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Biography
Who is the DragonLady?
I retired after 30 years of dedicated involvement in the public school systems in Ohio. I taught students from third grade to seniors in high school. I was a principal as well as a curriculum director. I served as a SchoolNet faculty member for the Ohio Department of Education and have taught college courses. My credentials include a bachelor's degree in fine arts and a master's degree in educational leadership from Ohio University. I have two art certificates, a 1-8 elementary certificate, and two principal's certificates.
I have been employed by three school districts as a classroom teacher, was the principal in another, worked at a regional level with an educational service center as well as the State of Ohio, and have most recently spent time with an individual district (one of those in which I taught) as a curriculum director. While working at the educational service center I also taught at the local university.
My career has been varied and interesting. I was fortunate to have been given multiple opportunities to take advantage of national and state professional development offerings. I learned a great deal from my association with talented, knowledgeable people. I worked with and for many educated risk-takers who were willing to apply current educational research and do what was proven to be best for children. The challenge of meeting the needs of all children in any one classroom is an overwhelming and sometimes frustrating experience. That same challenge is why many teachers are in the profession. Succeeding with each and every student is what teaching is all about and books can make it all happen.
I have spent a great deal of time researching and implementing ways to use children's literature, especially picture books, in classrooms. To find out more about this topic, check out: Teaching With Books.
