Nature Immersion Pre-K
During the 2023-2024 school year, I have acted as Nature Immersion Pre-K Teacher at the Shepherd's Gate UPK program in Brentwood, NY. My teaching style of learning through experiences is well-suited for younger age groups, where I am able to engage children in rich sensory experiences, then deepen their learning by inserting opportunities for language, mathematics, social-emotional and reasoning practice.
Unique to my teaching experience during this year was that each day as part of my classroom curriculum, I brought my 16 age 4-5 students outdoors to a variety of outdoor settings on the 212-acre Sisters of St. Joseph campus, which includes farmland, forests, meadows, and more. I have had the exciting opportunity to plan learning through meaningful experiences for the children. Our deeper units of study have included Habitats, How Plants Grow, Tomatoes to Salsa, and Worms. I have learned a lot about child development and the natural process of engagement and learning through this experience.