Brittany Smith

PEP asked Brittany to share a little bit about herself. Enjoy reading about this caring, hard-working, and creative educator!

A little about myself professionally:

This is my fourth year teaching & my fourth year in 2nd grade at Marigold Elementary (which I may be biased about, but it is the BEST grade ever!) My very first year was 2020, the year of online teaching and face masks. What a CRAZY time to begin my teaching career. I am SO thrilled to have a few normal years under my belt now. Being in person with my students and getting to see their sweet smiles on their faces is something I will never take for granted.

A little bit about myself outside of school:

I am a lover of sunshine and the outdoors! Get me near any body of water soaking up the sunrays & I am happy. A few of my favorite hobbies are going camping and attending concerts. I love to sing and dance my little heart out. (My students get to see this side of me often too-- my microphone is a highly used tool in my room, haha). Some new hobbies I am hoping to try this year are pickleball & learning how to play chess. I would also love to travel to new places this year and check some states/countries off my bucket list. I have a sweet but crazy black cat named Jacques. He's a big cuddle bug but also loves his play time and parkouring all the furniture around the apartment. Love him with all my heart!

What I would like for my students and staff:

I think one thing that would make a huge difference for my students and staff is curriculum that is best for the kids. I know there is not a perfect curriculum for every student or grade, but I have a hard time being told we have to use a specific curriculum that does not work for our students. My fellow coworkers and I are constantly buying different resources and using other curriculum each year to supplement. I guess that is one dream.  

Another wish I have for our students and staff is more funds for our classrooms. I know I am not the only teacher who spends a lot of my personal funds each year. Between classroom supplies, educational tools, games, books, TPT (online) resources, and field trips, it all adds up so quick. I may go a little more overboard than some teachers, but I truly enjoy creating memorable experiences for my students so that they have fun learning and are excited to be at school. One of my favorite things to do is have themed days and transform my classroom into a whole new world. Seeing the excitement and smiles on their faces as they walk in and participate throughout the day makes all the effort worth it. (But man is it not easy on my bank account.)

Thank you Brittany! We appreciate the heart and soul that you put into teaching your students!