Meet Camille Plantier, one of our young, gracious, and easygoing Kindergarten teachers. Her passion for teaching began at an early age from play-dates with her teddy bears in a makeshift classroom where she played teacher and taught lessons. Prior to pursuing teaching, Camille received her undergraduate degree in Molecular Biology with a minor in Education from UC Berkeley. During the summer months she worked at the Lawrence Hall of Science for camp and facilitated the learning floor.
Through her experience in camp, her love for teaching materialized into a dream she ended up pursuing. She earned her Masters at Johns Hopkins for elementary education, and was a student teacher for 1st and 2nd grade before working as a kindergarten teacher at a charter school for 3 years. These early experiences shaped Camille’s teaching goals, which are to make children love school and make long lasting friendships without the rigidity of pure academic emphasis.
Camille joined SDFAS 2 years ago and continues to transform her classroom into a place of wonder where learning and self expression are the hallmarks of her classes. Through SDFAS, she’s understood the gift of bilingual education. She weaves in fun and engaging activities through themed Social Emotional Learning lessons with a monthly word. Past themes include: patience, kindness, and cooperation. In class, students are encouraged to work collaboratively and build relationships with one another through conversation. In one instance, Camille asks her students to share with one another what they like about the book they are reading in circle time. In a following activity, students are given numbered illustrations which are fragmented pieces students glued together to form a picture (pictured above).
It is in the aftermath of these lessons where Camille has experienced the delightful feeling of seeing her students apply their knowledge in situations outside the classroom. She recalls witnessing a student waiting to hand her tray to a busy staff member and said, “I see you’re not ready, so I’ll be patient.” Her student then proceeded to wait until the staff was able to accommodate her needs.
Camille is of Vietnamese and French descent. Outside the classroom, you can find her spending time with her former-college-sweetheart-now-husband and their dog, Indy, hitting up the San Diego dining scene with a thirst to find the trendiest spots and unique restaurant experiences. Blessed with an adventurous spirit, Camille shared that she once spontaneously subbed for her dad in a marathon held in Big Sur two weeks before the event with no prior training.
