Marisa Kaplan specializes in Special Education and created EdGeeks in order to bridge the gap between home and school.
@EdGeeks | http://edgeeks.com

When we first started looking for partners in the education space, we searched for bloggers that had the same passion as our team – making learning more accessible and engaging! Luckily, we stumbled upon EdGeeks.

Marisa was one of the first educators to meet with me through Skype. She was also one of the first to support our efforts by giving feedback that provided a thoughtful outside perspective.

But it’s her passion for bringing together parents, students, and schools that I find most inspiring.  Marisa understands that there is no “one size fits all” model to changing education, so she takes the time now to differentiate her lessons so they match student needs.  For example, she makes a Learning Playlist for each of the children she tutors based on their interests that can then be shared with parents as well.

Marisa wrote about this experience in her blog earlier this year:

Last week, I was meeting with a student and we were brainstorming some ways to take her reading to the next level. She gave me a list of non-fiction topics that she would LOVE to study including: shark attacks, vegetarianism and natural disasters. Eclectic mix, I know! I began researching websites and articles that would be appropriate for her.

Suddenly, it hit me…MentorMob! I began creating an individualized playlist for my tutee including a range of articles and websites. What I love most about playlists is that I could rate each of the sources as beginner, intermediate or advanced, so that my student knows which sources to attack independently and which ones might be better suited for reading together.

Once I had created these individualized playlists, I knew it was time to share, so I emailed each playlist to the parent of the child it was developed for. The parents were so excited not only about how engaging the playlists were, but also that I had taken the time to create a collection of materials that was so specific to their child.

Learn more about how learning happens in the home in Marisa’s playlist below:

Thank you Marisa for being a MentorMob Innovator!