| Gordon: |
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When did you move from Texas to
Chicago and when did you begin teaching at
Immaculate Conception/St Joseph’s School? |
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Alexis
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I was born and raised in San
Diego, California and moved to Texas for college in 2010. I
left Texas in 2015 after I had completed my undergraduate
and graduate degree at Texas Christian University. My
closest friend from college grew up in Chicago and a group
of us would visit her often. After a few visits, I fell in
love with Chicago and became determined to move there. I
began my time at Immaculate conception as Pre-School
teacher in 2016 and then moved to first grade in the fall of
2016. |
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| Gordon: |
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What interested you in
teaching at a Catholic school? |
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Alexis:
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Although I was raised Catholic,
I never attended a Catholic School. However, while I was
completing my degree in Texas, I was given the opportunity
to teach Sunday School at a local Catholic Church. This was
such an enjoyable experience, that I began to wonder if
maybe I should work at a faith based school. |
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| Gordon: |
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What are some of the challenges in teaching first grade
students? |
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Alexis:
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First grade is a big transition
year for students. In Kindergarten, students are able to
spend some of their day playing in centers and formal
learning is a new thing for them. In first grade, there are
no play centers, which means that it's a longer day of
learning for them. These longer days make it challenging for
students to stay focused particularly in the afternoon. But
throughout the year, we see them grow in their ability to
focus on work for long periods of time. Other than that,
teaching first grade is a complete joy! They are so
incredibly curious and love coming to school every day. |
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| Gordon: |
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What are some of the most interesting g questions that your
students have asked you? |
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| Alexis: |
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My mom always tells me that I
should keep a list of all the things that my students have
said to me. They really do have such a curious and innocent
mind that the things they say always surprise me and keep me
laughing. Without a doubt, the most interesting questions I
get are during Religion lessons. While teaching Preschool at
Immaculate Conception, we discussed the true meaning of
Easter. We talked about it as delicately as possible,
because of their age, but many of them struggled to
understand why something like that had to happen. Many of
the students in Pre-K would ask over and over again, “But
why did Jesus have to die?” To explain the answer of this
question to an adult may have been much easier, but to
explain the situation to a four year old was always a
struggle. |
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| Gordon: |
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What were some of your experiences in Texas with special
needs students? |
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Alexis:
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The church I worked with in
Texas discovered that they had a community of students with
special needs who were not able to attend Sunday School
classes with their age level peers. So the church created a
class that served 4 students with varying and multiple
special needs. They ranged from age 5-13 years old. I taught
the class with a friend from college and each student
brought one or two parents to sit with them during the
class. We were given the same curriculum as typically
developing students in Sunday School, which meant that we
did a lot of our own activity building rather than going
through the book. There was also a mass every first Saturday
of the month that allowed families of those with special
needs to attend and experience mass with an understanding
community. |
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| Gordon: |
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You recently joined
Immaculate Conception/St. Joseph’s
SPRED ministry. What interested you in joining SPRED?
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Alexis:
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I felt incredibly connected to
the church when I was teaching for students with special
needs in Texas. It brought me a level of joy that was
different than teaching my typically developing students in
the classroom. I wondered if there was a similar community
in Chicago so I reached out to Father Larry, the presiding
Priest of Immaculate Conception Saint Joseph School. He
connected me with the SPRED program and I have been in awe
of the incredible process ever since. I am so looking
forward to continuing to learn about the program and
becoming involved in the Parish in a new way. |
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| Gordon: |
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What is your favorite
prayer? |
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Alexis:
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< |
My favorite
prayer is the serenity Prayer. My mom always said it to me
growing up and I find that it can be applied to almost any
situation in life!
God, grant
me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change,
Courage to change the things I can,
And wisdom to know the difference.
-Reinhold
Niebuhr |
