New teachers settling in

First day means nerves, and not just for students

By: Madeleine Johnson
   It was 20 minutes until Cranbury School’s first day began, and Marissa Levine’s video projector didn’t want to cooperate.
   As the machine stubbornly defied its basic purpose, Ms. Levine, a fifth-grade teacher at the school, seemed unfazed. After all, it was her first day of school, too, and nothing was going to put a damper on seeing her childhood dream of becoming a teacher come true.
   "My grandmother said that since I was in third grade, I wanted to be a teacher," Ms. Levine said. "I student-taught in the fourth grade last year, so some of (the students) I already know. I’m very excited."
   Ms. Levine is one of the six new teachers hired by the Cranbury School in an effort to handle the school’s growing student population.
   In addition to her experience student teaching at the school while she was working toward her master’s degree in teaching from Monmouth University, Ms. Levine also spent several years as a substitute teacher for Cranbury School.
   Ms. Levine has spent the beginning of her teaching career at Cranbury, but her history with the town goes back much further than that.
   "My grandmother lived in Cranbury for 30 years," Ms. Levine said. "Ever since I was in a stroller, I’ve been going to Teddy’s (Restaurant)."
   Ms. Levine is eager to launch right into her first year as a full-time teacher, and she’s ready to accept the increase in her responsibilities.
   "I have a lot more responsibility now," she said. "I can incorporate what I’ve learned from student teaching and workshops into the classroom and make it work for all the students."
   While Ms. Levine is among some of the school’s new elementary school teachers, the middle school has a few new teachers too.
   Elizabeth Levine, who is not related to the new fifth-grade teacher who shares her last name, is filling the newly added position of the sixth-, seventh- and eighth-grade English teacher. It’s a "brand new position they added to reduce class size," she said.
   She comes to Cranbury School with 15 years of experience as an English teacher, a master’s degree in English education from Rutgers’ Graduate School of Education and a background with the New Jersey Writing Project, which is a program that strengthens teachers’ abilities to teach their students how to write.
   A love of reading was what inspired Elizabeth Levine to be an English teacher.
   "I was an avid reader when I was in school," she said. "Reading is one of my favorite activities. The classic literature I’ve read changed my life for the better."
   Elizabeth Levine aims to teach her students how to work together while also showing them all that has to be gained from experiencing literature.
   "I want to help them see that great literature can help them see the world in a different way, learn more about themselves and elevate their character, and I just want to do that through building their enthusiasm and passion for learning."
   While she looks forward to being an English teacher at Cranbury School, Elizabeth Levine is also grateful to be spending her time in the town itself.
   "I feel very blessed to be here," she said. "This is a wonderful community, and I decided that the next best thing to living here would be to teach here."