About Me-La Libre Language Learning
2020 update/disclaimer – I wrote this about me page 3 years ago while still in the classroom. The words are all still true, except I now support educators like you full time from what I like to call the “behind the scenes” sides. I’m more like a coach than a player on the team now.
Through hard work and ALOT of dreaming, I was able to take the dream you’ll read about below to thousands of teachers and hundreds of thousands of students through 3 main things:
- Curriculum creation and services for comprehensible input oriented instruction (TPT and consultation work)
- Conferences: the BEST (biased, I know đ) world language virtual conference on the internet for Comprehensible Input teachers (Join us for Practical & Comprehensible for free here!)
- Free Classes: weekly live free PD classes for teachers switching to proficiency on FB live (Join me for the next free class here!)
- Planners: stellar handmade teacher planners to help you find joy in teaching and stay organized
- Blog Posts & Videos: Practical and self-care infused proficiency instruction ideas for middle-high school world language
You’ll see posts written from when I started this blog in 2018 and was teaching full time, to a different perspective working directly with educators as a world language instructional coach.
I hope both sides of the coin make you laugh and help you towards your goals – a joyful, sustainable, and proficiency-centered practice rooted in community.
Without further ado, here’s the original post from 2018:
Salut! ÂżQuĂŠ lo que? Iâm Devon, also known as Profa or La Libre.
I teach Spanish and French at a Title 1 high school in SC.
I seek to end racism and xenophobia by empowering the next generation to break down the walls between our cultures through language.
But having a big dream means putting in alot of work-seriously alot. The night-shift custodians telling you to âgo-home-to-your-familyâ alot of work.
I worked my butt off because this work matters to me-but eventually I burned out. I had that hard conversation with my husband several times, asking if we could make it another year on my deplorable salary and the ever-increasing workload that never got easier.
My job as an educator wasnât fun anymore, and it was getting harder every year to justify the toll it took on my family to keep my lessons high-quality. I was drowning in paperwork and verb charts and losing my spark. I felt stuck, like the constraints of my job were dumping water on my language-learning fire.
Can you relate to losing your teaching spark?
Do you ever question whether your kids can really use the language theyâre learning?
I believe teachers are the answer to improving public schools, and my passion is to make our work as educators more fun and meaningful.
I provide the tools, resources, and ideas to overworked world language educators that are OVER outdated methods and ineffective language instruction–without sacrificing their planning time and personal lives.
They HATE their dusty old worksheets and are dying to teach language the way that they fell in love with it-but theyâre afraid itâs going to cost them a mountain of extra work on top of what they already do. Theyâre seeking a research-based method that works, and they donât want yet another educational fad or to be left high-and-dry with no guidance for implementation.
Does this sound like you?
Do you want to teach for proficiency and still have a life, but donât know where to start?
I ditched my underperforming teaching methods and got my groove back through proficiency and comprehensible input-and I want to help you do the same.
But I jumped in over my head into the CI world. It was struggle-bus, party of one. I want to make your transition easier than mine was.
How I Support World Language Teachers at La Libre Language Learning
I create resources that empower students and promote diversity with meaningful language acquisition experiences that donât feel like work, through:
- music
- culture
- the thrill of successful communication
- fostering global connections and citizenship through language
What You’ll Find on this Blog:
- I share my proficiency adventures and support teachers like you work through the research that supports this teaching style.
- I share the stories from my classroom and go through what worked and what didnât so that you can learn from all of my triumphs and mistakes.
- I comb through the research on language acquisition and transform their findings into actionable tips that you can use tomorrow with your kids.
- I share how I go home on time every day (yep, you read that right) so that you donât have to neglect your family or your hobbies in order to LOVE what you do and believe in what you teach.
To pay for my not-sorry-at-all travel addiction, I also sell student-tested comprehensible French and Spanish resources on Teachers Pay Teachers for the days youâre short on time.
If you believe like I do that language is the key to tearing down walls between societies and an empowering tool to the next generation of leaders-join me here at La Libre Language Learning.
Iâll see you in the trenches đ
Sincerely,
Devon @ La Libre Language Learning
Curious to Know More About Me?
When Iâm not waist-deep in educatinâ or on this blog, I can be found:
- At a local cafe, my happy place, with a strong cup of coffee and a French book.
- Binge-watching Bobâs Burgers and Celia (and singing along)
- Hanging with my outdoorsy husband and trying to one-up each otherâs college rugby stories
- Teaching my 3-year-old son Spanish
- Up to my eyeballs in SLA research for my masters in Spanish and Language Education
- Listening to David Bowie or Alicia Keys or podcasts
- Arranging flowers (sometimes while listening to reggaeton)
- Adding restaurants in Charleston to our weekly brunch list
- Lifting weights or kickboxing (definitely while listening to reggaeton)
- Shaking out the couch cushions to fund our familyâs next travel adventure
Curious About My Teaching Style?
Check out my post here: #TeacherLife
