A little about me...

So...I'm a little nervous about my leap into blogging! Honestly, the first thing that I said to myself was, "Do I really have anything that interesting to say, that people are going to want to read about it?"
So I am taking a leap of faith that someone out there, will be even slightly interested in what I have to say. If not, well I plan on talking about what I love - teaching math, so at least I know I will read it, and maybe my mom!

So I figured in my first post, I will start out easy and tell you a bit about myself.

I have been married to my high school sweet-heart for almost 8 years. He is also a teacher...he wasn't when I married him, but I guess I rubbed off on him. Let's face it, those first few summer holidays off on my own got a little boring!
I use to think my most important job was being a teacher, but that changed 2 years ago when my son was born. Now my most important job is being a mother, followed closely by teacher. Ever since I can remember I wanted to be a teacher, there was never any other option for me. I blame my mother for this...she would drag me into her classroom any chance she got and put me to work (to this day I despise cutting out laminating!). Honestly though, my mom is my inspiration. I have seen how many lives she has touched, changed, and helped through her years in education. When I grow up, I want to be just like her! :)

I am currently teaching grade 8 math in a junior high in Winnipeg, Manitoba. (Yes, I am a very proud Canadian!) I have been teaching middle school math for eight years now, and I have also taught social studies and science in previous years. I am currently working half-time, so that I can still spend some extra time with my son, and watch him grow.

I LOVE teaching math! I know, it's a rare trait! I didn't care for math through most of my own schooling, but when I think back there were a few teachers that sparked my interest. When I got to university, I was trying to determine what my teachables should be, and to be honest, math was the one that seemed the most bearable! As I started my journey towards teaching, I found that I really loved math, and I enjoyed sharing my love of math with my students. My goal has always been to help kids make real life connections to what they are learning in my class, only then will they truly see its importance! I am forever planning and thinking of new and innovative ways to teach math to my students and I cannot wait to share these ideas with "you" and see the multitude of awesome ideas out there that I haven't found yet.

The real reason I decided to start this blog is because of Teachers pay Teachers. I will be honest, the reason I started on Teacher pay Teachers was to make some extra money while I was on maternity leave, but what I have gotten out of it is so much more than that. It has changed the way I teach and opened up this whole new collaborative world to me. I have met so many amazing people (from all over the world), who like me, love what they do and just want to share their ideas. I have also managed to find a few more math geeks like myself!

Here are some of the amazing blogs you need to start following if you aren't already. These ladies are the ones who inspired me to take this leap of faith.

Runde's Room
Finding Joy In Sixth Grade
Miss Math Dork
Lessons from the Middle
4mula Fun
Teaching in the Early Years

To thank you for stopping by, I wanted to leave you with a FREEBIE. This poster is my most downloaded item on TpT, and I believe that it should be posted in every math classroom (or at least something like it) to reinforce the importance of learning math! If you have already downloaded it, do so again, as I just updated it!

Think you don't need Math? Think Again!

A FREE poster for the Math classroom!

 

 

That's all for now. I hope I convinced a few of you to stick around, there's more to come!

Kim