Settling In

The initial hustle and bustle of the semester has faded.  I've successfully been to all of my classes and managed to get the general feel of the kind of effort necessary for success this Spring.  I've really been enjoying my education classes.  The Urban/Multicultural cohort has been a great fit for my personality, but I think one reason is that the professors have been so amazing.  I finally escaped from the mass chaos that is the department of Arts&Sciences and realized my motivation levels have perked up along with my interest in class.  Going into the schools last week was an amazing experience.  I was with 2nd grade teacher Rebecca Tipton, and she just lifted my spirits with her encouragement.  Her class adores her and rightfully so.  She is obsessed with Australia and there are literally over 200 stuffed kangaroos in this little prefab.  Her gentle approach to dealing with her students takes an incredible amount of patience and determination.  I feel so blessed to be able to work and learn beside her for these next two weeks.  
I'm pretty pumped about having a blog...even if I'm still trying to figure out to use it.  Bless you, Bill, you've got a tough job getting this old African to master the world wide web.

The Journey Begins - Hello Internet!

Hello everybody! My name is Beth-Ann Duncan, and I am a Psychology major with an Elementary Ed. minor.  It is an exciting year for me because not only do I graduate on May 13th (it's been a great four years in Big Orange Country), but I'm also getting married!  So whenever my lovely urban/multicultural colleagues see me next year, I'll be Beth-Ann McDonald.  But I'm change is not something new in my life.  I am getting still getting used to living in America! My parents are missionaries, so I spent 15 years of my childhood in Port Elizabeth, South Africa.  It is an amazing place, if anyone is thinking of traveling, you should go there!  We call it PE for short...so now you already know some of the lingo. 

Education has always been such an important part of my life.  I have such fond memories of all of my school years, and becoming a teacher was such a natural option for me to choose.  There is nothing else that I want to do with my life.  I believe in the importance of a firm foundation in literacy, and that every child should have the opportunity to access high-quality literature.  I am also planning to gain an add-on to my teaching certificate in Special Education this summer at the Summer Institute.  I've worked with children with special needs my whole life, and during my Ed. 100 course I was able to work with an autistic learner who excelled due to his teacher's knowledge of his disability.  I want parents to feel comfortable using my classroom as a bridge for their child to enter in mainstream studies, and hopefully will get the opportunity to do so.  

I have spent the past three summers working at First Baptist Concord and Manley Baptist coordinating and leading Upward soccer camps for K-5th grade.  I love how team sports create opportunities to teach lessons and it's something that builds character.  In South Africa, my family and I worked with a school for hearing impaired and children with cerebal palsy for 10 years, leading Sunday Schools and doing other various activities with the kids.  

I love to play sports.  In high school I played field hockey, water-polo and soccer.  Besides soccer, there isn't a lot of opportunity for those, but maybe one day...who knows?  One of my biggest passions is reading, and I also parallel that with watching the ORIGINAL Law&Order with my family.  We're all crazy and think it's amazing and real.  I also love taking walks with my fiance, going out for coffee and chatting with my friends, and doing activities at the BCM, the Baptist Collegiate Ministries.  So that's me in a quick glance!