My name is Anneesa Al-Essa. I was born in Kuwait and have lived my life equally between Kuwait and the United States. My mom is an educator and I have fond memories of going to school with her and helping her out in the classroom. If you could speak to my teachers at the school I went to in Kuwait, they would be shocked to find out that I am now a teacher. Yes, I was that challenging student believe it or not, and my teachers had that look of dread on their faces when they would see me. But my downward spiral at school ended when I started school in America. My teacher and my mom worked together to help me and I ended up loving school and getting great grades, and now I can proudly say that I earned a Bachelor degree and two Masters degrees. Being a teacher is such a powerful and honorable profession to be in and I am so proud to be a part of it. I am currently working as a preschool teacher and I love experiencing the world through the eyes of a three-year-old. I have learned just as much from the children as they have from me. No school year is ever the same for me, other than the fact and I have new students every year, I like to change my lessons and classroom layout. I learn and grow from my experiences in the classroom and also from information I gather from colleagues and through reading educational books, I also like to pick my mom’s brain for some ideas too. I evaluate what worked and what didn’t and adjust where necessary. This year my classroom schedule is filled with many opportunities for language building. I understand that children learn from play so I have scheduled time for that, but the majority of the day consists of singing, community circle discussions, reading, more reading, and dance. If I could give any advice to a current or future educator, I would say, never take work home. My university professor said this, and I have always taken it to heart. Stay as late as you want to finish your work, but when you are home, that’s your time to relax and have “me” time.
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