I bet you’re wondering who am I to tell you that I can help you minimize your child’s anxiety level? Well, I am happy to share my credentials with you, legitimize the term “an expert in my field.” I am a veteran classroom teacher who has taught hundreds of children. I’ve learned masses of information about children and how they learn while earning master’s degrees in education. I am also a mother to two college aged daughters.
Degrees, professional experience aside, is my bona-fide credibility builder. I was an incredibly anxious child. I was a fretter, a worrier, and painfully shy. If anyone knows what it feels like to be uncomfortable in a classroom, fearful of looking foolish, it’s me. I was a perfectionist, intolerant of short-comings. And I was so stressed-out!
But, thank goodness, I had a professor in college who made it his mission to help me build my self-confidence. Can you believe I battled this until I was a young adult? I’d become really good at flying under the radar, staying out of any spotlight. I remain forever grateful to him for noticing and more importantly caring.
This was the turning point in my life. My new-found quasi-confidence spurred me into taking risks, trying out different careers before deciding that I wanted to pursue a career in teaching. What if I could make a positive impact on students’ lives the way my professor had? I enrolled in graduate school and became certified to teach. I’ve taught English at the middle school level, fifth grade and have been a second grade teacher for the last 19 years. While teaching second grade, I’ve practiced the idea of becoming type z myself and implemented successful strategies. I’ve also found my purpose. And that purpose is to advocate for children, as my professor had advocated for me.