Katie
Hi! I’m Katie, a Christian wife and mom of four. My kids are 9, 8, 6, and almost 4. We’ve been having so much fun homeschooling for the past 4 ½ years.
I graduated from Martin Luther College in New Ulm, MN, with a BS in Elementary Education. Before kids I was a teacher at Shepherd of the Hills in Greeley, CO for 5 years and then at Shepherd of the Valley in Westminster, CO for 5 ½ years.
In Greeley, I taught K-2nd grade in a multi-grade setting. I also taught K-8 music, which involved directing the school musical each year and teaching the kids songs for church. Other fond memories from Shepherd of the Hills are playing piano and singing duets for church, playing trumpet for festival services, and putting on Mad Scientist shows.
In Westminster, I taught grades 2-3 in a multi-grade setting for a year. Then I became the PreK director and taught PreK and Kindergarten for 4 ½ years. During that time, I planned and started a 3-year-old preschool program, taught 4th – 8th grade tone chimes, planned and directed class plays, and taught piano lessons. I was also a judge at the yearly science and fine arts fair. I resigned in 2015 when God blessed us with our first baby through adoption.
We decided to move to Cape Coral, Florida in January of 2016 when my husband’s job allowed him to work remotely. Our second boy came along a month later, and then our little girl arrived at the end of 2017. I thoroughly enjoyed my days at home with my three littles. That was really the start of homeschooling, even though I didn’t realize it then.
In 2019-2020, I had the opportunity to be a lead preschool teacher at our church’s school, Abiding Love, here in Cape Coral. My two oldest were in preschool and VPK that year, so it worked out perfectly. Then covid hit and we were all at home for the rest of the year.
I started homeschooling my 5, 4, and 2 year old. We also ended up taking in a 4-year-old foster girl that year. Then our youngest boy arrived at the end of August. If you’re here, you know that homeschooling looks different from day to day, but it was a wonderful, crazy start to our homeschooling journey.
In the spring of 2021, we decided to buy a camper, sell our house, and head around the country for 18 months. It was such an amazing adventure! We read a lot, explored the outdoors, visited lots of National Parks, and did the Junior Ranger programs there. We visited 46 states and many loved ones.
We came back to Cape Coral shortly after Ian and are now living here again. We enjoy being back with friends (and having a dishwasher and washing machine!) Since we’ve been back, we’ve gotten into a nice schedule of homeschooling for a couple hours a day, four days a week, and then playing with friends on Fridays.
I also stay busy teaching the 2-6 year old Sunday school class at our church, substitute teaching at the preschool, playing piano and trumpet for church, and organizing homeschool get-togethers. Since I sub at the preschool I need to keep a current first aid and CPR certification and background check. I am in the process of obtaining my Florida Educator Certificate covering Elementary Education (Grades K-6).
There are lots of reasons that I’m starting Homeschool Extras. Here are a couple: Growing up, I loved certain parts of traditional school like choir, putting on a play, and playing games with friends at recess. I want to give that to my kids and yours. I want them to have the social aspect. I want them to have those memories. That’s for the kids, but for you, moms and dads, I want to help make your homeschool journey easier. I want to offer you a break if you need one. I want to offer classes that may not be your specialty. I want to help make homeschooling even more rewarding.
Ryan
I have over 20 years of experience in the software development industry, spanning both testing and development. Throughout my career, I’ve been deeply involved in nearly every aspect of the Software Development Life Cycle (SDLC), from requirements gathering and coding to testing, deployment, and maintenance. My background includes working with various methodologies, including agile, waterfall, and hybrid approaches, allowing me to adapt to different project needs and environments.
Besides testing, I have a strong foundation in software development, particularly with C# and SQL. I’ve developed tools and automated processes to streamline testing and improve overall software quality. My experience includes working on large-scale, multi-tiered applications, where I contributed to everything from requirements gathering to testing to writing testing tools to assisting development with the application design. This comprehensive understanding of the SDLC has enabled me to approach software development and problem-solving with a well-rounded perspective.
Now, I’m excited to share this knowledge with students through my programming classes. My goal is to introduce young learners to the fundamentals of programming using C#, software development processes, and testing applications. By integrating real-world examples and hands-on projects, I aim to make programming and software development both accessible and engaging. Whether they are just beginning their journey in coding or looking to deepen their understanding, I’m here to support and inspire them every step of the way.