Erin: Marietta tutor

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As I lay on a large rock across from delicate arch with seventeen other high school students, I contemplated the rest of my life. On that night, I decided that I wanted to study the earth and discover its history. During sophomore year of high school, I was presented with an opportunity to take a three-week summer earth science class, called Summer Earth Studies, which would survey the western U.S. using the earth as its textbook. That trip changed my life, as I realized that I wanted to study the earth and use inquiry-based learning methods to help every student learn.

For the last two years, I have been teaching middle school science at Brandon Hall School in Sandy Springs. This has been a wonderful experience allowing me to challenge myself in many ways including interpersonally, curriculum and educational design, time management, and leadership. Brandon Hall is an international and local school with both day and boarding students allowing the faculty and students to interact with a wealth of diverse individuals on a daily basis. As a result of this working and living environment, I have learned how to talk to people from many walks of life from different cultures, backgrounds, ages, and influence. Teaching middle school has been a gigantic challenge calling on my problem solving skills and ingenuity every day to plan and execute lessons, deal with problems as they arise during these lessons, maintain decorum and a positive attitude during difficult days and with challenging students, and then reflect on the process and assess what succeeded and what needs to be changed during the next day, week, or month to allow both my students and I to succeed. This experience has prepared me to take on the next challenge with the skills to help any student succeed.