About Me:
Hi! My name is Rebecca Stuart. I've been married for nine years, and have three little girls. I have lived in Alabama my whole life, along with my parents and sister. My mom graduated from USA with a degree in education nine years ago, the day before my oldest daughter was born. My husband also graduated from USA in 2008 with a degree in Civil Engineering. So there was no question I would continue the tradition.
Honestly, it never crossed my mind to be a teacher until I got a temporary job at a pre-school. I loved to see those little faces light up when they learned something new. After that I enrolled right away, and knew this was exactly what I was supposed to do. I also have been the PTO secretary for two years. That has been a rewarding job, but time consuming due to the lack of parent involvement. I love being at the school helping any way I can.
When I graduate from USA I have plans to pursue my masters in Reading Specialist. I developed a love for teaching children to read after taking the literacy class last semester. I have always been an avid reader, and I luckily passed that down to my children. I also love crafting, DIY projects, and photography. I am a Pinterest junkie. I feel somewhat lost when I don't have a project going. My husband, on the other hand gets pretty nervous when I tell him, "I have another idea."
My Classroom:
My desired grade is 3rd grade. I love that age the most, and many are eager to learn new things. I am enthusiastic about having a hands on classroom, mostly because I feel it's easier to learn with that style of teaching. As a child I learned best by having my hands moving, and being involved in the work I was doing. If not, my mind was wondering, and I was focusing my attention on many other things rather than what my teacher was saying.
I want my students to develop a love for reading. Having good reading skills can help in all other aspects of life, as well as being able to comprehend other subjects. I will have a word wall as the main focus of my room. This will help my students be able to have an interactive way of learning vocabulary, and spelling which will enable them to be efficient readers.
I'm very new in learning how to work and use a Smart Board. But, I'm beyond amazed at its capabilities! Things have come a long way since over head projectors! I plan to use a Smart Board for my classroom to help in all aspects of my teaching. I love that it gives the children another way to interact in a hands on way. I think the idea of using them to communicate with other classrooms is an amazing way to educate kids in the different ways people live.
This year at our elementary school I started a school wide program that involved every grade. Each grade is responsible in the care, and up keep of a section of the school grounds. Each grade chose a section of the school to plant flowers or any type of plant, and many add to their section through the year. This helps to keep the school looking nice all year, and not just when we have special visitors coming. When I'm a teacher I hope to do this for my class. I love the idea of a school wide, or even community wide garden. This will help get the children out doors and out of the traditional classroom setting. This will teach them hard work and responsibility.
Randy Paush on Time Managment:
This was my first time hearing of Randy Pausch, and his views are great for young, new college students. I am much more efficient in managing my time now, than when I was a teenager. I believe it comes with maturity, and age. I agree with Randy Pausch on his idea of doing the worst thing on your to-do list first. I'm a definite list maker, and I make one everyday and frequently add to it. With having three kids I would be a mess without a list. So getting the biggest thing finished first would be a weight lifted early in the day. Sometimes you do need to ask yourself how important things on your list are, so you don't get overwhelmed with many tasks. One thing I vowed to get better about is procrastination on big projects this semester. Not all the time, but the few times I did procrastinate it put me in a stressed mood.
Time Management
