Teaching Through the Looking Glass

Welcome to Teaching Through the Looking Glass! I'm a special education teacher with eleven years of experience teaching high needs, neurodiverse students in Baltimore and DC. Through my work, I have come to see our public education system as something that works well enough for the average student, but can be a rigid, unfriendly structure for the ways many students think (whether or not they are neurotypical or neurodiverse). When I think about my mission as a teacher, the Albert Einstein quote, 'I never teach my pupils, I only attempt to provide the conditions in which they can learn' comes to mind. All children are naturally curious, but they do not all express that curiosity in the same way. There is beauty and value in seeking to understand that difference. I chose to name my store “Teaching Through the Looking Glass” to invoke the idea of translating the school experience for our students so they don’t feel as lost as Alice does in Wonderland. I know how crucial visuals are to creating modified materials to support our neurodiverse thinkers, and how time-consuming it can be to find the perfect image for that choice board. That’s why I’ve enlisted children’s book author and illustrator Jeff Weigel (my dad) to help create a cohesive style of fun illustrations to use throughout my classroom materials. I hope you find them helpful in creating the perfect learning environment for your students too!

I perpetually push my students to reach my high expectations while using creative methods to keep them motivated to learn important skills that will endure beyond the classroom.

- Achieved Model Teacher Pathway (Baltimore City Public Schools) - Highly Effective evaluation ratings: SY 17-18, 20-21, 21-22, 22-23 - Mentored teacher interns with coaching cycles of planning, observing, and providing feedback to improve instruction and student achievement outcomes - Trained student one-to-one aides and developed written guides to help them internalize Behavior Intervention Plans - Facilitated delivery of integrated related services (psychologist, OT, and speech) within the classroom environment and built in extra opportunities for student practice on relevant goals throughout the school day

- Master’s Degree in Urban Education and School Partnerships from - - Johns Hopkins University, Bachelor’s Degree in History and English from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

I've taught as a co-teacher in a general education classroom, as a small group and intervention teacher, and as a resource/pull-out teacher. I have repeatedly guided my students with learning disabilities to exceed their annual growth goals, and even facilitated several of them being identified as twice exceptional learners (gifted students who also have learning disabilities). I have also chosen to loop with my caseload (follow my students to the next grade level) four out of my last seven years, allowing me to develop deeper, more meaningful relationships with my students and their families and to work with parents as a team to meet their students’ needs.