Let me introduce myself...
I hail from Vancouver, Canada, which despite being one of the wettest, rainiest cities in the Pacific Northwest, is also one of the most scenic. My love of reading comes from a public library in my working class neighbourhood of East Vancouver. I majored in English Literature and Psychology at the University of British Columbia, and then later completed my Masters of Library Science at the same university in 1994. I always wanted to have an adventure overseas, and so began my journey in Singapore.
I was originally hired by the National Library Board of Singapore (NLB), but transitioned into my career as a teacher librarian in international schools in 2002. I enjoyed learning from teachers and working with students, who inspired me with their youthful energy and idealism. In 2008, I graduated with a Masters in Education from the University of Sheffield.
I also met my husband in 1998, and became simultaneously enamoured with him and Singapore. Since 1998, I've been with the two greatest loves in my life, my husband, Dieter, from Germany, and Singapore, my adopted home country. We lived briefly in Mexico City from 2008 to 2012, but since 2013, we have both returned to Singapore where we have no immediate plans to leave.
After a long career in corporate finance, Dieter is also now a teacher who specialises in IBDP Economics, Mathematics, Physics, as well as MYP Mathematics and Sciences.
I was originally hired by the National Library Board of Singapore (NLB), but transitioned into my career as a teacher librarian in international schools in 2002. I enjoyed learning from teachers and working with students, who inspired me with their youthful energy and idealism. In 2008, I graduated with a Masters in Education from the University of Sheffield.
I also met my husband in 1998, and became simultaneously enamoured with him and Singapore. Since 1998, I've been with the two greatest loves in my life, my husband, Dieter, from Germany, and Singapore, my adopted home country. We lived briefly in Mexico City from 2008 to 2012, but since 2013, we have both returned to Singapore where we have no immediate plans to leave.
After a long career in corporate finance, Dieter is also now a teacher who specialises in IBDP Economics, Mathematics, Physics, as well as MYP Mathematics and Sciences.
My Thoughts on Literacy and Learning...
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Nurturing a student's love of reading, regardless of their age or reading ability, is my goal. As a K-12 librarian, I cover three curricula and am involved with students aged 4 to 17 years old. I may be working with Y12 Higher Level Theatre students on their primary sources for A Streetcar Named Desire, then immediately follow it with a Y1 Unit of Inquiry (UOI) on landforms. But that's what I thrive on - this diversity. Working with a variety of learning styles, abilities, reading levels and interest is empowering, exciting. It's never boring. I am most fortunate to have the opportunity to connect with every student in the school. My flexibility and ability to embrace differences has brought its own rewards, personally and professionally. To raise independent learners and readers, we need to support their reading choices, unconditionally. |
I collaborate with teachers in both Primary and Secondary school to ensure my library and literacy lessons are meaningful to students and relevant to a teacher's task. My goal as an educator is to tap into the prior knowledge of students, spark their curiosity, and to create authentic connections to their learning. Technology is a tool in my teaching and concept-based inquiry, flipped classrooms, and visible thinking are among my favourite pedagogical methods. I am also open to learning new ways of teaching.
You can view some of my library lessons on my Portfolio page.
You can view some of my library lessons on my Portfolio page.
My personal interests...
Reading - of course...Being a librarian, reading is a passion.
Being a K-12 librarian means I read a variety of books, for a wide range of students, both for their personal interest, and to support their learning. This means I can tell you about popular children picture books series, like Aliens Love Underpants, as well as the New York Times' bestselling series, Walter the Farting Dog. For middle school to young adult readers, I am a big Anthony Horowitz fan. My favourite series by him are the Alex Rider series, and, most recently, The Power of Five. I love zombie books too. I strongly recommend the action-packed Enemy series by Charlie Higson for anyone interested in this genre. I was deeply saddened when this series ended. At the more academic end of my reading spectrum, I am a big fan of Alexander Zouev, who has written several short and helpful books for IBDP students to ace the IB Diploma Programme, with specific books on the Extended Essay, Theory of Knowledge and IBDP Economics. Some of my personal favourite genres are thrillers, historical fiction, non-fiction, personal finance, as well as book on baking bread and pizza. |
A sample of my recent favourite books.
Images courtesy of Amazon.com 
Click on the image above to go to my Goodreads page.
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And baking bread and pizza...
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Click on the images for more information on my pizza passion, and my alternate life as Bread Head.
I love baking bread, and specifically what may or may not be artisan bread, depending on your definition. I use only flour, yeast, salt, water, and often seeds.
I don't use sourdough starters or bread machines. All my preparation is done by hand. I make yeast breads with medium to high hydration doughs that require a long bulk fermentation of up to 12 hours or more, before a second final proofing of 2 hours. I do not knead my bread, but autolyse the flour and water first, and then use a folding method in intervals. I have combined the the ingredient percentages of Jim Lahey's famous no-knead bread recipe, with the methodology of Ken Forkish. My Instagram will give you a history of my efforts at bread and pizza making.
Thanks to Ken Forkish, I may have achieved the perfect pizza dough. My goal is to combine a thin, crunchy crust with the fresh and varied toppings of the Roman pizza al taglio, while integrating the famous slightly burnt, leopard spot-like, bubble-infused corniche crust of Naples. I am a rebel with a cause for pizza, as I depart from the Italian pizza dogma to develop my own individual and ideal pizza. A sample of my efforts and research can be seen here, in my Pizza Pantheon, in addition to my Instagram .
I don't use sourdough starters or bread machines. All my preparation is done by hand. I make yeast breads with medium to high hydration doughs that require a long bulk fermentation of up to 12 hours or more, before a second final proofing of 2 hours. I do not knead my bread, but autolyse the flour and water first, and then use a folding method in intervals. I have combined the the ingredient percentages of Jim Lahey's famous no-knead bread recipe, with the methodology of Ken Forkish. My Instagram will give you a history of my efforts at bread and pizza making.
Thanks to Ken Forkish, I may have achieved the perfect pizza dough. My goal is to combine a thin, crunchy crust with the fresh and varied toppings of the Roman pizza al taglio, while integrating the famous slightly burnt, leopard spot-like, bubble-infused corniche crust of Naples. I am a rebel with a cause for pizza, as I depart from the Italian pizza dogma to develop my own individual and ideal pizza. A sample of my efforts and research can be seen here, in my Pizza Pantheon, in addition to my Instagram .