I love teaching. It is an honor to share the wonders of the natural world and the discoveries of science with my students, whose curiosity has been a constant source of inspiration for me. The Presidential Award makes me appreciate what a privilege it has been to spend my life teaching science. The award gives me a chance to connect with other awardees who share my love for teaching science to young children and with the countless other teachers who invite children to wonder every day.

Martha Estroff Washington, DC | K-6, Science, 2012

The official biography below was current at the time of the award.

Martha Estroff has been teaching for more than 30 years. She began her career teaching high school biology. An interest in early childhood education led her to teach preschool for 18 years. For the past 12 years, she has been the early childhood science teacher at St. Patrick's Episcopal Day School, teaching nursery through second grade students. The lower school science lab is a place where children come to learn how actual scientists work. Believing that all children have an affinity for science, Martha wants the children she teaches to carry with them the ability and desire to continue learning about science throughout their lives. Helping young colleagues hone their science teaching skills has been a gratifying part of her work. As Director of a nature science day camp for 10 years, Martha led a program devoted to the belief that playing and learning in the outdoors is an invaluable complement to studying science in the classroom.   In 2012, Martha worked with a colleague to develop an integrated unit, Building Bridges--Making Connections, which they presented at a national conference. The highlight of this use was designing and building a model bridge. Martha has a B.A. in zoology from Mount Holyoke College, an M.A.T. in biology and history from Northwestern University, and an M.A. in early childhood special education from The George Washington University.

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