Jessamine Griewahn-Okita
Grade 5 Teacher
At WES Since: 2023
What is your favorite quote?
I have two favorites. The first one is “Other people’s success is not your failure.” The other quote I love is from the musical Company by Stephen Sondheim: “Don’t be afraid it won’t be perfect. The only thing to be afraid of really is that it won’t be.” As a lover of all things theatre, I’m always ready with a relevant showtune lyric or quote from a show.
Why did you become a teacher?
When I was in fourth grade, my teacher gave each of us an opportunity to teach the class. We were given a grammar topic to teach and time to plan the lesson. We had to present the information to the class and then help students as they completed workbook pages. The day I taught my lesson about proper adjectives was when I knew I wanted to be a teacher. I was always a bookworm who loved learning new things and memorizing facts. Teaching my peers showed me that the real fun was in figuring out how to pass that knowledge onto others.
Bio:
I’m originally from Arlington, VA. I received my undergraduate degree from Smith College, where I double-majored in Education & Child Study and Cognitive Psychology. I also conducted research in a linguistics lab that studied language development in children. After Smith, I attended Harvard Graduate School of Education for my Ed.M. in Mind, Brain, and Education. At both Smith and Harvard, I studied how the brain works and how neuroscience impacts teaching and learning. In 2018, I began my career teaching Grade 4 in Stafford County, Virginia. I then moved back to Cambridge, Massachusetts where I taught a combined Grade 3/4 class. I began teaching Grade 5 when I joined the WES community in 2023. Outside of the classroom, my interests include theatre (especially Broadway), comedy, and dance. I lead Drama Club for Grades K-8 at WES, as well as the Middle School Creating Connections group on ability and disability. A fun fact about me is that my partner is a proud WES alum. Come visit my classroom anytime to chat or listen to some showtunes!
