All about me...

My name is Meryl Becourtney and I am currently a third grade teacher in East Brunswick. I am finishing my third year teaching where I previously taught third and fourth grade resource room. Next year I will be moving to, what I hope is a "permanent" position, teaching Integrated Language Arts in fourth grade. I graduated from Boston University in 2012 with a dual certification in Elementary and Special Education.

My official teaching career began in Ecuador where I completed my elementary student teaching at Colegio Menor San Francisco de Quito in Quito, Ecuador. I lived with a host mom who spoke only Spanish, so I would consider myself conversational in Spanish. I was blessed to have the opportunity to teach in an American school while traveling to exciting places like the Galapagos Islands.

Here I am in 2011 standing in two hemispheres along the equator. My family spent a week in Ecuador during my semester abroad. My students loved seeing this real life example during our geography unit this year!

I am enrolled in the Reading Specialist program at NJCU. I look forward to eventually using my certification to either continue teaching literacy in a general elementary education setting or move into a coach or specialist role.

I am excited about this course because it is specifically geared to elementary school and how literacy fits into the elementary school curriculum. My previous classes at NJCU have covered the curriculum from Pre-K through 12, and while these courses were informative, I am hopeful that the content of this course will be applicable to my classroom.  I plan to use the research as an opportunity to pursue my interest in using partnerships and conferencing effectively during Reader's and Writer's Workshop.

I live on my own in Jersey City, but am close with my younger brother who just finished his junior year of college and my parents who live down the shore. I enjoy spending summer weekends at the beach.

I am a huge sports fan and follow most professional sports, but my true (and sometimes unrequited) love is the Mets.

My dad and I at opening weekend at Citi Field. Luckily, this was during the Mets 11 game win streak. 

Besides baseball one of my other hobbies is cooking. Even after a day of teaching and grad school I have been guilty of preparing a 3 course meal and then unfortunately having to wash multiple pots because I don't have a dishwasher. I actually hope to start a food blog this summer to showcase some recipes. Maybe this blogging will help me prepare :) 

Above is a batch of blueberry preserves I made last summer with local Jersey blueberries. 

The little bit of time I have left is spent running and doing other forms of fitness. I love group exercise and used to teach Zumba before I tore my ACL, doing Zumba.... 

Here is a picture of me crossing the finish line after my first half marathon. I met my personal goal of running the entire time and finishing in under 2:20. I am planning to run another one in the fall.