Q&A With Ms. Laura - Lead Teacher, Jr. Kindergarten

Have you ever wondered what it’s like to be a teacher at Everbrook Academy? We spoke with Laura Sultana, Lead Teacher, Jr. Kindergarten (and Master Teacher!) from our Novi, MI location about her typical day – and between implementing our curriculum and maintaining a safe, clean environment, it’s a busy one! Read on to learn more about Ms. Laura.

Why did you decide on a career in early childhood education?

I have my bachelor’s degree in elementary education. Toward the end of my schooling, I got a job teaching at a preschool and I just fell in love with the discovery of this age. Everything is new, everything is exciting, and you can just see those lightbulbs go off.

You’re a Master Teacher – what did you have to do to receive that certification?

I had a bit of interesting Master Teacher training. It was through the course of the pandemic, so at the beginning I got to see a lot of classroom stuff, and then I did more out-of-classroom studying. It took several months of training – it was a lot of extra enrichment and extra training to really make me the best teacher and teacher mentor that I could be.

Take us through your typical day!

When my kids first come in, they get to engage with some kids from other classes and do some activities with them. Then they go into our room where we have our morning meetings where we all come together to talk about our day and do critical learning skills, which are skills that are going to help them going into kindergarten and elementary school. We then go into our zones which are some different setups in the classroom where students can explore activities independently or with friends. Then we get to go outside – our playground is one of their favorite places. Then we have lunch and do a little bit of rest. We explore arts and science, we have some more play time, and then we do our math curriculum.

How are you ensuring health and safety at your center?

We use the song method whenever we’re in our classrooms, so when the kids are doing their handwashing, they’re singing, usually “ABCs” or “Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star.” And when we’re washing the tables, they’re so used to us doing it that they sit down and don’t touch the table yet because they know it’s just been washed. It’s “Hands up! We have to count to 10 so it can dry!” We’re doing it so often and so much that it’s become such a regular part of their routine. It’s just really a part of our day, which is great.

Can you talk about our STEAM curriculum, and what that means?

I love the STEAM involves every aspect of our brains. We can connect science and art and math and technology and engineering. There are so many different areas for thought and play.

What are some of your students’ favorite STEAM activities?

Around the holidays we read The Mitten by Jan Brett and as a follow-up activity, we use toothpicks and marshmallows to build a shelter for the animals from the book. Connecting the literacy with the engineering with the arts, all together. We also do the activity with food dye, vinegar, and baking soda, which is a science and arts combination. The students sit there at that activity for as long as they can just watching those explosions happen!

What sets Everbrook Academy apart from other early education centers?

I would say that our school offers a wonderful education and honestly, it’s above the rest. Our STEAM curriculum really promotes so many different ways of thinking and really prepares students for what they’re going need in future schooling and the rest of their lives.