Kelsey Magaña
Welcome
Hola, bienvenidos! أهلا بك Chào mừng Добро пожаловать
欢迎 herzlich willkommen maligayang pagdating
Velkommen alle sammen
benvenuti
Mucho Gusto- It’s a Pleasure
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My name is Kelsey, aka Ms. Magaña. I appreciate all of you wonderful educators who are stopping by this site! It’s a pleasure to meet you. I am from Sacramento California, and I am celebrating my 10th year living in the Bay Area. Where are you from? My passion for teaching stems from a passion for learning, and this fellowship has been the perfect place to learn from all of you!
My educational journey did not begin in the sciences. I hold a BA in Performing Arts and Social Justice from the University of San Francisco. At USF I completed my performing arts degree with a concentration in music and Latin American Studies while working on my multiple subject teaching credential. While studying teaching at USF, I fell in love with project based learning after becoming a member of the Camp Edmo family. At Camp Edmo, I was an Art and Science instructor before becoming Camp Director. I enjoyed training with community partners such as the California Academy of Sciences and the Childrens’ Creativity Museum. I graduated from the USF Graduate School of Education in 2016 with my MA in Teaching.
As a new teacher in SFUSD, I started teaching in the 4th and 5th grade before moving to 1st. I adore teaching early elementary and get so much energy from students who are eager to learn! I enjoy teaching hands-on life sciences through interactions with class pets, and a Makerspace.
Three years ago, I was asked to help our school implement our new Amplify Science curriculum as Science Lead at my site, Redding Elementary school. This opportunity rekindled my love for leading. I am an active member of my schools’ Instructional Leadership Team and member of our English Language Advisory Committee. I am also the newly appointed arts coordinator for my school.
Redding Elementary School
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​Redding Elementary School has about 225 students and is considered a smaller school with only one or two classes per grade level. Our school is the first Arabic language pathway school in the city. 9.5% of our population is made up of students Special Education and 36% of our population is comprised of English Learners. 69.8 % of our school is Socio Economically Disadvantaged and we have a free and reduced lunch program. Our academic indicators show that our overall ELA performance is higher than our students’ success in mathematics based on 2018-2019 SBAC data. We are a loving community with the kind hearted dragon as our mascot.
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SFUSD
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The San Francisco Unified School District has wonderful core values: we are student-centered, fearless, united, social justicedriven, and we celebrate diversity! Our district is working on its Vision 2025 plan!
​The plan is bold but simple: in it every student is challenged to kindle her or his unique spark, chart a course for a meaningful future, and build the knowledge and skills to achieve it. ~SUPERINTENDENT RICHARD A. CARRANZA
My Interests
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I consider myself an artist-activist, constantly striving to connect with my community through creativity and curiosity. As a science instructor, my interests include life sciences and environmental science. I want to learn more ways to create sustainability, food security, and equity for science enrichment in K-5 schools. As a singer and performer, I use my creative platform to advocate for equity in education and community resources. I enjoy traveling to new places, spending time outdoors, and I am a major foodie!
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Fostering Leadership Through S.T.E.A.M. Club
Summary & Abstract
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Fostering Leadership through S.T.E.A.M. Club is a project focussed on leading by example. As a science teacher leader in my school and district, I am aware that educators are overwhelmed with work and responsibilities. Engaging students as leaders is not a priority in schools in the same way that I see it prioritized in extracurricular settings. As a former camp director, I mentored educators and student leaders and encouraged them to be their best selves. When leaders love what they do, students follow and love to learn! Before the COVID-19 pandemic, I participated in the Mentoring for Success program and have supported older students from other classes while I teach first grade. As a mentor, my main objective is to build my mentees’ toolkits for self advocacy, self love, and a dedication to community. In my first grade classroom, student visitors help tutor my students, monitor learning stations, and facilitate fun activities. Leaders help maintain a classroom “Maker-space” and supervise building challenges and class pet care. Sometimes the simplest way to support my fellow teachers is by providing a safe place for their students to visit. During the pandemic, this community support of each others’ students is challenging but not impossible.
My Hopes for this Project
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S.T.E.A.M. Club and its student leaders will set a precedent for collaboration among classes with an emphasis on scientific inquiry and artistic expression. Grounded in Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, and Mathematics, student leaders share their ideas with me during our weekly planning sessions. We then co-teach the club on Fridays highlighting topics such as animation, multiplayer games, animal and plant defenses, and ecosystems. Student leaders have advocated for take-home supplies which lead to our next phase of community partnership through Donors Choose and Kits Cubed. Thanks to generous donors on Giving Tuesday, we were able to order 44 portable science kits created by this Bay Area non-profit. We will be distributing these kits so that students may create kaleidoscopes, grow plants, and build rockets from home while supporting each other online. S.T.E.A.M. Club is just the beginning of ongoing work to strengthen student engagement and support for educators in my community.
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