about Profesora Gilbertson-Rivas (she/her/ella)

This is my thirteenth year as an educator, and my third year teaching in Boulder Valley School District. I have taught in Spanish to all ages of students, native and non-native speaking learners, in such differing models as dual-language, Montessori, arts-integrated, and traditional. Through all of these teaching and learning experiences, I have adopted a communicative approach to teaching language that combines personalization with compelling cultural themes to help students relate to the subject matter, through reading and listening to (and most importantly, understanding) Spanish language that is at an appropriate level for the learner.

I have a B.A. in International Studies with a focus on Spanish and Latin American history, and an M.A. in Cultural Anthropology in addition to my teaching certificate. I have lived for several years in central, southern, and western Mexico, studying, doing research, and working in collaboration with local and international human rights organizations. I have also traveled and studied in other parts of Latin America, including Spain, Cuba, Costa Rica, Puerto Rico, and Brazil. I feel a tremendous respect and wonder for these places I have been so lucky to experience, as well as for the people that I am honored to have learned from and to have shared experiences with. In addition to teaching, I work as a translator and interpreter in various community settings.

I am a life-long learner and in my spare time I enjoy hiking, gardening, road trips, reading, studying Portuguese, and spending time with my husband and my 14-year-old in our bilingual home in north Denver.