Discussion 1A/Assignment 1

     To get the ball rolling, I'm 25 years young and spent most of my childhood in rural Northern California.  I earned my BA in communications from Sonoma State University in 2010 but didn't quite have teaching on my radar just yet.  I moved to San Diego and spent a few months just working in restaurants and bars, enjoying the San Diego lifestyle for a bit then decided I wanted to go even further South.

     In December 2011 I bought a one way ticket to Colombia, packed a bag, and took off.  I spent the next 5 months backpacking through Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru, spending most of my short life savings on the adventure (would do it again in a heartbeat).

     Upon returning to the states I was faced with that big decision of what direction to send my life next.  After working a few jobs that weren't really my fit, a friend asked me to be his assistant for the high school basketball team he coached.  This is where teaching came into the picture.

     I decided being around kids was my passion (besides traveling).  While coaching I also became a substitute teacher, to determine if I could handle classroom life.  I was not deterred from the path of education and have been working as a substitute teacher/high school basketball coach the entire time I have been involved with the National University program.

     I had taken personality tests before so the results weren't much of a shock to me.  I typically appeal to people's emotions a lot and make sure everyone feels included.  I prefer discussing topics with no right answer rather than something that is cut and dry.  I think despite all of our personalities, the biggest thing with teaching is to be able to interact and reach a variety of personalities.  If I can clear that hurdle then that will be a huge step.