Mrs. Kelly K. Stephenson

Phone: 336-242-1567

Email Mrs. Kelly K. Stephenson

Degrees and Certifications:

B.A. in Criminology/Pre-Law with a Minor in Psychology from Indiana University of Pennsylvania
Masters in Elementary Education from University of Phoenix

My name is Kelly Stephenson.  I am originally from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, but I am NOT a Steelers fan! I graduated from Indiana University of Pennsylvania with a Bachelor's of Arts degree in Criminology/Pre-Law and a Minor in Psychology.  I continued my educational journey by attending The University of Phoenix and earning my Master's Degree in Elementary Education in 2008.  I completed over 100 observational hours within K-6 classrooms, in addition to completing a 12-week experience of teaching a Kindergarden class in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

I have taught for a total of 9 years in North Carolina. In 2014, I began my teaching journey in 5th Grade Science and ELA in Vance County.  After 2 years, I moved to Lexington City Schools and have been here ever since!  I started at Southwest Elementary School as a second grade teacher, then I moved up to teach 5th grade.  My 5th graders that school year made such a difference to me that I surprised them all when I moved up to LMS to teach them again in 6th grade.  Currently, this will be my 6th year working in 6th grade.  This year I will be teaching Science. I plan to make Science fun for my students by incorporating a lot of hands-on activities and experiments that coincide with our Science curriculum.

In my spare time, I enjoy photography, tennis, DIY house projects, working on my outdoor pond and watching scary movies.  Over the summer, I got into painting for fun and am looking forward to incorporating this new-found passion into the classroom.  I have also coached the Women's (2017 - 2021) and the Men's (2018 - Present) High School Tennis Teams.  My favorite season is summer. My favorite flowers are a variety of irises because they remind me of my late grandmother (who practically raised me when I was much younger). I love pizza, steak and salmon...Unfortunately, I am highly allergic to most chocolate (Hersey Kisses and plain M&M's are OK) and dairy products.  I have one daughter, Sophia (10 years old on September 3rd), and she will be entering her last year at Charles England.

Classroom / Grade-Level Expectations

*Arrive to class on time and be prepared to learn. ****Bring any supplies required, complete homework and study notes nightly.
*Engage in classroom discussions and small group activities.
*Be courteous and respectful to ALL your classmates and teachers - Do the right thing!
*Ask questions - raise your hand during class or send me an email.
*Complete all the classwork - All I ask is that you try your very best!
*Pay attention during class instruction and take good and legible notes.
*Enjoy your learning experiences during ELA & Social Studies.

*****I do NOT permit any of my students to have cell phones visible OR on in my classroom.  Cell Phones are a complete distraction all around, but especially within our learning environment.  Please be sure to have your cell phones shut off completely (they are not to be set on silent or vibrate, they need to be completely powered off).  I have strict consequences regarding this set in my classroom for the previous 5 years, and will continue this practice going forward.  Parents - if you need to get in touch with your son/daughter, please contact the office and they will relay any messages/requests that you may have.  

Homework

Homework will be assigned when I find my students need to use what they have learned in class and when I assign projects that are more time-consuming and larger than ones completed in class.  These projects will be entered as a test grade in Powerschool. 

***Egypt Projects Due This Friday****

Reminder to all, students are able to start bringing in their projects any day.

Resources

Current Units of Study

Social Studies:

Our curriculum this school year will cover 5 Themes of Geography and Map Skills, Prehistory/Early Humans, and the following 6 Ancient Civilizations: Mesopotamia, Egypt, Greece, Rome, China and Japan.  

Based on several years teaching these above units, we should be entering Ancient Egypt by mid-October, perfect timing to learn about mummification for the Halloween season! We will be finishing up our Ancient Egypt journey prior to our holiday break. 

*****REMINDER*****   Students were assigned at-home projects to complete of their choice prior to Thanksgiving break and are due this upcoming Friday!  I am looking forward to the creativeness of all of my students!

sarcophagus

Courtesy from Women History

ELA:

During Quarter 2, students were reading Ray Bradbury's story, "The Halloween Tree".  This book coincides with our Social Studies' units on the Ancient Civilizations, in which my students are able to make connections between our 2 core subjects.  We will conclude our reading of "The Halloween Tree", including the comprehension question packet and all of the interconnecting activities prior to our holiday break.

Our main focus during our small group rotations will be on Inferencing and Context Clues.  This is a major standard within English & Language Arts and it will be extremely beneficial for my students to gain further understanding while increasing their reading comprehension.

Daily Schedule

7:50 - 8:15

Homeroom

8:15 - 9:24

CORE 1 - ELA

9:27 - 10:07

THRIVE for ELA & MATH

10:10 - 11:14

CORE 2 - Social Studies

11:17 - 12:46

CORE 3 - Social Studies & LUNCH

****Stephenson's class goes to lunch from 11:42 - 12:07****

12:49 - 1:53

CORE 4 - ELA

1:56 - 2:36

ENCORE 1

2:39 - 3:20

ENCORE 2

Pictures of In-Class Projects

Students in classroom