Meet Julie Watts
Middle School Teacher, Mentor & Service Learning Coordinator
About me
My husband and I have two high school aged children, and our daughter attended Rhoades in middle school. As a family, we enjoy traveling and being outdoors. We have had adventures in Peru, Japan, Croatia, Spain, Italy, and Scotland. My hobbies include playing tennis, walking our two pugs, and reading.
This summer I went to an amazing seminar at Columbia University with my teaching partner, Mrs. Stanley. We learned about the history of abolition from leading scholars such as Manisha Sinha. The previous summer I attended another Gilder Lehrman seminar at Princeton University on Colonial America.
Dr. Watts and family at Northwestern
Mrs. Stanley and Dr. Watts with Frederick Douglass
Sacred Valley in Peru
My Teaching Philosophy
One of my primary goals as a history teacher is for my students to think like historians. I want students to appreciate that the study of history is not an exercise in memorizing facts from the past. History is about investigating and understanding the context in which people lived and the contingency of their decision-making.
Students engage with primary sources on an almost daily basis using the skills of close reading, contextualization and corroboration - all skills essential to thinking like a historian. One vehicle I use frequently for engaging students with primary source documents is history labs, in which students work hands-on in collaborative learning experiences - reading, discussing, interpreting and analyzing speeches, letters, journals, paintings, maps, etc.
Rhoades students also have opportunities to do experiential learning through field trips. My 6th graders visit the Museum of Man in Balboa Park to explore the Maya civilization and what it means to do archaeology. This year 6th graders will also visit the King Tut special exhibition at the California Science Center. Our 8th graders spend an entire week diving into history and politics with our Washington, D.C. field trip in May. We turn the clock all the way back to the 1600s by visiting Jamestown, VA. We also explore Colonial Williamsburg, Mount Vernon, Gettysburg, and many historic sites in D.C.
Another important aspect of my teaching philosophy is student engagement in service learning. My role as service learning coordinator is to provide opportunities for students to volunteer and help them explore their interests in service learning. One example is the Rhoades Girl Rising Club, which was founded by Rhoades students four years ago to raise awareness about girls' education around the world. Another service learning opportunity for our 7th and 8th graders is volunteering once a month at Casa de Amistad. We bring technology to young students whose parents did not have the opportunity to go to college.
8th Graders in D.C.
Volunteering at Casa de Amistad
Volunteering at Feeding San Diego
Dr. Julie Watts
Email: jwatts@rhoadesschool.com
Website: https://www.rhoadesschool.com/parents/our-faculty/teacher/julie-watts/
Location: 141 South Rancho Santa Fe Road, Encinitas, CA, USA
Phone: 760-436-1102
Facebook: facebook.com/RhoadesSchool
Twitter: @Rhoades_School