Welcome to Junior High with Mrs. Sullivan at St. Paul's!
Welcome to Junior High with Mrs. Sullivan at St. Paul's!
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Who is Mrs. Sullivan?
Who is Mrs. Sullivan?
Mrs. Heather Sullivan, a Janesville native, is a certified instructor of regular education (grades 1-9), Spanish as a World Language, and Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages. For 11 years she was an ELL teacher at Madison Elementary School here in Janesville, working primarily with students in 3rd thru 5th grade whose first language is not English through a co-teaching model. She thoroughly enjoyed teaching and assessing the grade-level curriculum alongside the classroom teachers while also ensuring the academic language was accessible for the multilingual students.
Mrs. Sullivan started teaching middle school Spanish at St. Paul's in the Fall of 2017 and expanded her role as a junior high teacher in the Fall of 2024. She has a passion for utilizing the power of student discourse in order to foster active listening and rich thinking in the content areas. During her last few years in the School District of Janesville she was part of a small team of educators who worked with a National Science Foundation grant awarded to UW-Madison to re-think how discussions worked in content area classrooms to promote just that. In her own words, "It was amazing to see the change in our students during the course of the 2-year project! I look forward to bringing it to the 5th grade Social Studies and 7th grade World Geography and Literature classes I will be teaching this year at St. Paul’s."
When Mrs. Sullivan is not at school, you will most likely find her at home enjoying time with her husband of over 19 years and her three sons - Christian (9), Lochlan (8), and Griffin (7 in Nov). Her favorite activities to do at home include cooking, organizing, reading, doing puzzles, and playing with her boys. Her family enjoys being outside, bike rides, visiting parks, and exploring Janesville's local attractions (especially Skelly's Farm Market, the Farmer's Market, and Rotary Botanical Gardens). Mrs. Sullivan also teaches (and takes) dance classes at 5-6-7-8 Dance Studio here in Janesville.
Let's keep in touch!
Let's keep in touch!
hsullivan@stpaulsjanesville.com
(608) 754-4471, ext. 207
Mrs. Sullivan's Teaching Philosophy
Mrs. Sullivan's Teaching Philosophy
Academic Discussions
Academic Discussions
Student voices are powerful! Academic discussions allow students to think more deeply about what they are learning and to actively engage in the classroom as a historian, geographer, or literary scholar. The discussions also allow for on-the-spot assessment of learning to help guide Mrs. Sullivan in moving through curriculum at a realistic pace. Students will be taught the 7 student discourse moves and be given ample time and opportunity to practice them in daily classwork.
Homework is Valuable!
Homework is Valuable!
Homework allows students to prepare for future in-class dicussions, as well as to process through the most recent in-class discussions. Homework also allows students to develop responsibility and time-management skills. It is important for students to complete any assigned work in a timely fashion in order for it to serve it's intended purpose. In accordance with St. Pau's Junior High Expectations, students will be expected to return homework the following school day (unless otherwise noted) - failure to do so will result in detention.
Corrections
Corrections
Learning is a never-ending process - and not every student learns at the same rate nor at the same time as their classroom peers. Just because a student didn't get something correct the first time an assignment or activity is attempted does not mean the opportunity is lost! Students in Mrs. Sullivan's classroom are welcome to make corrections to any graded assignment as many times as s/he chooses - and will receive full credit for the learning!
Seating
Seating
It is imperative for students - especially at this age-level - to begin understanding what they need as a learner in order to be successful. That includes understanding how to choose a seat in the room that will support learning and limit distractions. As such, students in Mrs. Sullivan's classroom benefit from being part of their seat selection each month. She actively supports students in understanding what each individual needs in order to maximize his/her learning opportunities.
Need some extra help or one-on-one time with Mrs. Sullivan?
Need some extra help or one-on-one time with Mrs. Sullivan?
Mrs. Sullivan is available after school on Tuesdays and Thursday until 3:30.
Mrs. Sullivan is also always available via email, Google Classroom, and Class Dojo!
Websites We Use
Websites We Use
Classroom management tool focusing on positive reinforcement
Parents will be provided with information for connecting with Mrs. Sullivan's class
Quizzes for Accelerated Reader (10% of the students' Literature grade)
Students will be provided with log-in information
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