Hello, I am Karen Johnson. I am blessed to have had phenomenal teachers throughout my life, starting with my parents and grandparents. I remember the names of most of my own teachers, many of whom inspired me to pursue my career in education.
When I was a child, my mother and father read to me every day, and as a result, I was reading independently at an early age. I have been teaching since I was five years old. Let me explain. Since I was in kindergarten, I would come home from school and "teach" my little sister what I had learned that day. We have fond memories of the makeshift schoolhouse we set up in the living room. I was an assistant Sunday School teacher, I taught swimming lessons, and was a CPR, First Aid, and Lifeguard instructor.
After earning my Bachelor of Science in Education at the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis and earning my teaching credential, I moved to California and began teaching at Two Bunch Palms Elementary School in 2000. During my first year of teaching, I earned a Master of Education from the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis. No, that doesn't mean I flew to Minnesota on my breaks, I was able to accomplish this by taking classes through distance learning. I held many positions while at Two Bunch Palms ; SDC teacher, first, fourth, second, and fifth grade teacher, High Impact Tutor, and GATE teacher. In 2015, I transferred to Desert Springs Middle School to teach sixth grade Mathematics and Science. In 2016, I added Academic Pentathlon to my repertoire of content knowledge. In 2019, I was elected as President of the Palm Springs Teachers Association. I will not be in the classroom for the duration of my term. Instead, I will have the opportunity to visit all of the school sites and affect positive change for our District.
I love to travel. Most of my travel has been in the continental United States. As a child, we took road trips from Minnesota to Montana and Washington stopping in every state in between. I've traveled to Washington D.C., New Orleans, and Chicago with the NEA. I enjoy trips to visit family in Colorado and Minnesota as often as possible. I've also experienced the Cayman Islands, Maui, Australia, and New Zealand with friends and/or family. In my free time, I enjoy building Lego towers, digging in the sand, reading with my own children, hiking with my family, and trips to any destination with water.
When I was a child, my mother and father read to me every day, and as a result, I was reading independently at an early age. I have been teaching since I was five years old. Let me explain. Since I was in kindergarten, I would come home from school and "teach" my little sister what I had learned that day. We have fond memories of the makeshift schoolhouse we set up in the living room. I was an assistant Sunday School teacher, I taught swimming lessons, and was a CPR, First Aid, and Lifeguard instructor.
After earning my Bachelor of Science in Education at the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis and earning my teaching credential, I moved to California and began teaching at Two Bunch Palms Elementary School in 2000. During my first year of teaching, I earned a Master of Education from the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis. No, that doesn't mean I flew to Minnesota on my breaks, I was able to accomplish this by taking classes through distance learning. I held many positions while at Two Bunch Palms ; SDC teacher, first, fourth, second, and fifth grade teacher, High Impact Tutor, and GATE teacher. In 2015, I transferred to Desert Springs Middle School to teach sixth grade Mathematics and Science. In 2016, I added Academic Pentathlon to my repertoire of content knowledge. In 2019, I was elected as President of the Palm Springs Teachers Association. I will not be in the classroom for the duration of my term. Instead, I will have the opportunity to visit all of the school sites and affect positive change for our District.
I love to travel. Most of my travel has been in the continental United States. As a child, we took road trips from Minnesota to Montana and Washington stopping in every state in between. I've traveled to Washington D.C., New Orleans, and Chicago with the NEA. I enjoy trips to visit family in Colorado and Minnesota as often as possible. I've also experienced the Cayman Islands, Maui, Australia, and New Zealand with friends and/or family. In my free time, I enjoy building Lego towers, digging in the sand, reading with my own children, hiking with my family, and trips to any destination with water.