DRAFT: This module has unpublished changes.

Who are you?

      My name is Ross Greene. I graduated from Natick High School in Natick Massachusetts in 2000 and from Dickinson College in 2004. At Dickinson, I studied Psychology and was a member of the Men’s Tennis Team. After college, I moved to Vermont and became a Certified Tennis Teaching Professional. My specialty was teaching children and junior camps. After a few seasons teaching, I realized that my passion was more for working with the students than it was about the tennis. Tennis was the content, but the subject could have been anything. I enjoyed the teaching and watching students learn something I showed them. While working as a Tennis Pro, I had the pleasure of being a guest Physical Education Teacher in the local schools. It helped promote my program, but more importantly, it gave me a glimpse of what it might be like to be a PE teacher. After those experiences, I began to seriously pursue a path that would lead me to a career in education. This portfolio chronicles that path and the learning I have attained to become a Physical Education Teacher. 

 

Why do you want to teach? 

         I want to teach Physical Education because I enjoy physical activity and watching students do something I taught them. I enjoy lots of different sports and activities and playing all kinds of games. Not only does physical activity promote a healthy lifestyle, but it can also be beneficial to academic learning when the kids return to their classroom. I think sports and games should be fun. It is not about the winners and losers or even the competition, but rather losing one’s self within the context of a game and getting "exercise in disguise," all be it physical or mental. My experience working in schools showed me first hand just how important Physical Education is. I want to teach because I want to share my enthusiasm for an active lifestyle and increase students’ ability to learn outside of my classroom.

 

Why are you especially prepared for this career?

        I feel I am especially prepared for a career of teaching Physical Education because of my experience working with children, my athletic background and my enthusiasm for activity.

 

        My experience working with children started in high school when I coached and refereed youth soccer. After that I was a camp counselor at both overnight and day camps. After receiving my Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology, I began a career as a Tennis Teaching Professional, specializing in junior programming. That led me into the school setting where I was a substitute teacher for 2 years. I have been drawn to working with children from these experiences. My comfort level and ability to easily relate and communicate with children has brought me toward these experiences.

 

         I come from an athletic and active background. Growing up I fondly remember playing outside with my brothers, friends and neighbors until dark. More recently, I have been a Tennis Teaching Professional for over 7 years. In college I was active with recreational sports as well as the Varsity Tennis Team. In high school I played soccer, tennis and ran track. In my adulthood, I have taken courses on Anatomy and Physiology, as well as Kinesiology, that have expanded my knowledge on the body. I value my free time and often spend it outdoors cycling, hiking, skiing or anything else that is available to me. Vermont is like a big playground for those of us that love to play. There are so many options.

 

        Lastly, I am especially prepared for a Physical Education teaching career because I believe my enthusiasm and passion for leading an active lifestyle is infectious. Hopefully the children will be able to see how much I enjoy what I do, both as a profession and as a means of exercise and fun.

 

 

RGreene Dickinson Transcript.pdf

CCV Transcript.pdf

UMass transcript.pdf 

 

"Engaging All Learners"       

       The Teacher Apprenticeship Program’s motto of “Engaging All Learners” should be the philosophy of every good teacher. Optimizing learner engagement can be done by the TAP curriculum themes of child/adolescent development, classroom environment, planning, instruction and assessment. The motto applies to me as a teacher because it is my responsibility to reach each student as best as I can, to the best of his/her abilities. Every student comes to class with his/her own characteristics. Their development and their learning styles make each student unique. My job as the teacher is to create a learning environment where each student can thrive and be successful. Using differentiated instruction and a spiraling curriculum in my planning, instruction and assessments will help me reach all of my students. These two methods are crucial in ensuring the material I am teaching is useful and relevant to all the learners in the class. The differentiated instruction helps meet each student where they are and need to be, while the spiraling curriculum means enduring understandings and central themes will be revisited as the material comes around and around. The experiential nature of TAP has helped me immensely in observing good teaching habits and repeating mentor lessons. In Physical Education, a gymnasium full of “engaged learners” may look chaotic to some people. Balls might be flying in different directions, students running each and every way with a volume best suited for the outdoors. But to me, it looks like the fruits of my labor all coming together in a job well done.


Host School/Field Experience

       

       Thatcher Brook Primary School (TBPS) is a 400+ student primary school located in downtown Waterbury Vermont. It is set on a side street in a residential neighborhood. It consists of Pre-School through 4th grade and has a 12:1 student to teacher ratio. The school is 98% white with just over a quarter of the students receiving free lunch. I did my student teaching under Carol Baitz, a knowledgeable Physical Education teacher with over 30 years experience in the field, more than 20 of which came from TBPS. Carol holds a Masters Degree in Physical Education and was voted Elementary Physical Education Teacher of the Year in Vermont in 2012 by the Vermont Association for Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance. Under Carol’s tutelage, I took on all of her responsibilities; teaching all of her classes, performing assessments, leading her Mileage Club before school started, and attending all after school commitments. Days consisted of teaching 6-8  single or double classes. During double classes, Nancy Robinson (Health and Physical Education Teacher) would assist. The experience and knowledge I gained from Carol and Nancy will undoubtedly prove invaluable as I venture into my own teaching career.

       

       

       Union 32 High School and Middle School (U-32) has roughly 800 students and is located in Montpelier Vermont. It is set up a hill in a rural area, just between downtown Montpelier and Barre. It consists of 7th through 12th graders and has a 11:1 student to teacher ratio. The school is 93%white with about 38% of the students receiving free lunch. I did my student teaching under Steve Towne, a 25 year veteran to the profession. Steve has been nominated for the Middle Level Physical Education Teacher of the Year award for the Washington Central School district and recently received his Masters of Education with a concentration in Adventure Learning. My duties under Steve were co-teaching, co-planning and observing him and his colleagues throughout the course of their day. U-32 is on an alternating schedule, either a “Blue Day” or a “White Day.” As a result, days consisted of teaching either 2 or 3 classes, varying from 9 students to 40+. The classes with 40+ students were double classes that were co-taught with Judy Abbiatti or Jeff Wuorinen. The P.E. department consists of 5 teachers, many of whom I worked closely with either in class or during planning periods. Between Steve and the other members of the department, I gained great experience at the high school and middle levels.

 

DRAFT: This module has unpublished changes.