In the Classroom
STEAM Classes
Most recently, my focus has been on teaching a variety of STEAM classes, camps, lessons, and other programming to student from second grade through middle school. In addition to teaching general STEAM lessons for younger students, I have also taught a variety of middle school, after school, and summer electives. These have included robotics, design thinking, engineering, theater tech, film studies, and mad science. Because of my background in Social Emotional Learning (SEL), all of the STEAM classes that I have taught were designed and infused with SEL concepts.
Most recently, my focus has been on teaching a variety of STEAM classes, camps, lessons, and other programming to student from second grade through middle school. In addition to teaching general STEAM lessons for younger students, I have also taught a variety of middle school, after school, and summer electives. These have included robotics, design thinking, engineering, theater tech, film studies, and mad science. Because of my background in Social Emotional Learning (SEL), all of the STEAM classes that I have taught were designed and infused with SEL concepts.
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Film Classes
At NCS, I taught one middle school (7-8) and two upper school (9-12) digital filmmaking courses. Although the primary focus of these classes was for students to learn the art of creating their own short films and digital videos, I felt it to be extremely important for them to understand the whys of filmmaking. Therefore, I incorporated history of American Cinema, as well as film study into every course. By doing this, I discovered my students' films were not only better, but they gained a much deeper understanding of the material.
At NCS, I taught one middle school (7-8) and two upper school (9-12) digital filmmaking courses. Although the primary focus of these classes was for students to learn the art of creating their own short films and digital videos, I felt it to be extremely important for them to understand the whys of filmmaking. Therefore, I incorporated history of American Cinema, as well as film study into every course. By doing this, I discovered my students' films were not only better, but they gained a much deeper understanding of the material.
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Subject Area Film Projects
In addition to my regularly scheduled film courses, I also worked with subject area teachers to create, develop, and co-teach special technology projects that aligned with their course goals and outcomes. These projects allowed our classroom teachers the opportunity to incorporate media and technology in a meaningful way while giving me the opportunity to connect with and teach students that I may not see otherwise. The examples below, both from our middle school, highlight two very different projects.
In addition to my regularly scheduled film courses, I also worked with subject area teachers to create, develop, and co-teach special technology projects that aligned with their course goals and outcomes. These projects allowed our classroom teachers the opportunity to incorporate media and technology in a meaningful way while giving me the opportunity to connect with and teach students that I may not see otherwise. The examples below, both from our middle school, highlight two very different projects.
Religion Class Videos
In this final project for the middle school religion course, students are asked to identify their favorite place in the National Cathedral, a landmark that sits on our campus. They then plan and create their own videos highlighting the locations they have chosen. I love this project because it allows students the opportunity for serious reflection and gives them a platform to share it in a way that is sometimes hard to fully express through writing alone.
In this final project for the middle school religion course, students are asked to identify their favorite place in the National Cathedral, a landmark that sits on our campus. They then plan and create their own videos highlighting the locations they have chosen. I love this project because it allows students the opportunity for serious reflection and gives them a platform to share it in a way that is sometimes hard to fully express through writing alone.
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Shakespeare Through Filmmaking
In 7th grade English, students utilize filmmaking as a way to learn about analyzing imagery in A Midsummer Night's Dream. This unit-long project is extremely involved, but is scaffolded in a way that exposes students to higher-level concepts that would otherwise be difficult to teach. At he end of this unit, all 7th graders will have created their own film of a particular scene from the play. In addition to a few examples below, click here to see a presentation outlining the process of this project.
In 7th grade English, students utilize filmmaking as a way to learn about analyzing imagery in A Midsummer Night's Dream. This unit-long project is extremely involved, but is scaffolded in a way that exposes students to higher-level concepts that would otherwise be difficult to teach. At he end of this unit, all 7th graders will have created their own film of a particular scene from the play. In addition to a few examples below, click here to see a presentation outlining the process of this project.
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Broadcast Club
The broadcast club is led by a dedicated group of upper school students interested in broadcast journalism. During club periods, students put together a quarterly news program relaying news and happenings on campus. These videos are then shared on the school website and NCS social media accounts.
The broadcast club is led by a dedicated group of upper school students interested in broadcast journalism. During club periods, students put together a quarterly news program relaying news and happenings on campus. These videos are then shared on the school website and NCS social media accounts.
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Other Media Projects
In addition to film and video projects, I worked with faculty to create and co-teach a wide variety of technology integrated projects. These include podcasts, graphic design, and animation to name just a few.
In addition to film and video projects, I worked with faculty to create and co-teach a wide variety of technology integrated projects. These include podcasts, graphic design, and animation to name just a few.