Hello Blog Visitors,
My name is Alyssa Rivera and I am an up and coming educator. I teach high school English and coach gymnastics. Being a teacher is something I have wanted to do since I was little. I had a chalkboard in my garage and I would spend all of my time in there teaching my stuffed animals. When I first went to college I wanted to be an ESPN sportscaster, but I lost interest in that the second I attended a Student California Teachers Association meeting. At Chapman University, we were lucky enough to have a chapter of this amazing organization that worked in the community and united future teachers. It was through this club that I found some lifelong friends and my passion for teaching grew.
Having worked with young children, I knew that I did not have the "something special" that all elementary teachers and anyone who works with children has. By process of elimination (history bores me, math is too hard and science is the worst!) I decided to major in English and become an English teacher. I'm glad I got my degree in English Literature because, to be honest, I was not a great student and I did not have much interest or knowledge of even the classic novels. Aside from the fact that I was often receiving eye-rolls from my fellow English scholars because I did not know Shakespeare's birth and death dates or read War and Peace on the weekend for fun, my love for Literature grew and I started to see how I could approach novels in a classroom with young adults to help them discover their passions and grow into positive and productive citizens. (As you can see from that sentence, I am still working on educating myself on grammar... Did anyone receive grammar education in school?!) I believe in continuing to educate myself in order to provide my students with the best and most accurate information. Whether that means buying grammar books that help me understand predicate nominative or surfing the web to find out the best way to integrate technology into my classroom. I have never been a strong student, so I will go the extra mile to make sure I am a strong teacher.
As an educator I hope to inspire students to discover that they are important, what they have to say, what they think and how they feel is important. I want to get away from "the right answer" and hear what these facsinating people have to say. (From my experience so far I have learned that they always have something to say but when preceded by a request to raise their hand, their minds suddenly go blank) My goal as a teacher (I wrote this goal down the first time someone asked me why I wanted to be a teacher) is for one day, a student to look back and think of me as a good teacher-- extra credit for awarding me the title of their favorite teacher. ;)
In addition to being a teacher/coach I enjoy a number of other activities. Like many Americans, I grew up on baseball, and unlike many San Diegans, I grew up to love the Padres. After three years of working in MLB entertainment with the Los Angels Angels, to pay for books while going to school, I now work with the San Diego Padres and pump up the crowds as a member of the Pad Squad. I love nothing more than baseball on a sunny day, expect Disneyland on a sunny day. Going to school in Orange County had its perks, one of which being I lived 5 minutes away from Disneyland. Being a person who enjoys being surrounded by happiness and people watching, I spent a good amount of time at the happiest place on earth and finally decided my favorite ride is the fireworks! My number one complaint about Disneyland is that I can't bring my precious Pit Bull Pixie to enjoy the park with me. I'm sure she would love to meet Goofy and Pluto! Maybe someday...
Anyway, I am a woman of many words and I thank you for reading all about me. I hope you at least cracked a smile because as Walt Disney said, "I would rather entertain and hope people learned something than educate people and hope they were entertained." A quote fitting of this page I believe.
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