Miss Christina Photiades

I began teaching within the School District of Springfield Township in the fall of 2021 when I joined the 8th grade ELA team at the Middle School. Before coming to Springfield, I was a long term substitute teacher at South Western High School in Hanover, Pennsylvania. In my 12th grade English classes, my students and I found opportunities to draw personal connections to the literature that we analyzed and curated our own personal “Story of Me” projects. Through this, I was able to learn a lot about my students' lives; which helped me to better serve our classroom community.

After my time at SWHS, I moved to Spain with the Fulbright program! I lived, worked, and practiced my Spanish skills in Asturias, an autonomous principality in the northern region of the country. I worked with students in a wide age range: from 12 years old to 50 years old. During my time there, I learned so much about the power of language in creating connections and authentic relationships; these skills have allowed me to better understand how ‘communication’ is defined and the capability that humans have to associate and interact with one another, despite differences in identities. 

My fascination with the power of language, communication, and literacy started when I was in high school. Throughout my adolescence, I enjoyed reading, revising, and editing writing samples - whether the writings were my own, or my classmates’. The nuances of language have always been important to me and have influenced a lot of my academic, professional, and social interactions. I vow to continue uncovering more about the complexities of communication as a lifelong learner and lover of language! 

Degrees and Certifications:

Bachelor of Arts in English and Secondary Education from Saint Joseph’s University in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Instructional 1 English 7-12