Meet Our Director
Montessori Learning Center
Love learning, and I love seeing students learn to love learning. I am using and learning the MONTESSORI method because I have found through teaching since 1996 that students grounded in concrete knowledge and practical reality are also the students whose imaginations soar to the greatest heights, and whose accomplishments impact the most people for good. I am now teaching at the beginning of each child’s learning arc.
Since my first anthropology class taught at Idaho State University in 1996 as a teaching assistant, I have thoroughly enjoyed teaching and learning to teach in ways that help every student. Whether it was teaching anthropology to college students, teaching archaeology methods in the field, teaching technology-in-the-classroom to preservice teachers, teaching English to Taiwanese students in Hsinchu, Taiwan, or teaching graduate & thesis writing to Masters-level students (also Taiwan), I have learned that students can really grow and shine when they realize their teacher is knowledgeable, dedicated to their academic and civil advancement, and always learning himself. I have since spent 8 years in Oakley, Idaho as a certified teacher teaching social studies (US Government, US History, Economics, Anthropology, Geography, and Study Skills) to High School and Junior High students. Having earned a Masters of Science (Anthropology/Archaeology) and a Doctorate (EdD Education), I had the ability to offer 18 credits of Dual Credit college credits through the College of Southern Idaho (POLS/HIST/ECON/ANTH).
As before, I love learning. It is now my mission to help younger students love learning and move all the way from pre-school through graduation and incorporation into the big, wide world as productive, creative, self-correcting adults. MONTESSORI provides a structured, ordered, safe environment that allows each child to explore at his or her own pace, and to develop the metacognitive skills that are needed to be productive, creative, and self-correcting (and happy).
I am passionate about the Montessori methodology because it enables children to develop cognitive skills through active and sensory learning. It promotes independence, self-esteem, and self-confidence in an environment of love, respect, and freedom, balanced with discipline. My educational background includes a BA in Finance and an associate degree in Child Education; furthermore, I am a certified Infant Massage Instructor, and I am completing a master's program in Montessori Education and Child Psychology.
As a college-educated mother of five, I have always valued family AND education. However, being independent-minded and curious, I kept myself open to and even sought out, different ideas and methods to help me in raising and teaching my children. When I realized public education was going in a direction that did not support family values and broader opportunities in learning (such as trades, apprenticeships, and entrepreneurship) I chose to homeschool my children. I see in MONTESSORI learning opportunities that are missing in public schools, that even excellent teachers in those settings cannot provide. I enjoy working with young children, and I am excited to have this opportunity to learn and teach the MONTESSORI method.
