DragonTales Pre-K in Maryville, TN
A private education designed to meet YOUR CHILD's needs!
Miss Jill has a Bachelor of Science degree in Psychology, with a minor in Sociology, from Millsaps College in Jackson, MS, and a Masters degree in Teaching with a focus on Early Childhood Education from Belmont University in Nashville, TN, with an emphasis in Literacy.
Her background is in the field of human services and includes an internship with the Hinds County Sheriff's Department, co-teaching at Addie McBryde Rehabilitation Center for the Blind, working as an Outdoor Adventure Counselor with SOAR Montana, and working with child services for the state of Alabama. Before opening DragonTales, she taught in the Tennessee public school system in for 5 years in both first grade and preschool in the Tullahoma City Schools system. There she taught under the guidelines of the Federal Reading First grant, the Hewlett Packard Technology for Teaching grant, and the Voluntary Pre-K program for the state of Tennessee. She has a special interest and training in Literacy Development & Reading Instruction of early learners. She is also director of the Knoxville area BugBytes Technology for Kids program, sponsored by Discovery Kids, which offers technology classes to preschoolers-2nd graders in the Maryville/Knoxville area.
"As an educator, it is my duty to teach
children in a way that will benefit their future & make them better people.
I want all students to know that they hold the power to control their
lives. I strive to teach decision-making,
instill responsibility for actions & choices, and build good character
through example and direction. I believe that teaching skills & building character lays the foundation that helps students become
independent, working adults who are well-equipped for the challenges of the
world. When students leave my class, I want them to move forward with
self-confidence and a strong sense of duty
to oneself and belief in oneself.
Classroom Goals
1. To develop a relationship with each of my students & his/her family
2. To be a positive role model for my students
3. To create a positive learning environment
4. To help students feel confident in expressing themselves &
trying new things without fear of failure
5. To teach the process of learning to children
6. To encourage students to make personal conclusions & realizations
7. To present the curriculum in various ways so that all types of
learners are successful in the classroom
8. To adapt teaching practices to the needs of my students
9. To find what motivates each student
10. To help students become responsible & independent
Miss Natalie is very happy to have the opportunity to
be our newest teacher at DragonTales. She is passionate about teaching as well as learning. She is a graduate of the
Miss Natalie's professional accomplishments include: watercolor instructor at the University of Tennessee High School Arts Academy, assistant to the President of the Tennessee Art Educators Association’s annual convention in Nashville, TN, student representative on the Board of Admissions panel for the University of Tennessee Art Education program, instructor at CC-I Mini-Conference, Exploring Art Possibilities: Expressing Creativity Through Choice-Making, and served as an interim secretary on the Tennessee Art Educators Association Board, Nashville, TN. She is also very involved in giving back to her community & has numerous personal artistic accomplishments as well, including
two works of art admitted to the juried University of Tennessee student art show, Elemental, two artworks admitted to the juried University of Tennessee student art show, Untitled/Thumbprint, artwork featured in a collaborative Installation exhibition, Trail Mix Memorial, 1010 Gallery, in Knoxville, TN, and was the 3rd place winner of the Dogwood Arts Annual Chalk Walk in 2010.Teaching
Pedagogy:
"My aim as a teacher is not simply to
instruct. In this world, teaching isn’t
enough anymore. The goal is to help
students transcend. I will be able to help my students see the
connections between schooling and their world. This in turn will teach them new ways of
seeing and interacting with their environment.
Open communication is vital. The teacher and the student should enrich,
not diminish, each other. The efforts of
every student should be validated and encouraged, not only by me as their
instructor but by others in the class.
We should work together as a community not just a class; that way, the
knowledge can come not only from standard teaching methods and styles, but from
an organic place, full of experience and questions that can resonate with more
meaning to the students." -Miss Natalie