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About Me

Welcome to 7th grade World Geography at Ridgewood Middle School!

 

My name is Ms. McDermott and I am excited to be your child's teacher!  Geography isn't just about memorizing maps anymore! In this class students will study people, places, and cultures from  all around the world.

 

Over the years I have foud providing choice and opportunities for independent discovery fuel my student's interest in the world around them. At RMS we focus on leadership. Providing students flexible learning experiences based on their interests and needs help foster independent learners and strong leaders.   In my classroom students will learn to develop problem solving and research skills through independent and small group project-based learning tasks. My goal is to try to provide authentic learning opportunities for students whenever I can. 

 

I grew up St. Peters, MO and attended college at Lindenwood University. I started working for the Fox School District in 1997 and spent 15+ years at the elementary level before moving to middle school. I can honestly say teaching 7th grade for the the last 4 years at RMS has been the most rewarding part of my teaching career.  I have two crazy kids of my own, so I fully understand how hectic life can get! If there is ever anything you need or you have a question about what's going on in class, please don't hesitate to ask! I am looking forward to a great year working with you and your child!

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Hello, my name is Tom Richmond and I team teach with Ms. McDermott during 7th hour.

I find kids to be addictively inspirational!  Where lots of adults seek caffeine…I look to kids.  Life is a journey with challenges and joys and a person’s character and knowledge form as they pass through each stage.  It is my personal goal to help students develop excellent character and to increase their knowledge as they mature in middle school.

I grew up in Kirkwood and I attended Kirkwood schools from kindergarten to High School. I graduated in the Class of 1986 (lol…it’s a Saint Louis thing!)  Straight out of high school I attended Southwest Missouri State University and earned a teaching degree in Learning Disabilities and Behavior Disorders K-12.  I then attended Webster University and earned my Master’s Degree in Educational Technology.  I have been married for 27 years and we have four beautiful children.  Our oldest child, Christopher, is 26 years old.  We have three other daughters; Alex who is 23, Abi who is 10 and Sarah who is 8.  I love spending my free time with my family, thru hiking, and working on and driving classic cars.

Directly from college I began teaching at The Churchill School.  After teaching there for four years I took on a teaching position at Fox High School with the students who have autism.  Sixteen years later I was looking for something new when a position at Ridgewood opened up.  This is my sixth year at Ridgewood teaching both 7th and 8th graders.  At Ridgewood I have taught Language Arts, Social Studies, Math, and Science.  I currently teach 7th grade Geography and 8th grade American History.  I absolutely love teaching at Ridgewood and plan to stay here until I retire.

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