Introduction to a Future Teacher

Hello! My name is Miranda. I am very excited to be in California Literature and I look forward to reading and engaging alongside you all this semester. Taking this class is kind of bittersweet as it is the last class I will be taking before I transfer to CSUEB in the Fall. I have been a student in the Contra Costa Community College District since Fall 2014 and I am finally at the home stretch of my journey to transfer. It is rewarding to know that I am almost finished but it does also feel like the end of an era.

I was recently accepted at CSUEB to study English Language and Literacies with Teaching Credential. It is rather comical, but I literally only need one more unit so I can successfully transfer in the Fall. Because I am an English major, I wanted to find an interesting online course to take to satisfy this unit requirement. This class sounded really fun and unique. I enjoyed taking Literature of the Americas, so taking California Literature also sounded like a good class to take.

My goal is to become an English teacher at a Middle School. I am currently a Site Coordinator at a Middle School for the After School Expanded Learning Program. I really enjoy working with this age group and I feel like they are an underserved and overlooked population. My students are very vulnerable at this age and I am proud to be another adult in their lives that cares about them. I work with a variety of youth from different backgrounds, including students who are at risk, in foster care, or are English language learners. I am trained in Social Emotional Learning and Adverse Childhood Experiences advocacy. I hope to one day translate my love and knowledge for youth development into my own classroom one day.

If you read my favorite place post, you know I am absolutely obsessed with Disney! It is hard to say who would I be if I was a Disney character, but I would best be described as a blend of Ariel, Belle, and Lilo. I am a lifelong swimmer and lover of all things related to the ocean. Swimming makes me feel strong and empowered. Being a Scorpio makes me a water sign and I feel best when I am near the water. Like Lilo and Belle, I am that gamma girl who walks off the beaten path, especially when I was growing up. I have always been different than the people around me. I agree with Belle’s testament that books are better than people and relate to Lilo’s quirkiness and free spirit.

In my free time if I’m not at Disneyland, I enjoy reading, baking, drawing, watching San Francisco Giants baseball, and knitting. My favorite animals are elephants, hippos, orcas, and sharks. I have watched every single episode of Desperate Housewives, at least five times. It is my favorite television show of all time and I recommend it to everyone! I currently enjoy watching Siren, Grey’s Anatomy, and Jane the Virgin. I come from a multicultural background, my mom is Puerto Rican, Hawaiian, Mexican, and Yaqui Indian while my dad is Irish, French Basque, and Norwegian. I have a rescue pitbull mix named Bochy. I named him after Bruce Bochy, the Giants manager. He is lucky that he is cute because he is still in his I-Will-Chew-Everything-You-Love puppy phase.

I hope that gives you all a better understanding about me and I look forward to reading everyone else’s introductions!

Warmly,

Miranda

Comments

  1. Logan HFebruary 7, 2019 at 10:39 AM

    Hello Miranda, that is awesome that this is your last class before you transfer to a 4 year. Becoming a teacher is great, both my grandparents were teachers for 40 years and I have an aunt and uncle who are teachers right now. Working at a school right now and making a difference in kids lives must be fun. I have only been to Disneyland a few times, one was last year since me and my dad got free tickets from work. I am sure I will be back sometime in the next 4 years. I also like watching baseball, I grew up playing. The name you gave your dog is pretty funny. I'm sure your pitbbull will get out of the stage of chewing everything up.

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  2. AmberFebruary 8, 2019 at 6:21 PM

    Hi Miranda. Congratulations on starting at CSUEB in the fall. I am also starting there this fall.
    I think it it great that you want to be a middle school teacher. I have a daughter in middle school and I am learning a lot. She is struggling, trying to find out where she fits and accepting that she needs help academically and is refusing it or acting like she does not need it, because the kids she hangs out with do not need the extra help. Our school, Edna Middle School, has an after school program administered by the PAL (Brentwood Police Activities League) and they are there to provide a safe place for kids after school. It is a great program that is growing and will soon be moving to a larger location, so they can serve more at risk youth. I am so happy you enjoy this age group, they need more people that enjoy working with them. Thank you for your patience and working with the youth.

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  3. Austin KarwowskiFebruary 10, 2019 at 6:40 PM

    Hello Miranda! Wow congratulations on getting into CSUEB, that's awesome! It's really cool to see someone that has a passion to be a teacher because that is important when trying to educate young minds. I've only been to Disneyland literally twice but I really want to go back soon, hopefully this summer but I'm not too sure yet. Drawing is a really fun thing to do and you don't see many people who actually like to do it on their free time, so it's cool to see someone who enjoys art too. Anyways, good luck at CSUEB, I have a few friends there and they like it a lot so I hope you have the same impressions too.

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