About the Busy Bees

I graduated from the University of Houston-Clear Lake in May 2002.  I worked for Houston ISD for two years.  I came to Crosby Kindergarten Campus in August 2004.  I am currently seeking my Masters in Special Education.

 At HISD I taught older students and although I enjoyed them very much, I truly believe that the kindergarten campus is where I am supposed to be.  Many people ask me why I decided to go into special education.  It is not a simple answer--in fact several situations and events in my life have always pointed me in this direction. 

I had an aunt who was severely mentally retarded.  When my grandmother took Aunt Beth to the doctor as a child, the doctor told my grandma that Beth would only be a burden and that my grandmother should put her in a special home and forget about her.  Granted this was almost 55 years ago, but I cannot image as a mother someone telling me that my child would always be a burden.  Although Aunt Beth was never extremely verbal, she would always play with me.  I was a young child and I did not realize that she was mentally retarded.  I thought she was the coolest aunt.  She always played with me and made me feel important.  Mom said that when I was a baby Aunt Beth always wanted to hold me.  So I obviously had a very close bond with her.  As I grew older and started to realize that Beth was not like most adults, my parents explained to me how she did not get enough oxygen at birth. This caused her to have mental retardation.  Aunt Beth passed away a few years ago, but I hope that she would be proud of my work with my students. 

I have a younger cousin Sarah who has also inspired me to teach special education.  Sarah has a very rare genetic disorder.  In fact, it is one of those disorders that I cannot even say, much less remember how to spell.  Sarah is an amazing, amazing girl!  I adore her.  And even if she does not even realize it, I firmly believe that I am a better person and a better teacher because of her.  When she laughs, it is with her entire body.  It is loud and I cannot help but to laugh along with her.  I enjoy hearing her laugh.  She really enjoys reading books and she likes to tell you everything about the book she is reading.  Once she gets stuck on a subject (World War II, Texas History, Native Americans), she just cannot read enough about it.  I wonder how independent she would be if she had not gotten services at such a young age.  I wonder how successful she would have been if we did not have any expectations of her.  Luckily, she started public school at age 3.  She had Ms. Kathy Hogan (the recent Texas Teacher of the Year) as her PPCD teacher in Humble several years ago.  I asked my aunt what made Kathy such a wonderful teacher.  Aunt Teresa gave me some suggestions, but it wasn't until I met Kathy in the fall of 2004 that I truly understood.

Kathy Hogan is one of a kind.  I cannot even begin to describe her.  I completly respect her and her opinions.  She is the type of teacher that I aspire to be like. She now teachs workshops at Region IV Educational Service Center and that is where I met her.  She has equipted me with skills, techniques and materials to be a better teacher.  She is my mentor and another reason why I wanted to teach special education.

I truly cannot ever see myself doing any other kind of job.  I was born to teach these kids.  I think they are amazing and with each improvement we make and new skill I am able to teach one of my students, I feel pride.  I know that I am helping to make my students more independent and self-reliant. That is a great feeling!  If each person can only realize one thing about me, I hope that it is that I love my job, and I love my kids. 

I appreciate the faith that parents put in me with their children.  I believe that parent communication is extremely important.  I want everyone to know that I look forward to emails, notes and phone calls. Also, I look forward to suggestions, stories and positive comments about your student's progress.  Good luck this year, and please, please, please always feel free to contact me either by email (embernard@crosbyisd.org), phone (281-328-9370) or notes in our communication folder.