Dear ED324 student,

            Welcome to this class!  The major purpose of this letter to each of you is to save you time, in getting to know my teaching style, so that we may begin our semester with full force.  I want you to feel comfortable in this class and participate fully.  The goal that I have for each of you is that, while I am teaching you how to teach mathematics, you will also strengthen your understanding of the mathematical concepts and procedures that you already know.  As a result, you will gain an appreciation for mathematics, and have less of a feeling of anxiety toward teaching it.  We are going to go all the way back to the simplest level and understand mathematics so that we may teach it effectively to young learners.  We want to help students build a mathematical foundation that many of us did not get.

           First of all, I am not a “math whiz.”  I only gained an appreciation for mathematics when
I got in graduate school and started exploring manipulatives (hands-on materials).  What seemed so difficult to me in grade school, seems so easy now.  The point is, it would have been easy then, if I had had mathematics teachers like each of you will learn to be. 

          We will spend the first 3/4 of the semester studying the textbook and doing hands-on
activities with the manipulatives.  The last part of the semester will be your time to practice what has been learned by teaching your lesson in small groups.  Attendance at each class session will be very important because making up the class will involve more than just photocopying someone’s notes.  Group activities with the manipulatives will be a constant part of the course.  You will need to communicate with your group members and consider each of them as your partners in this study.  You may wish to exchange telephone numbers and get them to proofread your assignments before turning them in.
 Sincerely, 

                 A Brief Profile:      

PERSONAL:

I was born June 11, 1964 in Moulton, Alabama. My husband, Keith, and I married on Christmas Day of 1981. He is the Fire Chief of Moulton Fire Department. We have two daughters: Kelly, who was born in 1982 and Blair, who was born in 1985. Kelly and her daughter, Taylor, (born 4-2-03) live in Tuscaloosa.  We live in a circle neighborhood where my brother and his wife and daughter, my mother and father, and my two grandmothers live. My family owns McCulloch’s Specialty Home Furnishings across from the Courthouse. I am the oldest child. My brother, James, is the youngest; he is in law enforcement. My sister, Michelle, also lives in Moulton and has three children.

EDUCATION:

• 1982  Lawrence County High School, Moulton,AL:  High School Diploma

• 1989  BSED - University of North Alabama, Florence,AL:  Elementary Education

• 1992  MAED - University of North Alabama, Florence,AL:  Elementary Education

• 1994  EdS  - University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa,AL:  Curriculum and Instruction

• 1994  PhD  - University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa,AL:  Major:  Curriculum and Instruction;  Minor:  Educational Research Methodology and Statistics;  Minor: Educational Psychology; Language:  Spanish, classical and contemporary

TEACHING EXPERIENCE:

Self-contained:
             1st grade, Kilby Laboratory School
             3rd grade, East Lawrence Elementary
             4th grade, R.E. Thompson School
             K-6 Art, Music, Spanish, all East Lawrence Elementary students 
                         (1 hour weekly to each class)
Undergraduate:  Introductory classes, mini-block, methods 
             block, supervision of student teachers, student teacher seminars, 
             University of  Alabama and Athens State University, Faculty Senator
Graduate:  I have taught most graduate courses for elementary masters' level and
             some for Ed.S. and Ph.D. levels, University of Alabama, Gadsden Center;
             I have also taught classes in Colombia and Peru for South American educators.
Research:  I have conducted national and international research seminars, local
             teacher workshops, and have published research and classroom materials.
Owner: The Art Attic, Moulton, (a private art school for K-12 students)  I have
             also taught art lessons at The Learning Tree in Decatur.
 

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