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Lower School, Kindergarten |
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Merry grew up in Huntington, New York and earned a B.A. from Skidmore College where she majored in anthropology with a minor in studio art. After graduating, she worked as a graphic designer for a small company in upstate New York. Merry was unfulfilled with working in the business world and in 1996 she moved to Bend, a place she now calls home. Her experience as a preschool instructor at A Child's Garden inspired her to go back to school to earn a Master's Degree in Teaching from Eastern Oregon University. As part of her training, she spent a year working in the Bend LaPine School District, primarily in a Kindergarten class and some time in a fourth grade class. Later she joined the Cascades Academy faculty and has been teaching kindergarten ever since. Merry enjoys being the gateway to the childrens' first experience in an elementary school setting and watching them navigate through their journey. Merry loves to integrate curriculum and provide children with both a real world and global perspective. In 2006, she was trained in the Scottish Storyline Method and can't imagine a better way to engage children in learning. When not in the classroom, Merry likes to work in her garden, camp, hike and canoe with her husband.
