About Me

Mu name is Laura Castro, and unlike many of you I did not always plan on being a teacher. I truly stumbled into the profession.
I studied International Studies and Spanish at the University of Illinois, and spent a year abroad studying in Buenos Aires, Argentina. While there I met the man who is now my husband...and after returning to graduate went back to live in Buenos Aires for a few more years.

When moving back to the United States I was at a loss of what to do. Luckily (for me at least) the demand for bilingual teachers is greater than the supply. Consequently, even though I didn't study to be a teacher I was able to get a job as a bilingual teacher - crazy, I know! I quickly realized that I had stumbled into the perfect profession for me! I love teaching and I feel particularly blessed to work with the Hispanic community. My students are great and so are their families!


I've worked as a bilingual resource teacher and as a bilingual second grade teacher. This year I will be working as a classroom teacher but with bilingual 1st and 2nd graders…a.k.a. bilingual multi-age. I'm a bit nervous about teaching in a multiage classroom - I have a lot of learning to do this year!

We have two amazing cats, Max and Ellie…who shed too much, but we love them anyway! We adopted them from a shelter – and unfortunately Max had suffered from a bad eye infection since he was tiny and they had to remove the eye – but don’t worry he has NO idea and thinks he’s hot stuff!


My husband is currently working on his Bachelor’s Degree – I’m very proud of him because his entire degree will be completed in his second language. He’s amazing – living here in the U.S. with me even though all of his family is in Argentina.


Besides my husband, cats and teaching my other passion is reading! I have a Kindle, and can’t get enough books! If you want to see some of my favorites head on over to my Goodreads profile and check out what I’m reading…
http://www.goodreads.com/lschmitzy

My goal is for my blog to be a place to share ideas and tips for teachers - especially teachers who work with ELLs. Here you should be able to find ideas and resources to help you in the classroom. I hope to build up my Teachers Pay Teachers store to help pay for my husband’s studies – so please don’t hesitate to tell me what resources are lacking for bilingual teachers – I’ll do my best to meet the need!


You can find my Facebook page, follow me on Pinterest or visit my store by clicking the icons below.
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Thanks for stopping by my blog!  I would love to know you were here - leave a comment, start following - leave your mark!


Mrs. Castro
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7 comments:

  1. Hi Laura, Im a bilingual second grade teacher in New Jersey. I loved reading your blog and seeing all the great stuff you have. Cant wait to see more!

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  2. I was looking for ways to set up spelling notebooks and stumbled upon your blog! Not only was I thrilled to see that you teach bilingual students (I do too!), but that you teach bilingual ed in Illinois! I'm originally from Illinois but moved to Arizona for teaching jobs. I attended the University of Illinois as well! (Class of 2012). Hoping to make my way back to the midwest soon to get my type 29 and teach in a dual language position!

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    1. Hi Sammie,
      Thanks for stopping by my blog! I love that you're another Illinoian (is that how it's said?!) who teaching in a bilingual classroom! I've heard of people leaving the state to teach in Arizona, but hopefully you can make it back!

      Laura

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  3. Hola Laura, soy una madre argentina con un niño de altas capacidades que me pidió desescolarizarse, así es que desde el año pasado, mi vida viró de ser trabajadora a docente en el hogar. Me gusta muchísimo tu modo de trabajar! , nosotros con mi hijo armamos un blog donde estamos colocando toda nuestra experiencia en esta etapa de aprendizaje. Con tu permiso, pondré tu blog como "blog amigo" ya que me gustó mucho. Para que no quede como publicidad, te coloco solo el principio de nuestro blog, (el resto es igual al tuyo, blogspot). Nuestro blog es "gianniencasa". Besos y sigue adelante con tu bello proyecto!!!

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  4. We came across you blog and love the great ideas you are sharing! We added your button to our site.

    Have a great week,
    The Dual Trio
    Katia, Kimmy, and Veronica

    www.thedualtrio.com

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  5. Oh wow! I'm glad that I stumbled on your page. I am an ELL Teacher and have an interview tomorrow for a middle school position. One of the questions is- How do the WIDA standards connect to your teaching philosophy? Which led me to research MPIs and then to your blog. I've always had a hard time with MPIs. Thanks for the template. I'll be back for more!

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