What's the Buzz?!?
Special Edition: 5/6 Parents
A Note From Mrs. Maglio
I want to take a moment to introduce myself to you, as well as share a little about my passion for teaching; especially in the area of English Language Arts.
St. Francis is “home” to me as I attended K-8th grade here, as well as was a parishioner with my family. I graduated from Kent State University in 2007 with a Bachelor’s Degree in Early Childhood Education. I taught third grade in North Carolina for six years, where I was named Teacher of the Year. I am excited to be returning to the St. Francis de Sales community as the 5th/6th ELA teacher.
Teaching ELA has always been my passion. But before I can be an effective educator, I need to establish and create a safe, caring learning environment for all my students. I recognize the importance of first getting to know my students and their individual learning styles. The beginning of this school year will be unique for both the students and parents in 5th and 6th grade. I am due with my third child on August 31st and will be on maternity leave through the end of October. (End of 1st quarter) However, I will begin the school year on August 23rd, alongside my long-term substitute Mrs. Erin Bennett, who has vast experience teaching middle school aged students, as well as ELA. She is also familiar with Saint Francis De Sales as her son will be a first grader here this year.
Together, we will establish relationships with your children which will, in turn, allow for a safe, caring learning environment to develop. I will be conducting short interviews and surveys with you and your children during the first week of school, which will help me get to know you both. Also, please know that I will keep an open line of communication with my students and parents during my absence. This will be in the form of emails, notes, and phone calls.
Lastly, I want to tell you about my teaching style/philosophy. My classroom is a student-centered learning atmosphere in which I encourage my students to take responsibility and ownership of their learning. For example, the children will be setting both reading and writing goals and will re-assess them monthly to track their progress. Also, students will be evaluating their own work through the use of rubrics in our Reading and Writing Workshops. This enables the children to take ownership of their work and determine how they are meeting our learning goals.
I am looking forward to meeting all of you on Open House night to further introduce myself and discuss the exciting year of learning ahead in 5th and 6th grade ELA. I am eager to establish a partnership in your child’s education!