Who are the STRETCh Instructors?

Ashley Kitzerow

Ever since I was a child I have loved to read. Throughout my entire life I was lucky enough to be surrounded by literature and a mom who inspired me. My mom, Heidi Williams, not only gave me a love of reading, but also of inspiring the next generation by teaching. I went to UW-Whitewater to get my Undergraduate in Elementary education with a minor in English education. For four years I had the amazing opportunity to teach first grade and this is where I developed my love of phonics and talking about books with kids. 

Oftentimes in traditional classrooms, children are not given an opportunity to lead discussions and simply talk. My goal as a STRETCh Instructor is to use technology to create a forum where readers can be allowed to lead the discussions without being worried about giving the teacher the "most right answer". I have shifted by focus to being a silent observer of these conversations and looking for patterns of language being used. This helps me make intentional connections with the soft skills of collaboration, creativity, and social emotional learning. It also helps me identify patterns of thinking and allows me to clear up misconceptions.