Walter, Jennifer

Mrs. Jennifer Walter

Grade/Subjects:

  • English 11 Academic

  • English 11 Accelerated

  • English 12 Academic

Email: Walter, Jennifer

Phone: 814-355-4833 x 8208

 Office Hours:

I am available to meet with students daily before school (7:45-8:00) and after school (3:15-3:30) as well as during Period 6/7 or period 11. 

Parents and Students: Please feel free to contact me if you have questions or concerns. Students may see me during the posted availability hours; no appointment necessary! Parents can reach me most efficiently via email or by leaving a voicemail. I will get back to you within 72 hours if not sooner!

Hello! My name is Jennifer Walter. I live in Pleasant Gap and love being a member of the Bellefonte Area School District. I am proud to be a community member and an educator here. 

My background 

I grew up in Johnstown, PA and was part of a family of teachers including my grandmother, my mother, both of my sisters, 3 of my aunts, 3 of my cousins, and a nephew. Needless to say, I have a good grasp on the profession and its ins-and-outs. I graduated from Greater Johnstown High School in 1996 and attended Indiana University of Pennsylvania for 4 years. I earned a Bachelor's Degree in Education of Person's With Hearing Loss and, while working one year as a long-term substitute as a Hearing Therapist in Mifflin County School District, I moved with my husband to Centre County. Unfortunately, I was unable to find a new teaching position for several years after leaving MCSD, so I worked a variety of jobs including a technical writer for a software development company, an administrative assistant at a real estate office, and a database coordinator at a financial group. These experiences prepared me for the rigor and expectations of being a teacher! However, still wanting to pursue my dream to be a teacher, I earned two additional certifications in English, Composition, and Literature and Family & Consumer Sciences. In 2009, I was hired at Bellefonte Area High School as an English teacher, and I could not be happier with the position! Shortly after being hired, I went back to school to earn a Master's Degree in Curriculum and Instruction through Clarion University. Bellefonte is a wonderful place to work with a fantastic faculty, amazing administration, and excellent extra-curricular opportunities. The students are some of the best I've ever met and the parents and community are supportive as well. My career is very fulfilling and I can't wait to see what each year will bring me in experiences, surprises, and proud moments. 

My favorites 

Personally, I am an avid reader and a big fan of television. I will read almost any genre and style and especially love the classics, young adult fantasy, and mysteries. My favorite all-time books are Frankenstein, The Neverending Story, The Notebook, 1984, My Sister's Keeper, the Harry Potter series, and The Seven and a Half Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle. I love getting and giving book recommendations with friends, colleagues, and students! I love to read and I am almost always reading at least 2 or 3 books at a time. Furthermore, I get very excited to talk about the books I've read and hearing about books others have read. 

As for television, I am a big fan of Psych, Supernatural, This is Us, Schitt's Creek, Locke & Key, Only Murders in the Building, and The Chosen. I don't watch anything live, though, but binge watch multiple episodes at a time on Netflix, Hulu, and Amazon Prime. Basically, I enjoy stories of all kinds, whether I'm reading them or watching them. My favorite thing about both books and TV shows is seeing characters grow and change through their circumstances and how they give messages to the readers/ viewers about life's struggles and triumphs.

My philosophy

As a teacher, my passion lies with sharing my love of reading with the students I get to work with. I want my students to see the value in stories - real or fictional - and all that they have to offer an individual, our society, and the world. I want to show my students how writing about what they read helps us make sense of things and sort out our own thoughts so we can grow and improve. I hope that students in my class learn how reading and writing can be a path to places they never dreamed were possible. 

Course Syllabi and Other Materials

Academic Standards

Pennsylvania Academic Standards for Reading, Writing, Speaking, and Listening

The Pennsylvania Academic Standards for Reading, Writing, Speaking, and Listening provide a guide for teachers to use in the planning of instruction, assessments, and learning benchmarks. These standards cover the 4 key areas of English, Composition, and Literature and specify the skills and knowledge that students are expected to be proficient in by the end of each grade in school. 

To view a PDF of the state standards, download the file below.

Common Core Standards in English Language Arts

The national Common Core Standards are in the process of being adopted in Pennsylvania. There is much crossover between the PA Academic Standards and the CCS-ELA with the addition of a Language section covering grammar, syntax, and writing conventions. The CCS provide teachers with a list of the skills and knowledge swhich tudents are expected to master at each grade level and also support educators with resources and exemplars of quality content and student work. 

To view a PDF of the CCS, download the file below.

Technology Standards

The National Educational Technology Society offers educators a list of technology skills and knowledge in which students should be proficient in order to be prepared for the 21st century. There are also technology standards for teachers that emphasize skills and knowledge teachers should have to better instruct the students.

To read more about the society and their standards, click the link below.  

Click the link below to open a Word document listing the two sets of Standards.