Mrs. Farmer

 Hello and welcome to Gifted Education!  

My name is Mrs. Farmer, and I am so excited to have the opportunity to work with you this year!

I earned my degree in Elementary Education from Grand Canyon University and hold full endorsements in Early Childhood Education, English as a Second Language, and Gifted Education. This is my 26th year in education. Over the years, I have taught kindergarten, first grade, and third grade, and I have spent the past 16 years in gifted education, including teaching kindergarten and first-grade gifted cluster classrooms. I am also a National Board Certified Teacher in Early Childhood Education. I truly love learning and am always looking for ways to grow as an educator!

When I'm not teaching, I enjoy reading, cooking, taking long walks, and spending time with my husband, James, and our beautiful daughter, Audrey. Audrey is a data scientist at a biotechnology company in Delaware. Our family also includes our fluffy cat, Tayla, and our poodle, Jasper. They bring us so much joy, and you'll probably hear plenty of stories about them throughout the year!

It is a true privilege to serve as your gifted specialist. I look forward to supporting, encouraging, and advocating for our youngest scholars as they grow into creative thinkers, curious learners, and confident problem solvers. Together, we're going to have an amazing year filled with discovery, challenge, and learning!

A few of my favorite things......

Season: Spring

Color: blue/turquoise

Scent: cucumbers and lemons

Flower: Tulips

Holiday: Thanksgiving

Food: Thai and Tex Mex

Drink: Mango Ice Tea

Snack: Popcorn and Chocolate (yum)

Children’s Author: Patricia Palaccio and Eve Bunting

Music: Jazz

Vacation Spot: Sonoma County & Western Montana

PETS

Primary Education Thinking Skills or PETS™ is a systematized enrichment and diagnostic thinking skills program. Lessons are presented in convergent analysis, divergent synthesis, visual/spatial thinking, and evaluation, suitable for grades K-3. The program aligns to the higher levels of Bloom’s Taxonomy.”

ThinkLaw is a “curriculum that uses real-life legal cases in upper grades and fairy tales and nursery rhymes in lower grades as a hook to unleash the critical thinking potential of all students”.

https://thinklaw.us/

“Jacob's Ladder targets reading comprehension and critical thinking skills in high-ability learners.”

William and Mary School of Education: https://education.wm.edu/centers/cfge/curriculum/languagearts/materials/jacobsladders/

Junior Great Books combine high-quality literature, student-centered discussion, and activities that support reading comprehension, critical thinking, speaking and listening, and writing in a shared inquiry approach.

 https://www.greatbooks.org/junior-great-books-k-5/

“Building thinking classrooms is a rapidly-growing educational approach that aims to help students cultivate critical thinking, problem-solving skills, and active engagement."

“Habits of Mind is 16 critical thinking, problem-solving, and interpersonal skills that 21st-century students will need to build tomorrow’s world.”

“The Depth and Complexity Icons are visual prompts designed to help students go beyond surface level understanding of a concept and enhance their ability to think critically. These critical thinking tools help students dig deeper into a concept (depth) and understand that concept with greater complexity.”

We will also do integrated problem-based learning (PBLs) and STEM activities.