Name:
Ms. Monica Marie Ramirez
Title:
Math Instructor
1.) What
is your educational background (degrees, universities attended, etc?)
I went to UTA from 2010 to 2015 and got
2 degrees: Music Education and Mathematics. I am also a certified teacher for
music EC-12, math 4-12, science 4-8, ESL, and computer science 8-12.
2.) What
kind of work did you do before becoming a teacher at Bowie?
On WyzAnt.com, I mostly tutored math
from elementary to college levels including classes such as algebra, stats, and geometry.
I gave clarinet and recorder lessons on there too. When I was with UTSI
(University Tutorial Supplemental Instruction), I also tutored geology and
intro to psychology. At the math clinic, I mainly helped students with
calculus. I briefly worked as a librarian and for the past year and a half, I
have been subbing for AISD. I also starting working at the Mathnasium in North
Arlington this past summer (a program that is for 2-12 students that are half
new instruction and half homework help from school).
3.) Anything
else you want included in your bio (family, interests, places you’ve lived?)
Family: I have created a family tree
that has most members that are descendants of my great grandparents. Although
my mom’s side of the family does not consist of many, my dad’s side of the
family has about 150 members. At home, I have always lived with my mom and our cats.
I have one brother who is almost 10 years older than me. I lost my father in
summer 2014. I am engaged.
Places I have lived long term: Irving
and Arlington.
Places I have lived short term or visited: Texas
(various cities), Hawaii (summer 2008 band trip), Oklahoma (passing
through, K-Mart visit), Kansas (summer 2008 funeral for my grandmother),
and Arkansas (TBS music sorority convention).
Interests: anime, colors,
animals, Pokémon (especially Espeon),
collecting things, fabric, lanyards, going to conventions, all things Nintendo
4.) What
are your favorite numbers and why?
My 3 favorite numbers are: 0: since it’s
the center of many things (such as the origin), 3: the dimension we live in,
13: the number that seems to be most left out
5.) What
are your hobbies? Making things (drawing, sewing, writing), video games,
math, music, science. I volunteer for community theatre (Irving, Bedford,
Grand Prairie) and I am a part of the Arlington Community Band (I play
clarinet).
6.) What
are your favorite math jokes? If you are in my class, you’ll probably see some
of them on the bulletin board next to the door.
7.) Why do you love math?
I have always been good at it. It made sense to me way before reading or
writing; I understood and started drawing, sorting, and counting things before
I could talk much. I like that it seems to have such tangible foundations with
manipulative and such. With both specific memories and solving math problems, I
attach some kind of physical thing or action to the mental processes that
occur.
