ENRIQUE R.
My name is Enrique Ramirez, I am a French as a Second Language (FSL) and Math teacher from Toronto, Ontario.My Bachelor of Education was conferred as part of the first Consecutive cohort of French teachers trained at the Glendon campus of York University. I also earned my undergraduate double major in French Studies and Math (along with the Trilingual Certificate of Excellence in English, French and Spanish) at the same campus.I started my Masters of Education (with a focus on math teaching) at the end of August 2020.From October 2019 to June 2020, I completed a work year abroad in southwest France as the official English language assistant and Spanish tutor. My duties principally entailed leading classroom activities and reinforcing the teacher’s lessons, in both the elementary and secondary levels, at “Lycée Jean Taris” in the Bordeaux Academy school board.I look forward to bringing my strengthened French skills to the classroom when I teach FSL (and math in French) along with elementary and junior school subjects in an english or francophone classroom environment.
SILVIA G.
PEDRO T.
Pedro Tironi is a professional musician, music therapist and teacher candidate from the Ontario Institute of Studies in Education (OISE) at the University of Toronto. He grew up in Chile, where he completed a Bachelor in Arts, minor in Classical Guitar Musical Performance at the University of Chile. He moved to Barcelona, Spain to complete a master’s in music at Catalonia College of Music. Pedro grew up surrounded by books, music and nature which lead him to develop a strong intellectual curiosity and took the opportunity to continue studying and travelling. He moved to Argentina to complete an Undergraduate Degree in Music Therapy at Buenos Aires University. It was during his stay in Argentina that he discovered his passion for teaching and working with children. Pedro has worked as a music therapist supporting the strengths and needs of children, youth, and young adults with learning disabilities, communication challenges, motor disabilities and mental health issues. When he decided to pursue teaching as a career Pedro moved to Toronto where he is currently in his second year of his Master of Teaching at OISE, University of Toronto. It is through teaching that Pedro has been able to discover the interconnection between math and music and foster his love of Math. During one of his practicums, Pedro taught Math at a TDSB school grade 6 class encouraging students to learn math through interactive and hands-on experiences that integrated arts and music. In his spare time, Pedro continues developing as a musician and works one-on-one with children ranging from 4 years through adults teaching piano, guitar, and music theory. He has supported the improvement of their math skills, concentration, socio-emotional skills and music skills and attitudes. Pedro believes that by building a strong relationship with his students he is better able to meet their needs and grow their learning. As a mentor Pedro continues to develop strategies for working with children integrating creativity into the learning process. He finds these experiences enjoyable and extremely rewarding.
MAUREEN D.
Maureen Darcy was raised in Southern California and moved to New York to attend New York University. As an undergraduate, she majored in French and Linguistics with a minor in Arabic. She then went on to receive her Master’s degree in Teaching English as a Second Language from Teachers College, Columbia University. Maureen currently teaches French and Spanish at the Professional Children’s School where she is also a Middle School Advisor and a Yearbook advisor. She enjoys sharing her passion for world languages and cultures in her classes while also supporting students in their academic and personal growth. She currently lives in Brooklyn, New York with her cat Pistachio.
ROSEMARY M.
An academic, experienced business professional and translator (English and Spanish), Rosmery has over 15 years of experience teaching Spanish, Literature and Writing courses. She believes that education enables us to stand on our own feet, especially when character-building is promoted in our daily interactions. Rosmery loves working with people from around the world, and her background in professional translation has afforded her unique perspectives on culture and communications in North and South America. She is passionate about learning and is currently pursuing her Project Management Professional (PMP) certification. University of Toronto (PhD. Candidate) University of Toronto (Master of Arts) Brock University (Bachelor of Arts, Honours)
LUCIA M.
I graduated from the University of Oviedo, Spain with a Master’s degree in Teaching Spanish as a second language. Throughout my undergraduate education, I had the opportunity to enrich my life by studying French in Belgium and France. Through these experiences I understood how difficult it is studying a second language and how frustrated you feel when you cannot communicate with local people. These feelings encouraged me to teach Spanish in a dynamic and helpful way, where students do not encounter the same fears as I previously had.
With this in mind, through my internships as a Spanish teacher, I was lucky to have the chance to share my passion of teaching Spanish with students in different levels of learning and varying ages in a multi-cultural environment.
Also, my Degree in Modern languages, maiored in French Language and Culture gave me the chance to work as a teacher assistant in French Alliance where I taught French to children, teenagers and adults from basic to intermediate levels of learning.
I treat each student individual encouraging them to work in their weakness but use their strengths to their advantage. I love to bring French and Spanish culture to the class which makes students more interested in the new language.
VANESSA B.
In 2017, Vanessa received her Bachelor of Education at Lakehead University in the Primary/Junior division. As well as having received her Bilingual Bachelor of Liberal Arts in Hispanic Studies from York University’s Glendon Campus in 2015, Vanessa was previously working as a Dental Assistant at Mount Sinai Hospital before deciding to go back to school to become a teacher. She was motivated and became passionate about teaching after her experience working at the hospital, alongside resident doctors, faculty of dentistry students and assisting in running a weekly specialty clinic for patients with developmental disabilities.
Vanessa is currently teaching in the Toronto District School Board. She has further developed her teaching skills by continuing to work on her professional development. She has attained her additional qualifications in Special Education: Part 1, Mathematics Part 1 & 2, Environmental Education Part 1, First Nations, Metis and Inuit Studies, and has training in Literacy Programs, Wilson and Direct Instruction: Expressive Writing and Corrective Reading Comprehension. She has built a variety of strategies and resources in working with diverse learners and has been able to apply them to all areas of her teaching. She is able to create fun, educational and engaging lessons for her students while simultaneously following the Ontario Curriculum and IEP guidelines. She respects that each student is unique in their process of learning and believes in the importance of creating an inclusive environment that values the individual learning needs of each student.
“Learning is fun when students see themselves reflected in the concepts and themes that are being taught and how they relate to real world issues. Using visuals, technology and hands-on materials enable students to engage all their senses in their learning. Busy hands, busy brains.”
During her free time, Vanessa likes to spend as much time outdoors as possible. She enjoys hiking, camping and exploring with her family, as well as working out regularly to stay active and mindful. She believes that good health and well-being is key to being successful in all other areas of life.