ODESSA, Fla. — Maria Luna-Dupont says becoming a teacher was something she always wanted to do.
She’s living out her dream now at Starkey Ranch K-8 School teaching Spanish to middle school students.
What You Need To Know
- Maria Luna-Dupont teaches Spanish at Starkey Ranch K-8 School in Pasco County
- Luna-Dupont said she believes being bilingual can lead to more opportunities
- Do you know an amazing teacher? Nominate them to be our next A+ Teacher
“Since I was a little one, I always wanted to be a teacher,” Luna-Dupont said. ”I always helped my classmates.”
Luna-Dupont said she started to learn English in kindergarten while growing up in Mexico. She also said maintaining her new language was a challenge at times.
“The problem is when I finished college, I didn’t have time to practice my English,” she said. “I forgot it. Everything was there but when you don’t practice, that is the reason I’m telling you I want my students continuing to speak and practice Spanish.”
Luna-Dupont said she believes being bilingual can lead to more opportunities, so she’s hopeful her students will continue to learn the language. She’s doing her part to help them do that.
“I try to give them tips that helped me a lot when I was younger to be learning another language,” she said.
Luna-Dupont said she loves watching the growth her students make throughout the school year.
“They are always telling me, ‘Oh Senora Luna, I heard a song and I was able to understand it.’ So at this point they are able to be using all these vocabulary words,” said Luna-Dupont.
This is Luna-Dupont’s third year teaching at Starkey. She started out volunteering at another school helping students who spoke other languages.
“I really enjoy to be teaching this language to my students and to be sharing my culture with my students as well,” said Luna-Dupont.
Jorja Roman
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