Practice Blog Post 1

Outline:
*All about me.
*Why I want to be an educator.
*Educators of the 21st Century.
*My passions

My name is Erin Byrd.  I am a wife, mother, stepmother, student and pet lover.  I am from Silverhill, Alabama.  I have two amazing children, Mia Kathryn and William, from a previous marriage.  I married Elvin, my true soul mate, in June of last year.  He has two sons, Noah and Harrison.  In November of last year we added to our family with the most charismatic dog, Murdock Beau Wrigley Byrd.  Murdock is a German Shorthaired Pointer (GSP).  We live in Daphne and are rapidly outgrowing our home.  Our family is complete.... for now.

(Mine and Elvin's wedding day.....totally kid friendly)


(Our family, top row, Mia Kathryn, Will, Noah. Bottom row, Harrison & Murdock)

I enjoy photography, creating art, sewing, antiquing, kayaking, fishing and watching my children expand their lives with extracurricular activities as well as educationally.  My husband is a civil engineer for AM/NS Calvert (formerly Thyssen-Krupt).  He is one of the smartest men that I know, also one of the most complicated men on Earth!  Our oldest Noah is taller than I am, is only 14 and a freshman at Daphne High School.  He is a member of Key Club and will start football in the Fall.  Harrison, 12, just started playing lacrosse this year and we look forward to traveling to watch him play all over the southern states.  Mia Kathryn, 9, is a member of the competitive dance team, Driven Dance Company in Robertsdale, Al.  She competes in national and local competitions from Atlanta to Mississippi.  My son Will, 7, is a natural athlete and has not come across a sport that he does not excel.  He plays baseball, soccer, football, golf, basketball and wants to try lacrosse next year.  Our children keep us very busy. We do everything as a family!

I have always wanted to be an educator.  I love learning!  If I had any advice for those of you reading this, it would be to never give up on your dreams or loose sight of them.  I regret most of all, taking off a year to regroup back in 2000 and it turned into 14 years.  I worked as a Paraprofessional from 2008-2009 and found my dream all over again.  I have put off school for this reason or that reason for far too long and at my husbands encouragement last September, I re-enrolled here at South to finish my degree in K-6 and Special Education.  I work on and off as a substitute teacher and it just fuels my desire to teach the youth of today!  When I see the excitement in the faces of an elementary student after they finally learn something.....it is simply priceless!  To know that I can help a child realize their dreams or passions will be the most rewarding gift.

As mentioned earlier in this post, I have 4 children ages 7-14.  With that comes the understanding that we are not in Kansas anymore Toto!  My youngest two received iPods when they were 5.  My oldest two both have cell phones.  They all have some sort of tech device.  The marvel goes even farther when you realize that they can all do more with their devices than most adults can!  I think that technology is now a part of growing up.  As a baby you grow and mature via crawling, walking, talking, running, etc.  Technology thrown in is easy for the youth of today.  They learn how to use it as they mature.  There are devices that even babies and toddlers can use, where all you have to do is tap a screen to give an answer.  Technology is teaching our youth faster than we are as humans.  In order for us as educators to keep up, we too need to be able to maneuver and navigate our technological devices so that we can keep up with the progress and advances made in education so that we may give students the best possible education.  There are several games and apps that you can download to help students learn how to read, do math and even learn a new language.  The possibilities are infinite.

This is a video that I took of a 4th grade class on Halloween this past year.  This is called Flow-cabulary.  You cannot tell me that watching this video does not spark an enormous smile from the joy and excitement these students embody!!

This is my son Will's 1st grade class during show and tell. (Will is the one in the sharing chair)

Here is a photo of the same students at the end of the day waiting on dismissal.  They listen to music and are allowed to dance and move about with free expression. (Will is of course the one break dancing)

I am a great artist. I am incredibly crafty.  I love reading stories with different voices.  I am a lover of reading and books.  For many years now all I generally read are children's books.  I would like to improve upon my reading skills and incorporating them into a classroom setting.  I would like to improve upon my mathematical skills. I hate math but really want to feel confident teaching it!  I would also like to improve upon my time management skills.  I think that a classroom and students benefit from a strongly managed schedule.  I tend to loos track of time during certain subjects.  As I'm sure we all do.

One other thing that you all might like to hear about me, I strongly believe that when you do have children of your own, if you don't already have them....you should be the following kind of parent and also try to incorporate as much of it into your teaching as you can:

Be funny!  Not just funny "ha-ha", be silly, stupid and just plain crazy funny!  Sing completely off key and loudly to shake things up or wake them up in the mornings or in the afternoon when energy levels are low.  Always tell them that you love them and that their personal best is all you expect out of them.  Give hugs.  Take lots and lots of pictures.  Truly engage each and every child that you come into contact and you will learn something in return.  Never stop being a student!!