I am Geography
For the past fifteen years I have taught at the high school level. My favorite class to teach is Advanced Placement Human Geography, which I have taught since 2003. The APHG community is an amazing group of people and I have the privilege of interacting with many talented people as I help manage the Facebook page and I am the moderator of the College Board community site.
In my spare time I love to travel to places near and far. Back roads versus highways are my preferred route as I enjoy seeing the different landscapes around me. To that end, my children (ages 10 and 11) have visited 39 of the 50 states so far. In the future I hope to take my kids on more international trips. This past month I completed my scuba diver certification and have a dive trip to Mexico planned for December. As I travel I get the opportunity to see the concepts I teach in APHG in action.
The study of human geography became profoundly personal to me as I went through the process of adopting my two youngest children from Russia. The differences in governments, cultural perspectives, languages, historical backgrounds, urban and rural landscapes, population issues and physical geography were better understood and appreciated due to my geography background. When the action of an American sending her adoptive child back to Russia threatened our receipt of a court date, I was panicked, but still better equipped to comprehend the political wrangling and perceptions of both sides. Russia is a very interesting and complex country, steeped in its own history and tradition, and I will continue to help my boys understand the culture of their native country as they grow older.
My passion with teaching is to help increase awareness of the world in which we live and to celebrate the successes of people everywhere. I am thankful that I have the daily opportunity to help motivate, teach and inspire students as they grow into enlightened, participatory and passionate lifelong learners who are truly equipped to interact with our increasingly global society. I enjoying having my students look at the world around them and ask questions.
Become a member of the AGS, and let us feature you as part of our “I AM GEOGRAPHY” campaign which will light the path for all of you closet geographers to get involved in making our world a better place through Geography.