Lezlee's Impact On Special Education

From Milwaukee, Wisconsin to Valparaiso, Indiana all the way to Dunedin, New Zealand Back to the United States to Tucson, Arizona where she stayed just for a few months. Then off she went back to the Midwest to Hugo, Minnesota to be closer to her family and now finally settled in Denver, Colorado with her husband Jeff and daughter Freya because of an outstanding job offer that was just too hard to resist. Never has Annika Pittman been one not to take risks. “Regret is meaningless. I don’t like to dwell on what I could change because I can’t.” Being a teacher of ten years, a wife, a mom, a friend, a daughter, and a sister she has made outstanding accomplishments. Knowing she wanted to be a teacher since kindergarten she had her whole life to strive for

In a person’s life, that person will have one role model that will stick with them. This role model may not be by the person’s side every single day, or every year, but the role model’s lessons and memory can last lifetimes. In “My Favorite Teacher” by Thomas L. Friedman, the author tells the readers about his role model, named Hattie M. Steinberg, and the impact she had on his life. Many times, people do not even realize how much of an impact one person can have on them until that person is gone.

When Public Law 94-142 was passed in 1975 it had a positive impact on the education for children with disabilities. Millions of children in the United States were supported by the law. These children had previously been excluded entirely from the education system.

Ms.Muggs got into personal fitness and health because she said ‘’it gave me a sense of belonging, aside from my house and family’’. One of the jobs Ms.Muggs had before teaching was being an aquatic director and had a paper route as a kid. Did Ms.Muggs have a favorite moment in middle school? No but she did have two favorite subjects, math and woodshop. When asked why, she said “because I didn’t like L.A. and I liked to build.’’ The sports she played in middle school were soccer, which was her favorite sport, and softball. In her middle school years she really didn’t like or care for school. She says “I didn’t care too much for middle school”. As a middle schooler we asked her if she had a dream job and she said ‘’I didn't have one.” In middle school Ms.Muggs got B’s and C’s but she says ‘’ I was a good kid’’. She didn’t really like middle school and didn’t really remember it either. She liked her teachers but they weren’t role models to her. Ms.Muggs is a new teacher at clifford so we asked her how is it like being a teacher at clifford she responded with, “I like teaching at Clifford, there a good group of kids” we wanted to get more about how she views Clifford so we asked her if Clifford was better than he middle school she said “ It isn’t

Haley Edgin is an 18-year-old student that had been homeschooled. Her hobbies include working and at Wilson’s Leather and then spending her money on clothes at her favorite store Torrid. Haley’s accomplishments are that she graduated from High school early and was able to get into college. Her goals are to finish college to get a degree in special education she is not sure exactly what she wants to major in. She also wants to get a job that she really likes and that pays well so that she can fuel her hobby. This is the basic information about Haley

Noel’s biggest passion is working with children. Since graduating high school, Noel has started Southern Wesleyan University, where she is majoring in Early Childhood and Elementary Education. After completing her Bachelor’s

She said that the world was safer when she was growing up. Sandra (Nana) grew up in the sixties in the small town of Fayette. During the sixties, not many houses had air conditioning, including her house. Central air was just becoming available. Including central air, new automatic car gadgets were becoming available. Before automatic car parts, windows were rolled up with a hand crank and trunks were opened with a key. During Nana’s high school career there were no computers; you had to go to the library if you wanted to research a topic. Since there were no computers, she learned to type on a typewriter. Nana’s senior year of high school included many turning points. She married her first husband, started college part-time, and became pregnant with her first child. By her senior year she had the minimum credits to graduate, but still had to stay in school so she took college classes at Spoon River college. She gave birth to her first child, my mom, in August of 1977. She had to quit the program she started at Spoon River so she could take care of my mom. She eventually went to Western University to receive her bachelor’s, but could only go part-time because she had to take care of her second child. Unfortunately, her and her husband divorced in 2000. Nana remarried in 2003 and seven years later received her master’s in education. My Nana has had many learning experiences over her lifetime and is truly

Maricruz Lira is a first-year college student at Chaffey College she has yet to decide what career path she would like to go in. Though there are some paths that’s she’s looking into one would be an elementary school teacher. Since she was small she has always felt grateful to teachers that took their time to teacher young children. Especially those who help children who have trouble learning or that help those who are behind because they take a longer time to understand the material they are taught. Maricruz also has many hobbies she likes doing in her spare time like reading many books especially on mythology and she has a passion for gardening and roller blading. In the end, this person enjoys the outdoors and being in the company of others

Hannah Snyder did not follow a traditional route to becoming an educator. Instead she became a mother at the age of 18 and got married a month later. She was taught to value her education but, after a few short semesters of college, found it too difficult to juggle both raising a family and school. Living paycheck to paycheck, while also on food stamps and welfare, Snyder felt broken. She then began attending church where she was asked to teach Sunday School. This is when she realized she was meant to become an educator. Although she suffered many personal setbacks and many tears were shed, these things made her desire to instill confidence and a lifelong love of learning in others.

I took a deep breath before entering the classroom, but my nervousness faded away as the innocent first-graders stared up at me in amusement. I pulled out the two books resting in my hand and watched their faces light up. All of them sat in pin-drop silence with gleaming eyes as I read a collection of Dr. Seuss books. After story time, they ran up in astonishment as I brought out pizza, not believing they deserved such a treat. I chuckled to myself at how such a small thing could make them so happy. Despite their unfavorable circumstances, they found a way to cherish each moment of their life, something we could all learn from them. While they were eating, a girl noticed the lavender polish streaked across my nails and asked me in the sweetest voice if I would paint hers. In that moment, something inside of me clicked. This empowering feeling overcame me. I wanted to do something for these kids and I knew I’d be back. This was the moment where everything changed. I made it my goal to make a difference in their lives as they had made in mine. Before I could do much more, the hours ticked by and I was surrounded by a wall of kids begging me to stay just a minute longer along with a multitude of cameras capturing every delightful

It wasn’t until junior year of high school, I realized I had a strong passion for teaching and helping others. When I was a child, dress-up and tea parties were never an option for my “play-date” guests. I was always pretending to be a teacher, while my guest landed the role as the student in class along with all of my stuffed animals and dolls. I have always dreamed of becoming a teacher, but it wasn’t until I reached high school I realized I wanted to become a high school teacher. For a while I was unsure of what I would like to teach. All I knew was I wanted to teach at a secondary level. During senior year, I found my passion. I realized Family and Consumer Science was the path for me.

Ten years from now, I see myself doing what I love to do—teaching. What brings me joy is the moment my students’ faces light up, when they finally grasp the concept that I was trying to teach them. Moments like these are why I am pursuing my bachelor’s degree in early childhood education, so I can better other people’s lives and help my community.

Before this assignment began, I thought about a powerful woman in my life that was influential to me and had gone through a lot. Many women struggle in the world with such things as family, education, and being in the work force and are often times undervalued. Many things that happen in life can affect women’s thoughts, feelings, emotions, actions, and finances. I chose my mother, Ellen Murphy, to discuss how certain events throughout her life had affected her with all of those that I listed. My mother’s experiences of adopting two children from another country, was a special education teacher, divorced my father, and grew up with supportive parents have all affected her life decisions with herself and with her children in both negative and positive ways as a woman. The first question I asked her was how old are you and what her job was and what degree she needed to be in that field. She is 51 and her job is a special education teacher with a primary unit of students with multiple disabilities and medically fragile in grades k-3. It is required to have a bachelor’s degree in science and education. Also, she received her master’s degree in teaching students with learning disabilities. She said that her career path had affected the rest of her life in many different areas.

I was given the opportunity to interview a wonderful woman who is an educator, wife and mother. Helen or “Ms. Helen” as her 4k students know her as, is always there with an open ear and wonderful advice. She works with each child in their own way, preparing them for preschool. She really believes that there is a light in every child that should be seen by the world. With the encouragement of a teacher like her, children will be able to spread their wings to become who they are truly meant to be. It was only a few years ago when Helen decided to change her lifestyle by working with children. Having four children of her own, she understood how important having a good role model for children was. She sets high expectations for her family, students and for herself by being confident of who she is and what she represents. She understands that good role models are open and honest about admitting fault if they make a mistake. She is a strong enough person now to understand and see the mistakes she has made in her past. She keeps in mind everyday, why God brought her into this world and to find the message she needs to share.

As soon as we walked through the doors of Gracemor Elementary School, I noticed how the hallways were packed with children my age and older with the same glint of excitement in their eyes as they cheerfully greeted their friends. When I finally mustered up the courage to look at the teachers, I noticed that they all had the same expression as the children. My teacher walked up to us and introduced herself to my uncle and then to me, even though she knew I couldn’t understand a word she said, and my uncle translated for her. As my uncle was leaving he knelt down and looked me straight in the eyes and gave me the what has now become “The Value of Education” speech. My teacher, Mrs. Decker, offered me her hand as she began walking down the hall to her classroom and I gratefully took it. When we reached the entrance to her classroom, she introduced me to the ecstatic looking women who would soon become my ELL teacher and then satisfied the inquisitive looks my classmates directed our way. As Mrs. Decker got class started, Ms. Paden led me outside and into another classroom and once again introduced me to the strange people that would soon become my colleagues.