Hi, I am Marzena Harris. Teaching ESL (English as a Second Language) is what I have been doing all my professional life. And it has become my passion.

I was born in Poland where I received my Master’s degree in English Literature and Linguistics. My second Master’s program was Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages which I completed in the U.S. while already teaching ESL for the New York City Board of Education.

I entered an elementary school facility in the U.S. for the first time as a teacher. Maybe that is why I understood the confusion of culture shock my students were experiencing. I had that experience myself.

Culture shock was about many things – about the relationships between the teachers and the students and how things were run in the school building. It was about the curriculum, and the methods and materials as well. I had a lot of freedom in choosing what I would teach my students and how (in Poland you had a strictly assigned curriculum and textbooks). At first that freedom was scary, but in the long run, it turned out to be a blessing. I discovered beautiful picture books. With their stories and characters, they motivated my students to whole-hearted discussions and these, in turn, accelerated the development of their language, cognitive, and literacy skills.

While teaching ESL, I continued my studies about first and second language acquisition. I also became increasingly interested in the children’s process of learning to read. I continue to study these topics and implement the newest scientific findings into my lessons. Please, don’t hesitate to send me an email if you have any comments or questions.