Hello all and welcome! I figured I'd start off by introducing myself. I started my teaching experience at 16 in my mom's dance studio teaching tap dancing lessons. From there, I went to Arizona State University straight out of high school for my degree in education and moved into the classroom three years ago.
I spent my first two years teaching Freshmen and Sophomore English at a Title I high school outside of Phoenix, and LOVED it! My students were my babies and it was my dream to loop with my first group of freshmen all four years of high school. I was exceptionally lucky to work with an admin team who really invested in me and allowed me opportunities not usually given to second-year teachers. My second year I joined the school's PBIS committee, became a PLC lead, and even spearheaded a tutoring intervention program for the freshmen at our school. I was on a teaching high. Unfortunately, during my second year, I also married the love of my life who dragged me with him to California.
Teaching in California is a lot more competitive. Initially, I was thrilled to work in a state with a better budget and far more support for public schools. My colleagues in Arizona envied me for moving somewhere with more progressive educational policies. After finishing year two, I was ravenous to continue my teaching career. I was desperate to continue working with students and improving my craft. After months of rejection letters from school after school, I was finally offered a position teaching ELA at a Title I middle school a month before the beginning of the school year.
I remember literally jumping up and down after accepting the position because I was SO excited to get back in the classroom and was high on the idea of working for a state which supports their teachers and pays a decent salary. I'm sorry to say that reality at my new school was far from what I expected.
After an especially hard school year, I have been finding myself researching how to improve my classroom management and my instruction. I have begun following teacher accounts on Instagram, pinning every creative idea I can find on Pinterest, and throwing my energy into entirely revamping my curriculum and procedures for next year. I also took the leap and signed up to go back to school for my Masters in Curriculum Instruction and Design.
Even after an exceptionally hard year in the classroom, I still love my job. Stumbling so many times this year has only made me more driven to do better next time. It has also inspired me to work towards helping other teachers by providing my own experiences and ideas. It is easy to feel inferior when looking at perfectly decorated classrooms on Pinterest, and so I wanted to create a space that shares the good, the bad, and the ugly of education. I want to share my successes and failures so that I can look back and reflect on my own experiences and hopefully help some others in the process.
So that's a little about me! Can't wait to continue sharing with you all!
Sincerely,
Mrs. Frappaccino
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