I started this blog with the best of intentions and a list of ideas, and then life happened.  At the moment I am on my prep period at a junior high school.  I don't have anything to do (I'm not preparing work or marking it), hence the time to sit and think and write.

So.  Still supply teaching, although now I'm at six schools instead of ten (plus the occasional high school).  Still finding my own style and rhythm.  I feel called to Special Education and Kindergarten, although I wont rule out other areas.  I'm also invested in improving educational options for students in my board-there is a lack of choice and variety that other school boards offer in terms of elementary programs.  As usual, I'm balancing motherhood and my personal interests with work.

What are those personal interests?  As many would expect, they tend to intersect with my teacher life.  In my spare time I:

Sing.  I am a member of the First United Church Choir, and sing first soprano.  We rehearse on Thursdays and before church on Sundays, and sing everything under the sun.  It's a wonderful community, a great way to create something special and to enrich worship services, it brings me joy and pleasure to sing, and it's a fantastic workout for my brain.  Singing involves physical, mental, and emotional work.  I get to play with different languages (spoken/written language as well as musical language), use mathematics, engage my body, and work with others to create something beautiful.  Choir has been part of my life since 1992, and I love it.

Cook.  I am the cook in our family.  I tend to rely on a few favourite cookbooks, the odd website, and also invoke my mother's passion and skill for "concocting".  I wish we had more opportunities to use food in the classroom.  It's a wonderful way to build community while involving literacy, mathematics, science, geography, culture, and character education.  I consider myself a "good cook" and love trying out new recipes.

Play.  I have a three-year-old at home, the fabulous Miss G.  Her world is a world of play-it is how she learns.  Miss G is passionate about building, playing with dolls and puppets, running, giggling, creating, and pretending.  My experiences with Miss G (along with my childhood in a home daycare) are what drive my passion for Kindergarten.

Learning about learning.  I can't help it-a lot of my spare time is spent reading books or talking about education.  Right now I'm focused on Early Learning, so I've been exploring the ways children create art and gain perspective, how to create welcoming home-like environments for children, and how "beautiful stuff" can shape discovery and creativity.

Next entry: more on my childhood, and the importance of Early Childhood Education.

An Introduction

It's been a while since I blogged, but there's been a voice inside telling me to write, to share my ideas, and to talk.  I spend a lot of time thinking about education, and I want to create a space to share my ideas (and hopefully gain some new ones through discussion and debate).  And so I have created The Evolving Educator.

I am a beginning teacher.  In 2013 I was finally accepted to the Occasional Teaching List for my local school board.  OT=Occasional Teacher=Supply=Guest=Substitute.  Prior to becoming an OT I was a youth worker for the Boys and Girls Club, a student teacher, a caregiver, a tutor and academic mentor, a babysitter, and most important of all, a mother (that particular position is ongoing).  My first year teaching was spent at ten different schools across the city, teaching all subjects and disciplines from junior kindergarten through eighth grade.  I've had the opportunity to try on many different hats, and have found that I love language arts, junior high school, special education, kindergarten, and hands-on learning.

I intend to write in detail about my formative years, and what lead me to become a teacher.  I'm also going to blog about different topics that are of interest to me, such as the impact of poverty in the classroom, access to special education programs, arts education, standardized testing, maker education and hacking the classroom, movement, full day kindergarten, streaming, and whatever else comes to mind.

In my life outside the classroom I am mother to a two-and-a-half year old daughter, Georgia.  We live in the nation's capital with Jason (my husband and partner-in-crime).  I'm a very crafty person and love to make things with my hands; scrapbooking and knitting are two current hobbies.  I'm an avid reader of all things, but especially graphic novels and memoirs.  I like to cook and bake and enjoy trying out new recipes or creating my own.  I sing in a church choir, something that has been a part of my life since I was a little girl.  I want a pet and I love The Beatles and eating ice cream.