Rebecca Locklear

My joy in life has been teaching preschool, elementary, middle and high school students whether in private, public, non-traditional, community, or international schools. I also home educated my kids and would do it again in a heartbeat! My main subjects: English, ESL, Latin-Greek, History, Music, Drama, and college advising. Having transitioned from the classroom to full-time writing has given me time for extensive in-depth research and creative thinking in order to continue to present information in unusual and interactive ways. Sharing ideas with other teachers is a delight!

Progressive. Non-traditional. My classes are “doing” classes. Starting with my first teaching job, I’ve written productions, units, and curricula, creating experiences that were predominantly hands-on. Luckily, testing data…if testing is important to you…has documented that my students have excelled with my rather unusual instructional techniques. More importantly, they remained interested, enthusiastic, focused and always seemed to rise above my high expectations. One of my students summed it up well: “Ms. Locklear’s class isn’t school.”

Shining moments happen when students combine talent, focus, and a desire to perform well in order to produce amazing “history with music-drama-dance” productions. • This is a shining moment: When students can produce a fine choral sound whether singing Haydn standing on choral risers, or on stage with a fully choreographed "Food, Glorious Food." • This is a shining moment: When 80 students do a perfectly choreographed sword demonstration on stage while another student plays Bach. • This is a shining moment: When students master singing in unusual foreign languages such as Arabic or Latvian. • This is a shining moment: When 100 students do choreographed Tai Chi to modern Chinese music…with added readings. • This is a shining moment: When students master comic timing in "St. George and the Dragon," or when a fight scene between British and French is so real, the audience just sits in silence before breaking into thunderous applause. Yes, I can talk about me (and I have won some awards and grants), but really, the shining moments surround students when together, they produce 110% of quality and polish.

Growing up as a military brat had great advantages. I attended different schools nearly every year and had the opportunity to live overseas and engage with cultures. … My Bachelor’s degree is from The University of Texas at Austin (summa) and M.A. from Stephen F. Austin State University (4.0). Other completed coursework includes the Institute for Excellence in Writing and TEFL certification.

Visit me at www.rebeccalocklear.com for blog posts on history, drama, English, or music. And always, ask questions! I’m known as “the idea person.”