Hello. I have been teaching Health for 15 years. I have also been coaching cheerleading for 15 years. -Go Panthers!-
What I teach:
This year I'll be teaching 7th grade and 9th grade Health where we will learn about nutrition, exercise, drugs/ alcohol, mental health, disease, reproductive health and first aid & safety.
I also teach Life Skills. I'm really excited because 5/3 Bank has sponsored us with Dave Ramsey's Financial Peace Program. This program, if followed WILL change kids lives! We'll also be learning to sew and the importance of good nutrition and cooking.
My favorite class though is STLP (Student Technology leadership Program) where we get to really explore the world of technology and most especially web design. The cool thing about this class is that students really have the opportunity to work at their own pace, to be challenged and to learn new, cool, real world technology skills.
About my teaching style.
I believe that high school students should be held to a high expectation. I believe each student has the ability to do very well in my classes. I also believe that at this age, students need to start really taking responsibility for their education. This is why I try to challenge students, allow some flexibility but eventually expect students to get their work done and ask for help when they need it. I allow students to turn work in late without penalty. This is nice for busy kids or students who take longer. I try to do a lot of project based assignments and also try to allow students some creativity. I love using technology and encourage my students to use technology to do their work. What's great about everything I teach is that everything has real world applications which eliminates the "why do I have to learn this? I'll never need to know this again." complaint.
What parents can do to help their child
Check grades often!! I try to stay up do date on grading and also try to put as many assignments and notes on my website as copyright laws allow. (I cannot put any of the Dave Ramsey activities, videos or notes on my page, sorry) If you see that your child is falling behind, if they say "I turned it in, she lost it" I can tell you that very often that is a fib. I grade papers at school. Students turn them in to a file, they go to my desk to be graded and back to the file. There is no homework eating monster that lives in my room. Ninety nine percent of the time, when a student says "I did it, she lost it" or "she just doesn't like me" I look through their folder or locker and find the offending "lost assignment" there, crumpled and not finished.
I also print out their assignments and grades every three weeks or so and ask students to verify their missing work. If your child is missing an assignment check out their class's webpage listed above and to the left. On that page you can see the assignment and often print it out so they can do it at home.
What's the best, most efficient way to contact me?
Email is the BEST way to reach me. I check email daily when I am at school. I very much welcome questions from parents and want to work with you to keep your child doing well in my class.