Karen Schweitzer, a teacher for 33 years, spent most of her career as a kindergarten, first and second-grade classroom teacher. After a brief foray into sixth and fifth grade, she has recently retired from serving as a third-grade teacher at the Anne T. Dunphy School, where she has taught for the past 28 years.
In Schweitzer’s classroom, all students can become mathematical thinkers. Her activities invite students to explore underlying concepts, create solutions and work collaboratively. Karen believes that even the youngest minds can engage with big mathematical ideas as demonstrated in her innovative work with primary students.
For the past 22 years, in addition to her classroom work, Schweitzer has been part of an ongoing series of National Science Foundation-funded projects with researchers from Mount Holyoke College, the Education Development Center, and TERC. She provides professional development in mathematics and math education for pre-service and in-service teachers around the country.