Today we’d like to introduce you to Meghan Verbitsky.
Hi Meghan, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
My name is Meghan, I am a local educator who is passionate about early literacy and combining appropriate developmental classroom practices with rigorous instruction (in laymen’s terms, an elementary school hype person). Fourteen years ago, as a freshman, I had little intention of ever pursuing education as a freshmen as a career. Yet, here I am, nine years into a career in education! Throughout my journey, I have been worked in public education, private education and in the private sector. I have worked in education in four different states (California, Texas, Colorado, and Louisiana), which has been eye-opening!
I grew up in a sleepy foothill town about 90 miles northeast of San Francisco and 30 miles southwest of Lake Tahoe. I grew up in a household of educators and coaches. I was determined not to become an educator like both of my parents! At 18, I moved to Denver, Colorado, to play basketball in college at Colorado Christian University A graduation requirement at CCU is to fulfill service hours. I often found myself fulfilling my hours at women’s shelters, particularly working the children’s unit. I spent my summers in college working a youth basketball camps and parks and recreation camps. In 2012 I received my undergraduate degree in Liberal Arts and minor in Biblical Studies and completed my student teaching.
My first job out of college I was fortunate enough to serve the community I grew up in as the Early Childhood Literacy Specialist at local library branch. There, I represented First Five of California at local literacy conferences, held literacy parent workshops for families with children from birth to age of five, provided professional development for local teachers and delivered books to unprivileged families. The best part of the job was storytime. Every week I held themed storytimes for local families and their children. While serving my community, I started learned the value and importance of building relationships with the families who attended storytime. Building relationships with students and their families is still something I believe to be an area of strength for me.
In 2014, I began my full-time teaching career teaching as a Kindergarten teacher in New Orleans, Louisiana. While teaching kindergarten, I fell in love with the curriculum design piece of teaching and began integrating STEM and literacy together. I also quickly learned that I also needed a better understanding of literacy to help my kindergarten students read. Think about it; our youngest learners need quality reading instruction; we read our entire lives (I mean, you’re reading this now). In order to better understand emergent literacy, I went back to graduate school at Louisiana State University to complete my Master’s of Education in Curriculum and Instruction and obtain my reading specialist certification. My entire thesis analyzed systematic phonics instruction and its impact on emergent literacy skills and, most importantly, my students reading progress.
While teaching in New Orleans, I also starting planning classroom transformations. For example, when my students were reviewing vowels, I turned my classroom into a “Vowel Hospital” where students healed words that had lost their vowel. While reviewing addition and subtraction and turned my classroom into the Mad Hatter’s Tea Party-we did it big, I dressed up as Alice and taught in British accent the entire day! My goal while planning these special days are to make it memorable and purposeful. Students need to be engaged with their learning, they need to be active participants.
I currently teach first grade at a public elementary school in East Dallas, where I moved to this summer. If you would of asked me last year at this time if I would be teaching in Dallas in Spring of 2021, I would have said you were crazy! This year, I have been blessed with an amazing group of students, but this year has been by far the most challenging due to the pandemic. In July of this year, I was asked to serve at the Virtual Academic Liason at my former school in New Orleans. I was honored to be asked to “virtually” come back to create their entire online learning platform. In that position, managed Google Classroom for students from PreK-4 to 7th grade, provided online tutorials to students and parents and communicated daily with faculty and staff regarding the virtual learners we worked with. In retrospect, it sounds crazy but it was so rewarding re-connecting with students and families I had connected with when I taught them in Kindergarten!
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Teaching is not for the faint of heart-I believe it is truly a calling! This year has been the most challenging year of my career but also the most rewarding. One of the biggest obstacles has been appropriately integrating technology into the classroom for six and seven-year-old students. Six and seven-year-olds are not built to sit in front of an ipad and use a stylist to write all day. Although this has been an obstacle, it has really given educators and students a chance to adapt and creative in the classroom. For example, one of my biggest obstacles was teaching them how to use zoom (yes, the mute button. Now they can discuss books in breakout rooms, it’s pretty amazing) since early learners are tactile and visual. I printed a child friendly mute button clipart icon and hot glued it to Minnie Mouse headband ears. The first day of virtual school we practiced pressing our mute button when I had Minnie ears on and unselecting the mute button while I took the Minnie Mouse headband ears on. I still wear them in class while I am working with a small group of students and students are working independently-it’s been neat the see the importance of routine and structure in virtual and in-person classroom setting.
Currently, I teach students in person and on Zoom synchronously which is difficult, but also fun-last year I never would of have never believed my “roomers” (students in person) and “zoomers” students could work together to study the life cycle of a butterfly. Now, my students are able to collaborate virtually daily! It is also hard to find a healthy work and life balance. It is often difficult to find a healthy work life balance. I love what I do, but I have to catch myself working late in the evening or picking up additional supplies at Target to make an activity a little more engaging for students. I make monthly supply drop offs to my “zoomer” student’s homes! Regardless if my student is a zoomer or roomer they need to know that I care about them and they are still apart of our classroom community. The unfortunate reality is public schools are underfunded and understaffed (I wish I was making this up) but it is an obstacle that requires creativity as a minimal solution.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
My work sounds simple, just a teacher. In reality, I spend more time with my students than their parents weekly, which is very humbling. Educators are not just teaching math and reading, but we are responsible for shaping the mindset of our students. We are the counselor, “surrogate” mom, advice giver, role mode and cheerleader to our students. I feel that we often focus on test scores and data, which is very important and sacrifice the developmental and emotional well being of our students, particularly in a pandemic! In can be done, but it is a truly a labor of love and it is worth it!
Alright, so to wrap up, is there anything else you’d like to share with us?
Thank a teacher- it may make their day. 🙂
Contact Info:
- Instagram: wholefamilyliteracy
- Website: wholefamilyliteracy.com
Image Credits
Wendy Usannaz Hexter Elementary School
