Kingswood Oxford welcomes new Upper Prep biology teacher Kim Birge-Liberman to our campus. Ms. Birge-Liberman says that the best compliment she ever received was from a parent who said that she is someone who really cares and believes her students would describe her as caring and mostly fun. Ms. Birge-Liberman not only likes to keep things fun in the classroom, but outside the classroom as well. One way she does this is by wearing outfits that are science themed.
Growing up, Ms. Birge-Liberman‘s mom was a teacher, and originally she didn’t like the idea of becoming a teacher too. She thought going into the same career as her parents was “lame.” However, she soon figured out that teaching was her destiny and it was something she genuinely enjoyed. Ms. Birge-Liberman went on to get her Bachelor’s degree at Roger Williams University in marine biology. She has a Master’s degree in science education and got her teaching certification at the same time from Syracuse University.
Ms. Birge-Liberman worked in outdoor environmental education for 10 years in a number of different institutions around the country, such as aquariums, research centers, and discovery museums. Since then, Ms. Birge-Liberman has been teaching sixth grade for the past 19 years and is excited to continue to do so at Kingswood Oxford.
Ms. Birge-Liberman emphasizes the importance of kindness in the classroom and always strives to make sure all students feel that the classroom is a safe place. “I can be very strict when it comes to students being kind to one another,” she said. Ms. Birge-Liberman also knows how important it is that students feel comfortable in the classroom. “I can also be very casual,” she said. “For example in our paired activity today students could sit wherever in the room they wanted to.”
Being a teacher and a mom tends to keep Ms. Birge-Liberman busy. In her occasional free time, she enjoys going on family hikes. She generally has a love for nature and photography. She also does some service work with Fidelco guide dogs. Ms. Birge-Liberman and her family are currently raising a puppy and plan on getting another one sometime soon!
Ms. Birge-Liberman is excited to be a part of Kingswood Oxford’s community and is excited to get to know all her colleagues and students a little better. “I look forward to the point in time when I see Upper School students, and I just know who they are,” she said. Ms. Birge-Liberman also looks forward to getting more familiar with KO and things feeling less new.
Something Ms. Birge-Liberman loves about KO is how everyone gets along and how the faculty laughs together and the students are engaged. KO is lucky to be welcoming such a wonderful teacher into our community. In October, when you are walking around campus and see a teacher in a red blood cell shirt or shark pants, don’t be surprised if she has a magic school bus waiting to take her students on another adventure.
