About me & why I am writing

Who am I?  

My name is Kathryn Coxwell.  

I love family & friends, the beach, travel, puzzles, mysteries, mountains, horses, science, history, teaching, learning, dogs, campfires, 'smores, and adventures.  I was married almost fifteen years before he died.  I have a stepson.  I have three dogs. I love Star Wars, Harry Potter, and Disney.

I have a Bachelor's in Social Work from Baylor University with a minor in Russian. (No, I can't speak or read it much any more and I wasn't good at it back then.)  I have an MBA from the University of West Florida.

Most of my time has been as a counselor or teacher with at-risk teens and adults, known as alternative ed in most schools.  I have worked at an Eckerd Wilderness Camp, Waterfront Rescue Women's Homeless Shelter, PACE Center for Girls, Barnes & Noble Bookstore, Santa Rosa County School District, the USO, Escambia County School District, and currently Pensacola State College Collegiate High School as well as just starting with VIPKID.  

I prefer working with teens and adults.   I don't do middle school well.

So, why am I writing?

The idea of me writing a book or blog has come up sporadically over the last several years and quite a few times in the last six months.  So, here I am!

There's so much for an experienced teacher to share with new teachers, especially in classroom management.

There's so little on teens and high school that's easy to find.  My time at the PACE Center had an enormous impact on my classroom management style and I cannot imagine being a new teacher without those skills.

My teaching style is eclectic - a little of this, a little of that.  I teach like my grandmothers cooked (I don't cook that way, though.)  

So, that is me.

About Me.....Home

This first entry was to be about me - who I am, why I'm writing.  But as I started writing, the focus turned to the idea of Home.

I teach, and have primarily worked with, challenging populations, often called at-risk populations.

As I was writing about me, I recalled the moment that I realized many of my students don't have Home, as a warm, loving place or person, not just a physical location.

I was raised in a loving, stable home with friends and family who were there when needed.  I always knew I was loved and had many people with whom I could talk.  No matter where I was or what was going on, I could always go home - sometimes physically, sometimes mentally. Often I could just go home to my house and parents and family, or call them for support, advice, and love.  If I couldn't go home physically, I could go home in my imagination - memories of holidays, dinners, grandparents, numerous conversations of advice, stories, love.

Many of my students don't have that - life is not stable, there are few stories (few happy ones), there aren't great memories, no one to ask questions.  Even when there is love, there is a lot of chaos.

They don't have Home to go to - physically or mentally. 

Everyone needs Home.  

I realized my classroom needs to be that kind of space for them - a safe, stable place to be.  A place to regroup, ask questions, learn, hear stories, feel safe, make mistakes, vent.

I try to be fair, consistent, encouraging, listening.

Often I get it right.  Sometimes I don't.  

Their behaviors will tell me far more accurately than any words.

And I adjust and we adapt and we create our own version of Home for our short time together.