Stephanie Elliott-Shawyer

First and foremost, I am a mother. I have two beautiful girls who I love dearly. I am also a teacher and proud to be Canadian. I am a life-long learner and a strong and independent person. I am caring, creative, honest and organized.

I hope to be a great role model for my two girls and a caring adult for my students. As Josh Shipp says, "Every child is one caring adult away from being a success story."

I am an Elementary Student Success Teacher (eSST) in Simcoe County working with grade 7 and 8 students who are are currently deemed as 'at-risk or in-risk'. This is a very challenging, and sometimes emotionally draining job - but extremely rewarding.

I know that children do not go to school wanting to be a problem. No student wakes up in the morning and says to themselves, "I am going to be a complete jerk to my teacher and peers today." Poor behaviour of students is simply a symptom to something bigger. It is my job to get to know that child. Find out how I can help and make school a safe and enjoyable place for them.

I am a huge advocate of inquiry-based learning; facilitator versus traditional teacher practice; grit, resiliency and other 21st Century Learning Skills. No longer do I, as the teacher, have to transfer knowledge to my students. With technology, the world is at their fingertips. It is up to me to help them decide what they are going to do with all that information. How will they use it? How can they use the information in an innovative way? How can they dig deeper and think more broadly? How can they develop their own opinion on topics I present? How can I get them to 'think'?!

As our grade 8 students prepare to leave elementary school and transition to high school, it is not the time to pull away and make them fend for themselves. It is quite the opposite - we must lean in closer. We need to help guide them and coach them through this difficult time. They need us more at this time then ever before!

In my free time, I love to design beautiful spaces and be outdoors running, playing or simply walking in nature.

Outside of teaching, I have always enjoyed taking on entrepreneurial endeavors and can't wait to figure out what my next one will be!