My name is Austin Soper and I live in Manti, Utah. I have lived here most of my life and I don't plan on moving any time soon. I am almost finished with my Bachelors Degree in Mathematics Education with a Chemistry minor. I never thought that I would be teaching math as a career but somehow I ended up here and I am excited for the future and the opportunities that I will have to work with the youth. I am 28 years old and I have been married to my wife Laney for 6 years now. We have two kids
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Sienna 4 yrs old
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Deacon 2 yrs old
They are much happier than they look in these pictures. I wanted to post the most recent pictures that I had and these pictures were from a very cold day and they were not that happy about it. Anyway, I am taking this class as part of my major and I am excited that it is one of my last classes. I enjoy working the the youth and I am looking forward to helping them become successful individuals.
I love spending time outdoors and playing sports. This is one of the reasons that I chose teaching as a career. It gives me the opportunity to coach and that is something that I have always wanted to do. I love anything that has to do with football. I am always trying to learn as much as I can about the game. I like to play all sports such golf, basketball, and softball to name a few. I also enjoy going hunting, fishing, and camping with my family as much as possible. My family is very important to me and I love spending time with them.
When I am finished with my degree I will be a certified level four math teacher with a chemistry minor. Honestly, I wouldn't mind if I never taught chemistry and only focused on the math. But if the school would like me to teach a chemistry class here and there then I would not mind doing so. It would give me more variety in the work place which is always a good thing.
When I think of literacy I think of reading and writing. Literacy is very important in math and most other disciplines. If the student is not able to read what is stated in the problem or assessment, the probability of success decreases significantly. Furthermore, if the student is not able to transfer their thoughts to the paper it can also hinder the progress of the student. It is important that we help our students to continually develop their literacy skills so that they can progress towards becoming successful individuals. I am looking forward to the future classes and the many things that literacy has to offer.
Hi Austin,
ReplyDeleteThanks for your first posting. Your kids are stunning, and I love the name Deacon.
That's great that you will be able to teach both mathematics and chemistry. There has recently been a push for more STEM integration, so I think it would be neat if you could even bring in some chemistry examples to the mathematics classroom to show students the importance of mathematical calculations in "the real world."
My brother was a mathematics teacher (and also coach) and he could get a job anywhere he wanted due to the high demand for both. I'm sure the same will be true for you too.
Thanks again for a great first posting, and I look forward to reading more of your thoughts as the semester continues.
Your kids are very cute! It was nice to get to know you a little more. I think that literacy in math and science is very important, even though some people don't think so. When I was younger I used to get so annoyed with story problems because they were much harder to understand. In my mind it was pointless for math and science. It wasn't until college where I started to understand their importance and then I learned how to decipher them. I want to teach students early on how to read and understand story problems. It is more realistic to answer a story problem, than just an equation. If they ever come across something in their life that requires math or science, it won't be an equation, but a "story" problem. They would have to figure out how to solve it.
ReplyDeleteYour kids are darling! It's so much fun to see all the fun family pictures on everyones blogs. You will make a great math teacher and coach in Manti! I love Manti, all the beautiful old homes, the temple, the land. It's so beautiful there. It's crazy your family knows my family (the Eliasons). Manti is so small, everyone knows everyone right? I'm also so happy that our classes are coming to an end...the end is so close! I can't wait! :)
ReplyDeleteAustin, I like reading your blog post. It was nice to see a different side of you then in class. Your kids are beyond cute. That daughter of yours is going to break some serious hearts. I also like that you want to coach which I hope one day with a teacher degree I will be able to get to do. I love sports too. I love to play and watch most of them. I also love the outdoors, so we would get along very well. Look forward to hearing what you have to add to class this semester. Take care.
ReplyDeleteAs a father who is also going back to school with a small, family, I can totally understand what a tremendous sacrifice it can be. You have a great family and a great gameplan for the future, and I know your future is bright.
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