My name is Ariel Valadez. I am originally from San Angelo; however, my dad is in the military so growing up I always lived in different places. This is my third year at Angelo State University. I decided to attend Angelo State because it is close to my family.  My major is early childhood thru sixth grade generalist with a special education certification. All my life I have always wanted to be a teacher. I cannot picture myself doing anything other than working with children. Once I graduate I hope to teach first or second grade. Eventually, I hope to go back to school to get my master's degree and become a school counselor.  Currently, I work at a preschool called Pumpkin Patch Preschool. The children who attend the preschool are young, babies to five years old, but each and every one of the children hold a place in my heart and are so special to me. I want to become a teacher because I want to have a positive effect on children's life. I want to encourage and inspire students during a time of frustration or simply to reach for higher goals. In this course, I hope to further my education on technology to help integrate twenty first century learning into the classroom. Technology is always evolving. When I was in elementary school there was in no way as many opportunities to learn thru technology as there are for young children today. My skype name is ariel.valadez2.