My name is Ms. Poague and this year I am teaching 11th grade English at Irvington High School. This year, I have three classes: one College Prep (CP) class and two CCA classes. 

Originally, I heard that the students at Irvington were very nice, but they have so far exceeded my expectations. All the kids here are incredibly nice and polite. At first it caught me off guard, but it’s a good thing. Before I came to the Bay, I used to teach in Colorado. I just wanted to try something different. I applied to schools all over the Bay and Irvington was the first to get back to me. I liked the way the community sounded, so I came to Irvington.

I hope to make my classroom a nice and comforting place for my students. My high school English teacher, Mrs. Batha, was my safe person in high school. She has really inspired me to make my classroom a place where students feel comfortable and safe. Mrs. Batha also inspired me to teach English. I love discussing books, and that’s also carried into my classes as well; there’s always a lot of group discussion in my class. So far, my classes have begun reading The Crucible and it’s been so fun, especially with everything leading into Halloween. I just love The Crucible so much.

Outside of school, I love horses and horseback riding. Obviously, in Colorado, there’s a lot of ranges to ride horses, but I haven’t been able to find any stables in the Bay yet. Just being around horses comforts me a lot. Aside from that, I also love reading. Louisa May Alcott and Suzanne Collins are just some of my favorite authors.

Above everything, I want to do right by my students. Giving my students the best education possible is my personal goal this year.  At the beginning of the year, I had my students all set their own personal goals, and I really hope that my classroom can be a place where my students and I can achieve our goals and improve together.