MATH IN THE 21ST CENTURY

Welcome! My name is Kimberly Kirby and I am a current Elementary Education student at the University of La Verne, California. I am pursuing a teaching career because I am passionate about serving our future generation. I have wanted to teach since I was an elementary student myself. Though math has always been a weak subject area of mine, I do actually enjoy it very much and I realize it is a vital skill to possess and personally beneficial, as well. I lived many years accepting that I was simply "bad at math." No teacher had ever shown interest in my growth or success as a struggling math student. After consecutively failing math tests during my entire middle school experience, I was never offered tutoring, I was not told about resources I could use for help outside of class, my parents were never notified, I was certainly never offered a make up test. Simply put, I was never informed that I could be helped nor that I had the potential to become "good at math."I would sink and drown into difficult material that was effectively a foreign language to me. I had a sour taste and closed mind for math for years. Now, I have a growth mindset, realizing that I CAN do it and I WILL teach my students while understanding some will need extra help, and many others will need to be challenged. I am ready to meet them wherever they are at and make their education and personal and positive experience! I hope to teach third-fifth grade to helps young minds master the foundational math material. I am most looking forward to learning how to make math an engaging, fun, hands-on EXPERIENCE. I would also like to find strong teaching resources to gain information about teaching strategies, websites that will help kids with independent study, and so forth. Math Problem solving, creativity, logic and reasoning, financial strategy and bargain hunting, math is all around us and it is more useful and enjoyable than many realize! Kids should be encouraged to consider the value of math and where they see it in their own lives. Encouraging and supporting students' math skills will build their confidence and abilities while preparing them for their future careers and life skills along the way! Literature Reading offers excellent opportunities for family bonding, cognitive and emotional development, and exploring new worlds! Please take a look at the posted blogs as they pertain to children's literature. View all posts by KIMBERLY KIRBY LA VERNE UNIVERSITY