All about Mrs Norman

I grew up in Santa Barbara, California with just one sister, Jessica Montgomery. She teaches fifth grade at Channing Hall, right above me! My class is book buddies with her class. When we were little, we loved playing at the beach and building forts in our backyard. I took ballet and jazz lessons. When I was a teenager, I was in marching band. I played the clarinet and was the Drum Major. I was also on my high school dance team.

Ever since kindergarten, I have known that I wanted to be a teacher. I was always looking for opportunities to work with kids. I babysat, taught music lessons, taught dance, and was a camp counselor. I couldn't wait to have my own classroom!

My husband and I were married in Los Angeles in 2001. We lived in Logan for three years. I graduated in 2003 from Utah State University with a BS in Elementary Education. I substituted in Cache Valley until the following spring when my husband finished his BFA in Graphic Design. We then moved to El Segundo, California. We loved living at the beach! Los Angeles has so many different kinds of people, food, and entertainment. Eating out was one of our favorite activities! We love sushi, Indian food, and authentic Mexican food. My husband even took a sushi making class out of his love for Japan. He lived there for two years and speaks Japanese.

I taught kindergarten for two years at 68th Street School in South Los Angeles. Most of my students were from Mexico, El Salvador, Guatemala, and of course Los Angeles. We spoke a lot of Spanish for most of the school year, as many of my students were still learning English. I love being able to continue to use Spanish in my classroom. I have been teaching first grade at Channing Hall since our opening in 2006.

Mr. Norman and I moved back to Utah in June of 2006 to be closer to his family. We were also able to buy a house- something we could have never done in Los Angeles! We are loving our new little home and our great neighborhood in Daybreak. We became foster parents to two beautiful little girls in June of 2007. Update 7/08: We will be adopting our girls soon!