teach in the Ewing Township School District in New Jersey. I am currently a 5th grade teacher, but have taught 2nd grade and have been a the math Early Intervention Specialist.

My goals for this course are to learn more about executive functioning and how it relates to student learning.  I would like to learn strategies to help those that have difficulty with executive functioning.

I look forward to learning and growing as an educator during this course.

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Hello! I am an 8th grade Special Education teacher. I have worked with students as young as 2 years old through 12th grade. The past 17 years I have been in 8th grade. This year I am co-teaching with two science teachers, two social studies teachers and co teach in a Learning Center (similar to Resource Room support).

I have two goals. The first is to learn more about how to further assist students with executive functioning issues and incorporate it into my classroom situations. The second goal is managing all of the google or other technology formats we will be using other than the basic word processing etc. Therefore, do not confuse my silence as silence- I am just lost in technology.

Looking forward to this adventure in learning.

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Hi everyone! I am an 8th grade social studies teacher at Pierce Middle School in Milton, MA. I teach modern world history.

My goals are to learn more about executive function and how to help my struggling students with their executive function skills. In addition, I would like to learn activities and strategies that I can incorporate into my daily lesson plans to better help my students develop their executive function skills!

Looking forward to learning! :)

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Hi All! While I am an Instructional Strategies Specialist at IDE Corp, I taught World Language for nearly a decade from grades 5 - 12. During my tenure, I could frequently be found assisting my colleagues and providing school and district level training.

I hope that, through this course, you will be able to learn more about what executive function is and how you can promote it in your classrooms.  I also hope that you will be able to collaborate and get ideas and support from one another!

Looking forward to working with all of you!