NAME:
Mrs. Richards
SCHOOL:
Trantwood Elementary
CLASS:
4th Grade, Language Arts and Social Studies
SCHOOL PHONE:
757-648-4000
I have been teaching for four years. This will be my fifth year teaching and
fourth year at Trantwood. I am originally from Lynchburg, VA, and most
recently lived in Charlottesville for six years prior to moving to Virginia
Beach in 2006. While living in Charlottesville, I was a legal editor, and
then decided to go back to school to get my Master's degree in education. It
was the birth of my niece that made me decide that being with children is
what truly makes me happy. Also, I love getting to use my creativity in teaching. I love that I get to
create on a daily basis. Not everything goes perfectly, but that's okay. We all learn as we go through
life.
One thing that the kids learn about me is that I have gotten to do a few cool things that they might
want to do when they get older. First, I worked for Disney while I was in college. That's right! I was a
Jungle Cruise skipper in Walt Disney World. I took business classes with the company, earned college
credits and worked in the park. I really believe that the job enabled me to talk to pretty much anyone
from anywhere, and it also really gave me a good sense of what hard work, dedication and striving to
always be your best, really mean. Also, I once went to Space Academy in Huntsville, Alabama. I was
12 when I did that, and it was there that I really learned how important teamwork is when problem
solving.
I attended JMU as both a graduate and undergraduate student, majoring in
Early Childhood Education and Political Science, respectively. While in
graduate school I was inducted into Kappa Delta Pi International Honors
Society in Education, and was the recipient of a graduate scholarship for my
studies. My main interests in education are in gifted children, reading
disabilities as they relate to cognition within the brain, and education
policy. Amongst my many future goals, I would like to write children's
novels, and to obtain my EdD...after starting a family! We are expecting our first baby in January,
2010! And, it's a boy!!!!!
For each child to learn and grow as an individual, and to develop his or her
greatest potential, and to discover hidden potential within. I want each
child to feel safe at school, both physically and mentally, and to know that
school is always a safe place to be.
