• Name: Katherine Park
    Subject: English as a Second Language (ESL)
    Contact info: knpark@wsfcs.k12.nc.us or (336)703-4233, ext. 125
     
    Welcome ESL students, parents and other Union Cross family members to another wonderful year of ESL!  This is my fifth year at Union Cross, and I am really excited about continuing, and improving our ESL program this year at Union Cross!
     
    What is ESL?
    ESL stands for English as a Second Language, and is for those students whose first language is not English.  These students can also be referred to as ELL, or English Language Learners.  These classes will be given at different times during the day for approximately thirty to forty minutes, while not taking time away from any core subjects.  We will work on English Language skills, while focusing on subjects and vocabulary from the core curriculum of each grade. 
     
    A Little About Me
    I grew up in Winston-Salem, NC, but was born in Houston, Texas.  After graduating from Mt. Tabor High School I went to the College of Charleston in Charleston, SC, where I got a BA in Spanish.  During my third year of college I studied abroad in Seville, Spain.  After graduating from the College of Charleston I went back to Spain and taught English at a sports camp in Hoyos de Espino, Spain, which was absolutely beautiful! 
     
    Eventually I moved back to Winston-Salem, started teaching ESL at Old Town Elementary and taking classes at Salem to get my ESL teaching certification.  I taught four years at Old Town, then I was an interpreter at Baptist Hospital for almost a year, where I learned a lot.  In 2008, I returned to teaching because I missed teaching and the kids, this time as a Spanish teacher at Griffith Elementary.  An opportunity for me to teach abroad in Spain came about and I couldn't resist, so I taught ESL at an elementary school in the neighborhood of La Macarena in Seville, Spain.  It was wonderful, and a great learning experience, but I missed my family and friends and decided to head back home after my year there ended.  This year my ESL students are going to be pen pals with my ESL students in Spain, which I think will be fun!  Hopefully we will be able to Skype and meet them this year!
     
    Please feel free to contact me with any questions or concerns you might have at any time, either by phone or email.  I am looking forward to working with your children, and helping them do the best that they can at Union Cross Elementary! 
     
        
     
     
     
     
     
Last Modified on November 10, 2018