Welcome to Kindergarten!

Welcome to the 2021- 2022 Kindergarten Class!

This blog will keep you informed about happenings in the classroom, Studio, and other curricular areas in the kindergarten. A variety of teachers will be collaborating on the kindergarten teaching team and the following will introduce a couple of them. We are all so excited to get to know you and your children. We hope to make this kindergarten year a memorable time for all of us!

This is Mrs. O’Dowd’s fifth year at Mustard Seed. She is very excited to be back in the Kindergarten class. She is from Peoria, Illinois and graduated with a degree in Elementary and Early Childhood Education in 2015 from Saint Mary’s College in Notre Dame, IN, where she loved attending ND football games and supporting the Irish! She loves to read and share in story with students. She was grateful to have a lot of time this summer to soak up the sun and read many leisure and educational books outdoors! She is most looking forward to watching the children grow academically, emotionally, and spiritually throughout the school year and working alongside the best team of colleagues. She is passionate about Mustard Seed’s whole child approach and is honored to be involved in each child’s development and growth over the course of this year. Mrs. O’Dowd loves traveling, visiting family in Illinois, London, and Ireland, cooking, and trying new restaurants with her husband, Ruaidhri.

Mr. Cuervo brings over twenty years of foundational experience to the kindergarten team. A graduate of Mustard Seed himself (class of 1991), Mr. Cuervo counts it a blessing to teach your children, and he greatly looks forward to getting to know each parent and child. He is excited to engage in collaborative learning with the students, particularly in the Studio, and he eagerly awaits what the new school year holds. Mr. Cuervo enjoys spending time and sharing meals with family, friends, and his church community. He enjoys movies, books, and sports events. You can often find him taking trips into New York City to enjoy the different things that city life has to offer. Faith in God is very important to Mr. Cuervo. For him, praying and reading the Holy Bible are important and essential daily needs.

We so look forward to getting to know you and your children this year. We pray for much grace and peace in this season of new beginnings and transitions.

Peace,
The Kindergarten Team