NOMBRE:
Señorita Strauss
ESCUELA:
Hammarskjold Middle School
CLASE:
Spanish 1 part 1
TELÉFONO DE ESCUELA:
ext. 4586
What a thrill it is for me to introduce myself to you as your child’s new
Spanish teacher! My name is Susan Strauss. I graduated from the University
of South Carolina in 2005 and started my teaching career in East Brunswick
shortly thereafter. At USC I studied abroad twice. In the summer of 2004 I
spent five weeks taking classes in Castellón, Spain. I loved traveling to a
Spanish-speaking country so much that I decided to study during the summer
again. I went to San José, Costa Rica and once again took classes and lived
with a family in the city. I spent two summers doing course work in Granada,
Spain, and I received my Masters degree from the University of
Granada. Last year my studies had a different focus as I was fortunate
enough to be able to attend an institute on the teaching of writing at
Teachers College, Columbia University. This summer I attended a workshop devoted to technology
in the foreign language classroom and I cannot wait to implement all of the new ideas this upcoming
school year.
My interest in studying languages dates back to high school, where I
continued my study of French from elementary school and added Spanish because I knew some
Spanish-speaking people and wanted to communicate with them. I loved studying Spanish and
decided to continue on and make it my major in college. Right before going to the University of
South Carolina, I was involved in a program at Columbia University’s Teachers College during which I
helped teach children in an ESL classroom in New York City. I continued working with children
during my years in college as a student teacher and volunteer. I love working with children and I
always have.
My experience in East Brunswick has been wonderful for me. I can’t
wait to continue this year to work with your child as he/she begins the study
of a language that I love. I believe that learning a second language opens
the door to the world for students. We will work together to understand and
produce spoken and written language. We will also work to develop an
awareness and sensitivity to different people and perspectives.
I look forward to meeting you on Back to School Night on Monday, September 21st. If you should
have any questions or concerns before that time, please do not hesitate to contact me. You may call
me at the school or email me at sstrauss@ebnet.org.
Sincerely,
Susan A. Strauss
Students enthusiastically engaged in meaningful, motivating, and cognitively
challenging activities.
Students actively using language rather than memorizing vocabulary lists and
analyzing grammatical concepts.
Students being assessed by a variety of assessment strategies.
