Hello! My name is Lizzie and I’m so excited that you’ve stumbled across my little slice of the Internet. I wanted to take a moment to describe how education became my passion.
I come from a family of educators. I grew up around everyone “talking shop” and education was always a highly valued experience in my home. It also helped that I had great teachers at school, and one French teacher specifically who wouldn’t let me quit on myself. I guess that paid off!
I went to Trinity College where I received my undergraduate degree in French Language and Literature, and Italian Studies. I then completed my graduate degree at New York University in the Foreign Language Teaching of French and Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages. My four total student teaching placements in Paris and NYC prepared me as well as they could for my start in urban education.
In my first two years I taught French and ENL at an IB high school in the Bronx. I will say that the only three reasons I did not leave education during these two years are because of 1) my parents, 2) my husband (then boyfriend) and 3) my AMAZING, hands down BEST MENTOR EVER! Relationships are what keep teachers afloat, and I have had amazing people on my lifeboat! 🙂
After two years, I knew I needed to find something different. I couldn’t quite put my finger on it then, but I wasn’t happy. I moved on to a French middle school position, and from month one, I knew it was the right fit! In my happy world, #MiddleSchoolersAreTheBestSchoolers! Don’t get me wrong, now that I have much more experience I think I would enjoy high school again and teaching the upper level classes, but there is something about the exuberance and general uninhibited nature of middle school kiddos that just make my heart happy every single day.
I am “that teacher”. The nerdy one. I always say hello in the hallway to everyone (my kids or not), I always smile (happy or not), I always do my best to start with kindness, and I love being a happy educator! Not allowing others to bring you down when they feel down is such an important shift I made mid-way through my career.
This is now my 10th year teaching, and just this month (12/21) I completed my degree in Educational Leadership! Perfecting Pedagogy is one way I intend to continue serving and supporting other educators around the world. We have so much to learn, and give, to each other. I’m glad you’ve decided to join me for this journey of improving language instruction 1% better every day.
Yours in Education,
Elizabeth