Mrs. Watts...
As a child, I set up a pretend classroom in the basement of my mom's house and "taught" my stuffed animals. I have wanted to be a teacher for as long as I can remember...partly because I had been in the audience of some wonderful teachers and partly because I enjoy helping others. After student teaching in Mattoon, IL, and earning my Bachelor Degree from Eastern Illinois University, I have taught in two private schools and four public schools at every grade level from kindergarten through eighth grade. Although I am currently in my fifteenth year of teaching, there are many days I feel like I'm still in my first year! I am grateful to the many parents, students, colleagues, and administrators who have trusted me and allowed me the chance to be a part of their lives. I have often struggled with learning how to balance my time...not spending too much time away from my family and spending enough time on my school work so that I can help my students be successful. But then, as my pastor says, "Ministry means sacrifice." And as far as I'm concerned, teaching is a ministry, and it requires love, faith, hope, and yes, sacrifice...which does not end at 3:30!