Mrs. Engelberger
My teaching career started in 1995 when I became a preschool teacher in California. My parents and my years at the University of Massachusetts instilled in me an acceptance of all people and this is the ideal I have tried to weave into my work with my students. When I moved to Maine fourteen years ago I became a certified K-8 teacher through the ETEP program and went on to complete my masters in Applied Literacy. It was in my internship where I began working with middle school students and fell in love with this age group. I loved the higher level thinking they were capable of, the willingness to problem-solve with me, and I especially loved the humor. Professional development has been an important part of my career and I have taken advantage of many opportunities to be an active learner. RSU 14 and Windham Middle School have offered many opportunities to further this growth.
I am a nurturer by heart so it is important that all of my students know they are valued members of my classroom community. I strive to foster a community where everyone belongs, where students can explore ideas, and where we learn and grow together. I love project-based learning where students can puzzle through essential questions and choose various pathways to master our learning targets. It has been my experience that students come to us with incredible differences and needs but with support they can feel success along the way and make incredible strides towards meeting learning standards.
I am passionate about literacy and have tried to pass this along to my students by developing a rich curriculum for my classes. Guiding students through the process of reflecting on a reading selection or digging deep in their writing process is one of my favorite aspects of teaching. My work on our district literacy committee has been especially rewarding as we determined grade level expectations and levels of rigor for standards. Ultimately my goal is to know my students well, make school a great place to be, to challenge students academically with appropriate levels of rigor while providing them with the support needed to grow, and hopefully have some fun in the process.
I live in Falmouth with my husband and we have two wonderful sons. I spend many hours running in order to train for whatever event is on the horizon. I love to spend time with my family, read, and bake. I am excited about the start of a new school year!
Posts
Week of September 14th
Course: Grade 6 Gifted and Talented ELA
Course Schedule: M/W 8:10-9:10 and T/Th 8:10-9:10
Office Hours: Fridays 10-2
Essential Questions:
How can we learn to write personal narratives that convey one event, incident, or experience from my life?
How can I put the readers in the middle of the action, letting them live through my personal event, incident, or experience?
Standards/PIs: Narrative Writing Unit - Lucy Calkins
Writing Structure; Lead, Transitions, Ending, Organization
Writing Development; Elaboration and Craft
Language Conventions; Spelling and Punctuation
Student Assignments:
This week students will complete a “Getting To Know You” survey, complete a short writing activity so I can know them better, and finally we will begin reading various short story anchor texts to become familiar with the elements of realistic fiction, storytelling, and to notice the writing skills necessary to be successful with our targets. Students will also take the pre-on demand writing prompt for the narrative writing unit.
Links/Resources: Please see the class Google Classroom for all information and materials.
https://classroom.google.com/c/MTUyNDE1NDc0NzEy
Course: Grade 7 Gifted and Talented ELA
Course Schedule: M/W 10:25-11:20 and T/Th 10:25-11:20
Office Hours: Fridays 10-2
Essential Questions: How can we learn to write short fiction inspired by small moments in our lives by creating an exciting plot, believable characters, and memorable scenes?
Standards/PIs: Narrative Writing Unit - Lucy Calkins
Writing Structure; Lead, Transitions, Ending, Organization
Writing Development; Elaboration and Craft
Language Conventions; Spelling and Punctuation
Student Assignments: This week students will begin reading our anchor text, The House on Mango Street, to become familiar with the elements of realistic fiction and to notice the writing skills necessary to be successful with our targets. Students will also take the pre-on demand writing prompt for the narrative writing unit.
Links/Resources: Please see the class Google Classroom for all information and materials. Students will have a hard copy of the novel and a reading packet to accompany the text. The packet guides them through specific features of the novel I want students to notice and understand.
https://classroom.google.com/c/MTU5ODYxNDEzOTAz
Course: Grade 8 Gifted and Talented ELA
Course Schedule: M/W 9:10-10:10 and T/Th 9:10-10:10
Office Hours: Fridays 10-2
Essential Questions: How can we learn to write a narrative piece with well developed characters who changed? How can I use this writing to comment on a social issue, teach a lesson, and/or develop a point of view?
Standards/PIs: Narrative Writing Unit - Lucy Calkins
Writing Structure; Lead, Transitions, Ending, Organization
Writing Development; Elaboration and Craft
Language Conventions; Spelling and Punctuation
Student Assignments: This week students will begin reading our anchor text, “My Sister, the Best Person I Know”, to become familiar with the elements of memoir and to notice the writing skills necessary to be successful with our targets.
Students will also take the pre-on demand writing prompt for the narrative writing unit.
Links/Resources: Please see the class Google Classroom for all information and materials.
https://classroom.google.com/c/MTU4MTMyNzAxODcw