After developing ELL curriculum for young adults in the service industry in Peru for two years, I took the leap into elementary education at the American School of Kuwait. I instructed ELL students from grades 1-5 in small groups while collaborating alongside teachers and our learning support team to design and adjust curriculum that best met the needs of the individual student. In my four years at ASK, I had over twenty nationalities of students in my classroom with varying English language capabilities and a range of linguistic backgrounds. Key components to our success involved ensuring that instruction and our classroom community were sensitive to and built upon culturally different ways of learning, behaving, and using language. Furthermore, assessment allowed students to express their understanding through multiple pathways to demonstrate command of content. Through the exploration of children’s literature and film, creativity unlocked a passion for learning that was an inspiration and incentive for students and a part of my curriculum design. I endeavored to create a space, often for first time language learners, that was positive, inclusive, and a creative community where students could explore language, learn content in fun and accessible ways, and grow a deep respect for new cultures from their peers.
Outside of the ELL classroom at ASK, I was passionate about developing student interest and engagement through leadership opportunities in the high school, middle school, and elementary school that promoted a positive socio-ecological impact on our local and global environment. As ASK’s Sustainability Coordinator, a principal objective in the role was to grow community partnerships and service learning opportunities both within and outside of school. Students were required to design projects and initiatives which responded to conservation and human rights needs, developing an understanding that practicing tolerance and compassion for all living things can make a difference in our global society. These experiences, along with receiving a government grant to build hydroponic garden systems in our school, allowed me the opportunity to study at Harvard in the Graduate School of Design and work on environmental design projects for future use in the classroom and in the community at large.