Career

In 1998 I began my first year of teaching at Westcliff Elementary in Fort Worth ISD where I taught first grade for two years. Then in 2000 Alice D. Contreras Elementary in Fort Worth ISD was opened and I taught first grade for eight years. Beginning in 2009 I taught second grade for two years. In 2010 I returned to first grade for one year. In 2011 I began teaching third grade and remain there today. I have also served as the campus Technology Integration Educator since 2002 and the school website manager since 2008. 

Education and Certification

My degree was earned at Northeastern State University in Tahlequah, OK. I received a Bachelors of Science in Elementary Education with endorsements in Early Childhood, Science and Language Arts. I have my teaching certificates from the state of Texas in Elementary Education 1st-8th, Early Childhood Education, and English as a Second Language with Language Arts and Science endorsements. After I began teaching I earned Gifted and Talented credentials with the Fort Worth ISD.

Personal

Lifelong learning by everyone is something I strongly believe in. I am always attending workshops, reading, researching on the internet, or watching educational programs to learn more about the world around me. I am married and have a daughter who plans on becoming a mechanical engineer at Texas State University at Austin. We love animals and currently have four dogs, four cats and two fish. We enjoy spending time together as a family.

Classroom Work Ethic

In our class everyone is accountable for learning and is encouraged to reach his or her full potential. Students are challenged each day to do and learn more to become a better person. Students are expected to read for thirty minutes every day outside of the classroom. Students will have homework every week night and some weekends. Students should be prepared by getting a good night's sleep, bringing his or her completed homework, supply box or bag, signed binder and backpack to class every day.

Classroom Communication

Every day I communicate student behavior and citizenship on each child's Conduct Calendar in his or her Daily Binder. I also include other notations to parents on the Conduct Calendar as needed. The Conduct Calendar should be signed by a child's guardian and returned daily. Every Monday I write and send out a newsletter known as our Homework Helper containing all of our learning objectives for the week including news and events for our classroom. Every Wednesday I send home the Wednesday Folder with graded papers for parents to discuss with children. The folder should be signed and returned the next day. The Wednesday Folder is also used to deliver important notes, Progress Reports and Report Cards as they arise.

Parents are encouraged to write notes to the teacher and send them in the Daily Binder. In addition, notes may be written on the Conduct Calendar, the Wednesday Folder Log, or be sent through email to Pamela.Smith@fwisd.org. These forms of communication are the clearest and quickest way to send me information. Parents are welcome to call but it is usually a slower form of communication since you must leave a message in the office and that message is placed in my mailbox until I have the opportunity to check it.