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I'm originally from North Muskegon Michigan and I currently teach the Early Childhood Special Education Program at Whitehall District Schools

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I love spending time on and near Lake Michigan! Being outside hiking, boating, and beaching is my favorite way to pass time- especially in the summer!

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I love to travel, especially with my family! It's always fun to see new places (especially while representing MSU, GO GREEN!)

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My academic interests include ways we can meet all students needs. How we can change our teaching and management styles to morph to the ways society is changing. How do we modify and change older style curriculum references to meet todays diverse learners? How do we include all students in the classroom community?

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Good teaching means learning about your students, and then using that information to support them in all ways. Building relationships with students and their families is one of the most crucial parts of being a teacher, when you build a relationship you build trust. Students learn from the teachers that they trust. In the world of Special Education this also means advocating for your students!

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Finding exciting and hands-on experiences to help engage students in material is one of the best parts of my job! Through the MATC program I hope to learn about effective engagement strategies other educators use and implement them into my classroom.

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Having coworkers that you can collaborate with and learn from is one of the best things about teaching. I am lucky enough to work in an Early Childhood building where we collaborate AND have fun (Halloween- emojis)! I am excited to get back into the MATC program so that I can connect with MSU educators who think progressively. I'm excited to learn about others teaching experiences and share new ideas with my team.

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One of my purposes of completing the MATC program is to eventually move into leadership roles in the school and make positive change. I would love to help create more curriculum for students with special needs, as well as educate teachers on benefits of inclusion and positive mindsets surrounding all students.

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I'm excited to learn more about effective strategies for teaching literacy to young children. I hope to eventually become a professional who helps design curriculum or coaches teachers in new and exciting ways to teach the many areas of literacy to students. I hope these strategies can be engaging, developmentally appropriate, and socially relevant.