My name is Miss Marisa Tasky! I am a current first grade teacher at a private Catholic school, Our Lady of Sorrows, in Farmington Hills, MI. I currently live in Clawson, MI. I grew up in Farmington Hills, MI, and attended elementary and middle school at Our Lady of Sorrows School. Later, I attended Mercy High School in Farmington Hills. After, I moved to East Lansing, MI, where I attended Michigan State University, and I received my bachelor of Arts in Education. Currently, I am working on my Masters of Arts in Education (MAED) from Michigan State University. Go Green!
My hobbies include reading, kayaking, travelling, cross-stitching, skiing, golfing, playing softball, and enjoying life with friends and family. I am still a huge fan of Michigan State sports, particularly men's basketball and football, and I enjoy grabbing drinks with family and friends to watch every game! I also enjoy spending my summers with my family up north in a small town called Onekama, MI. During the school year, I tutor students during after school hours.
I have been lucky enough to work alongside some of my best friends - ones I have met on the job and ones I have known prior to my job. My current school provides 8th graders a chance to go to Washington D.C. during their final days of middle school. One of my friends, who is an amazing 8th grade history teacher, organized this trip. I was able to experience this trip for the first time since I was a student, alongside some of the greatest coworkers in May 2022!
Gallery of Links
Below you will find a list of links that I have used throughout my teaching career that can be incorporated into daily classroom learning. These links involve most core subjects such as literacy and mathematics.
BrainPop, BrainPopJr., and BrainPopELL is a website that provides educationally rich videos that are aligned to Common Core State Standards (CCSS) in all core subjects such as math, reading, writing, science, social studies, health, engineering, and more. These videos are age appropriate for grades K-12, and include popular characters who are considered humorous for all ages. These videos explain complex topics in a child-friendly way.
Freckle by Renaissance is an interactive, adaptive online learning resource which differentiates questions for students. Freckle teaches mini lessons to students in core subjects such as mathematics, literacy, science, and social studies. Lessons align with Common Core State Standards (CCSS), as well as questions that are frequently asked on state standardized tests. Teachers are able to access student profiles to review what lessons students excel at and what areas students need more practice with.
GoNoodle is a free resource which provides educational and active videos that promote student movement inside the classroom. The videos provide instruction on age-appropriate dances that often incorporate an educational purpose to them. GoNoodle also includes dance videos of popular modern and classic songs with age-appropriate lyrics and dance moves. GoNoodle is often used as a "brain break" between lessons in many classrooms as well as indoor recess.
Wonders by McGrawHill is a reading program with many literacy resources for teachers and students. Wonders is aligned with the Common Core State Standards (CCSS), and provides a robust reading curriculum designed for students of all ages. Wonders' online resources includes read alouds, phonics activities, lesson plans, and educational videos. It also provides access to professional development resources as well as differentiated ways to teach reading lessons.
Storyline Online is a free resource that provides animated children read alouds read by famous celebrities. Many timeless, classic books are read in an engaging way that is sure to catch the eye of any student. These stories are perfect for a brain-break, or an introduction to a lesson, including Social-Emotional Learning (SEL) lessons.
National Geographic Kids is an online resource where students can go to find information, play educational games, and watch videos about animals and other science-related topics. National Geographic Kids provides kid-friendly information about animals that are alive today and animals that are extinct. National Geographic Kids is the perfect website for students and teacher to research animals.
ABCya! is an online resource geared toward students in grades kindergarten through 6th grade. There are separate sections for each grade where you can find educational games that involve letters, numbers, holidays, strategies, and skills. Each game is aligned with a Common Core State Standard (CCSS). ABCya! is a leader in online educational games for kids.
Epic! is an digital library resource made for students in grades Kindergarten through 6th grade. Access to Epic! means access to over 40,000 books that can be read aloud to the reader, or readers can read to themselves. Each book includes the original pictures and edits. Books are leveled and age-appropriate so that any student can find a book they will enjoy. Epic! is perfect for reading centers or reading time in a classroom as well as reading for enjoyment at home.
Didax is a free online resource that has multiple math manipulatives that are common in lower elementary math lessons. The manipulatives include Unifix cubes, ten frames, number lines, counters, colored tiles, dice, spinners, and more. This resource can easily be adapted to use on a SmartBoard as an extra resource to explain math problems and help student visualize numbers.
PBS kids is a free online resource that has educational games, videos, and shows. Many of these games, videos, and shows, include classic characters such as Curious George and Elmo. PBS Kids also includes other stories and games that include new and popular characters that are sure to catch the attention of any child! The games provided by PBS Kids includes mathematics, literacy, social studies, and science topics.
