My name is Suzanne Patterson. I teach Math 7 and Advanced Math 7 on Team 7 Green at Summit Lakes. This will be my nineteenth year teaching and my fifteenth year at Summit Lakes. I grew up in Olathe, KS and after graduating from Olathe South High School I went on to college at Kansas State University. I graduated with a BA Degree in Elementary Education with a middle level math endorsement in 2002. I then went on to receive my Master’s of Education from Mid-America Nazarene University in 2004. I taught for 4 years in the Blue Valley School District in Overland Park, Kansas before coming to Lee’s Summit.
I enjoy spending time with my husband, wonderful son Michael ( in 5th grade) and our five year old twin girls, Ana and Ava (Kindergarten)! I love spending time in the community and participating in Summit Pointe Elementary activities. I also love to watch football and baseball! Go Chiefs, Royals and Wildcats!!!
I have two very important beliefs that guide my teaching. My first belief is that I believe in establishing meaningful connections and relationships with students and parents. I believe that no significant learning occurs without a significant relationship. My 2nd belief is that struggle is where learning happens. Students should see challenge, struggling and mistakes as positive, creative opportunities for engagement. Math is my passion and I can't wait to share that with all of my students!
7 Blue Mathematics
Email: liz.jeffries@lsr7.net
Voice Mail: 816-986-1499 ext. 7588
Team Homework Calendar
Hello! I’m Liz Jeffries. I teach 7th Math and 7th Advanced Studies Math on Team 7 Blue. I came to SLMS in 2005 after teaching in Blue Valley the previous ten years. This will be my 108th year teaching! I grew up in Johnson County and graduated from Shawnee Mission Northwest (go Cougars!). I attended The University of Kansas and earned my Bachelor’s Degree of Science in Education with a math minor. Later, I earned my Master’s Degree of Science Degree.
My husband, Michael, and I have a couple kids. My daughter, Audrey, is in college at UMKC studying nursing. Our son, Cole, is in third grade this year! We have lived in Lee’s Summit since 2006 and plan to stay! We have a two year old Labrador retriever (Duffy) – so she’s basically still a puppy.
Outside of school you can find me riding my bicycle around Lee’s Summit (I have finally reached my goal of a 30 mile ride over the summer!) or in our backyard playing fetch with a mini-volleyball with Duffy. I really enjoy watching baseball – both the Royals and our son’s little league team. I’m also a sucker for jigsaw puzzles! Hanging out at home with my family and reading are my favorite ways to spend my free time!
My educational philosophy is super simple – I’m first a teacher of seventh graders – then, I’m a teacher of mathematics. I strive to make connections and build relationships with my students through our experiences here together. I’m told that my sense of humor is a strength and I use that strength in the classroom. I’m not ashamed to admit that I make A LOT of mistakes – every day - my students are really good at helping me find and fix those errors. My classroom, I hope, is a safe place for students to make mistakes and to learn from them. Struggling through the tough stuff is when learning really happens – and the breakthrough or “aha!” moment when kids discover they CAN do what they thought they couldn’t is the coolest part of my job! I love when the proverbial lightbulb “clicks on” with my students! I’m so excited to get this party started in room 712 where we will “Math Up” on the daily!
Hello my name is Jill Phipps. I am so excited to be teaching math at SLMS! I will be teaching 7th math and 8th Algebra I on Team Falcon. I believe that everyone can learn math with time and patience. One of the keys to learning math is feeling comfortable asking questions and making mistakes. I try to build relationships with students so that each student feels comfortable working with me. One of my favorite quotes is from Albert Einstein, “Anyone who has never made a mistake has never tried anything new.”
I grew up in Nauvoo, Illinois (small town on the Mississippi river). After graduating high school, I attended Graceland University and studied math and computer programming. I graduated in 1987 with a degree in math with a certificate to teach secondary education and a computer science minor. I completed my master’s in Educational Technology from MU in 2001. I have taught math for over 30 years in 4 different states: Illinois, Iowa, Missouri and Nebraska. The local teaching jobs were at Lee’s Summit High (1998-2003) and at MCC Longview (2011-2018).
I have been married since 1998 to my wonderful husband, Kelly. We have 2 children who both were fortunate to attend Summit Lakes Middle School. Andrew is at Kansas State University and Emily is at Lee’s Summit West.
