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This is me as I work while at my daughter's dance studio.

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This me as I complete course work at my daughter's Dance Studio. 

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I am the 4th of 6 children. I have 4 sisters and one brother. Besides my brother temporarily located in Orlando, we all live within 15 minutes of each other. When I think of immediate family this is it!

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This is my extended family. It includes my aunts, uncles, cousins. The two lovely ladies in the middle are my maternal grandmother and her sister, both Catholic Italian Americans.

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This is my husband and daughter. We are working to try to instill core values and create our own family traditions.

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Growing up my family always went camping. We had families that we would camp with and we always found ways to get into lots of trouble.

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My sister became pregnant at 16. Our faith and shcool community suddenly did not interact with our family the same way. We adapted and situation and really brought our family closer together.

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My parents wanted us to have education they did not have and to be able to provide for ourselves. My oldest sister has a doctorate of Pharmacy. Four of us have college degrees and my youngest sister is a licensed cosmetologist. My husband and I stress the importance of education, but ultimately we want our daughter to be happy. If she wants to go to trade school or pursue other interests that education is not required we would allow it.

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What works to meet the needs of my family is planning and communication. My husband and I sit down and plan out our schedules, because his work schedule is not the same each week. We will use visuals and reminders, so that our daughter knows what it going on and when events are going to take place. We are social people and part of that is we stay busy. Chloe is a girl scout, plays tennis, and dances. Chloe has dance classes five nights a week! Dance started as way to get some energy out and now she is a competitive dancer.  Her "dance friends" and my "dance moms" provides us opportunities to socialize with people that enjoy similar things.

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We are HUGGERS! My grandmother gets upset if you do not greet her with hug and kiss. This was difficult for my husband, his family is not huggers! Our daughter has become a hugger!

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Growing up we always had family dinners. It was time to share our day and connect. As we got older and busier this was harder, but we always tried to have Sunday meals together. We had food on our table and clothes to wear, often hand-me-downs, but my parents worked hard to make sure we all had what we needed. To provide for my daughter’s daily care it is making sure she completes homework before taking her to all her classes. Being there when she has a tough day at school and taking her to doctor and orthodontist appointments as needed.

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I was raised Catholic. I went to mass weekly and attended a Catholic school. My parents both graduated from this school and were very involved in church and school activities. Though I attended other churches in college and right after, when had my daughter felt call to return to the Catholic Church. My daughter attends the school that I went to and I volunteer at church as much as possible. My daughter has become a mass server as well. Faith is important to us and often a topic of conversation.

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As an educator, I am always looking for ways in enhance my teaching abilities and learn new strategies to help my current and future students. I am always reading and researching best practices and with trial and error to figure out what works best for an individual student.

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A students’ race, gender, social economic status, sexual orientation, and language does not have effect on my teaching delivery. All students have the right to learn and be taught with dignity and respect. I try to use different learning styles and strategies to best educate students and meeting their individual needs.

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In my current teaching positions, we discuss advocacy and discrimination laws for the work place. We discuss speaking up for yourself, asking for what you want. I discuss IEP goals with students before putting them on an IEP draft. I discuss meeting process and the importance of being at meetings about them and how speaking up is important and necessary. I also discuss with my students the importance of understanding what they are signing, and that it is OK to say you do not feel comfortable signing a legal document until it’s been reviewed with someone you trust. In my previous positions, many of my students were non-verbal and I always felt that my job to be their voice. I wanted to always give the students choices and options for recess or other activities. I would try to design work and other questionnaires to fit their needs. For some, so much of their day was done for them or generate around their daily care that giving them simple choices allowed them to have a little bit of control.

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To keep open communication, I start the year by writing letters and participating in an open house. I also try to call all the parents in the first few weeks to introduce myself.  I send home newsletters when needed to inform parents of what is happening in the classroom. My phone number, email, and other contact information are all on letters.  I answer calls and emails as soon as I am able to.

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I respect all my students and feel that most show me respect in return. Every day is a new day and a chance to continue to learn and move forward. My commitment to provide quality education is way I show student respect to them as people first.

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My commitment to my students goes beyond just education. I am there to be a counselor, nurse, friend, confidant, job coach, and any other role I need to play. I try to talk to my students daily about feelings and anything else they want to bring up. I am committed to helping all. I try to do what is best for them while in the classroom and as they transition into adulthood. I want what is best for them and want them to achieve their goals and dreams.