What Makes Truly Great Teachers? Lessons From a Life In Early Childhood Education

Summary

Vanessa Levin shares her journey as an early childhood educator, highlighting the importance of community and support for teachers. Over her career, she taught in cities like Seoul, Detroit, Houston, and Boston, where she faced various challenges, from isolation to resistance to change. Levin emphasizes how experience, creativity, and collaboration are key to becoming a successful teacher. Her struggles inspired her to create Pre-K Pages, a platform offering resources and support for early childhood educators worldwide. Through this podcast, Levin aims to share valuable lessons and connect with fellow teachers.

Takeaways

• 👩‍🏫 Vanessa Levin has over 20 years of experience teaching public pre-kindergarten in major cities like Seoul, Detroit, Houston, Boston, and Dallas.
• 🌍 Teaching in different cultural environments, such as South Korea and various U.S. cities, helped her realize the importance of community and support for teachers.
• 🙅‍♀️ In many of her early roles, she struggled with a lack of community, practical advice, and experienced mentors to turn to.
• 📚 Teaching with limited resources, especially in Seoul and Detroit, forced her to rely on her creativity, imagination, and classic games like 'I Spy' and 'Hot Potato'.
• 💡 Vanessa learned that teaching experience, rather than just a degree, is essential for becoming a great educator.
• 🤝 Working at a public school in Houston, she found a supportive community of teachers with over 100 years of experience, which dramatically improved her teaching abilities.
• 🧱 Resistance to change in established programs, like the Head Start program in Boston, taught her that even with support, creativity, and knowledge, teachers can still feel isolated.
• 🌱 Vanessa's teaching career blossomed in Dallas, where she had the resources, professional development, and community to thrive.
• 🌐 She founded Pre-K Pages to create an online community where teachers worldwide could collaborate and access resources, helping them avoid the professional isolation she experienced.
• 📈 Pre-K Pages now reaches 1 million early childhood professionals monthly, providing hundreds of activities, lesson plans, and collaboration opportunities for teachers globally.

Q & A

Who is the host of the podcast 'Elevating Early Childhood'?

The host of the podcast is Vanessa Levin.

What teaching experience does Vanessa Levin have?

Vanessa Levin has over 20 years of experience teaching public pre-kindergarten in major cities like Seoul, Detroit, Houston, Boston, and Dallas.

What was the biggest challenge Vanessa faced in her early teaching positions?

The biggest challenge Vanessa faced was the lack of community and support from experienced teachers, making it difficult to find practical advice or guidance.

How did Vanessa Levin describe her teaching experience in Seoul, South Korea?

In Seoul, Vanessa lived with roommates from various educational backgrounds and had to rely on her imagination, creativity, and simple games like 'I Spy' and 'Hot Potato' to teach due to limited resources.

What was Vanessa's teaching experience like in Detroit, Michigan?

In Detroit, Vanessa was the only teacher in her grade level and struggled with limited resources, spending her own money on resource books and working long hours to improve her teaching methods.

How did Vanessa's experience in Houston, Texas, differ from her previous teaching jobs?

In Houston, Vanessa found a supportive community of four experienced pre-k teachers who shared resources and advice, creating a 'teaching paradise' compared to her earlier positions.

What challenge did Vanessa face when she moved to Boston, Massachusetts?

In Boston, Vanessa faced resistance to change from a well-established program that had a 'this is the way we've always done it' mentality, making her feel isolated despite having a community and resources.

Why was Vanessa's teaching experience in Dallas, Texas, significant for her career?

In Dallas, Vanessa found a supportive environment where she could use her creativity, collaborate with other teachers, and continuously improve her teaching craft, which allowed her to thrive.

What inspired Vanessa Levin to create her website 'Pre-K Pages'?

Vanessa was inspired to create 'Pre-K Pages' to provide teachers with a supportive community and resources, so they wouldn’t feel as professionally isolated as she did early in her career.

How many early childhood professionals does Vanessa Levin reach each month through 'Pre-K Pages'?

Vanessa Levin reaches approximately 1 million early childhood professionals each month through her website 'Pre-K Pages'.