I'm Barbara Hays, and I've been teaching math and science to grades 7-12 since 2001.
In the summer of 2010, Richard Incorvia (mrincorvia.com) and I were asked to teach a middle school class with seventh and eighth graders combined. We decided that an authentic, project-based curriculum would be the best approach for this challenge. We were inspired by the wonderful book An Ethic of Excellence: Building a Culture of Craftsmanship with Students by Ron Berger, and naively jumped off the cliff into the unknown. In our first year, we doubled the number of hours we worked, met together every day, and struggled to understand what authentic learning meant. The hard work, plus the support of administrators and parents resulted in better-than-expected results: The students' standardized test scores remained stable and their ninth grade teachers reported that they were self-directed, cooperative, and competent problem solvers.
Fast-forward to 2015. After five years of improving the projects curriculum, I decided that I wanted a formal teachers' education. My first round of college was in engineering, but I got distracted with a husband and children, and never finished my degree. I had learned a great deal about teaching during my years at Maharishi School, but was ready for the theory and history that could help me bring my teaching to the next level.
I'm having a great time in college (what a difference maturity makes!), and will finish in December 2017. Click on the links above to learn more about my educational philosophy and qualifications.
Note: All of the photographs on this website (other than the ones with me in them) were taken by me.