A few years ago, I turned 30. At that time, I started to take inventory of my life and seriously evaluate what I was doing and the direction I was going. I realized that I was not satisfied with my career, my body or my emotional self. I resolved to spend the next few years working on improving those situations. I thought about what sort of career might be most-fulfilling to me. I tried to connect my needs to the time in life when I felt most engaged and interested in what I was doing, the answer became clear. My middle and high school history classes were the most interesting things I could remember being involved in; I had a series of teachers who made the subject matter interesting and presented the content through activities that always left me eager to learn more. I decided that's what I wanted to do.
I've been able to grow as a person emotionally, while simultaneously shrinking as a person physically, losing over 150 pounds in the process. My body and emotional state are in the best shape they've ever been. The reaction whenever somebody sees a picture of me from two years ago gives me a great sense of satisfaction. The weight loss journey was not an easy one, but it was definitely worth doing and I feel that it's something I should share with other people who may need inspiration for positive change in their lives.
I've been able to grow as a person emotionally, while simultaneously shrinking as a person physically, losing over 150 pounds in the process. My body and emotional state are in the best shape they've ever been. The reaction whenever somebody sees a picture of me from two years ago gives me a great sense of satisfaction. The weight loss journey was not an easy one, but it was definitely worth doing and I feel that it's something I should share with other people who may need inspiration for positive change in their lives.
I have resided in Southern California for most of my life, growing up in Orange County and residing in the Inland Empire for the past seven years. I hold a Bachelor of Arts in Journalism (with a History minor) from California State University, Northridge. I toiled in the field of freelance journalism for several years before turning to other professional endeavors and finally making the decision to return to school and pursue a teaching credential, which I felt would be a fulfilling career.
In many of my high school classes, I frequently felt unchallenged and neglected in the classroom environment, which led me to feel that school and anything associated with it was not important. As a teacher, these experiences would lead me to recognize students who face similar issues as I did and trying to reach out to them so they can feel more connected to the class and the content being taught. Many students will not fit into this category and I will need to recognize this and alter my instruction to benefit all of them. I made a lot of mistakes as a young adult; fortunately, I had people in my life who still believed in me and did not give up on me. As a result, I was able to re-frame many of those mistakes as learning opportunities. I know that my students will not be perfect; they will make mistakes, too... but just as people in my life never gave up on me, I will never give up on them and I will work to make those mistakes something that they can learn from.
In many of my high school classes, I frequently felt unchallenged and neglected in the classroom environment, which led me to feel that school and anything associated with it was not important. As a teacher, these experiences would lead me to recognize students who face similar issues as I did and trying to reach out to them so they can feel more connected to the class and the content being taught. Many students will not fit into this category and I will need to recognize this and alter my instruction to benefit all of them. I made a lot of mistakes as a young adult; fortunately, I had people in my life who still believed in me and did not give up on me. As a result, I was able to re-frame many of those mistakes as learning opportunities. I know that my students will not be perfect; they will make mistakes, too... but just as people in my life never gave up on me, I will never give up on them and I will work to make those mistakes something that they can learn from.