Ceballos honored as August Employee of the Month

It is with pleasure that we honor Maritza Ceballos, Master Teacher in Early Care and Education, as the August 2021 Employee of the Month.

Maritza is the Dual Language Preschool Teacher at the Office of the Fresno County Superintendent of Schools’ Lighthouse for Children. She models exemplary practices in a unique classroom that builds on young children’s capacity to learn more than one language. The preschool’s 50/50 percent dual-language model is a unique classroom instruction style based on the latest brain research. Due to the model’s success, the dual-language classroom has been featured throughout the State of California and beyond.

As a result, Maritza is a natural at showcasing best practices regarding bilingualism. Recently, the Fresno Language Lab produced a Dual-Language Learners Toolkit that is utilized statewide. Maritza was one of the LFC teachers filmed as an exemplary model of DLL interaction with preschoolers. If you perform an internet search of Maritza, you’ll find she has been interviewed many times, highlighting how she incorporates DLL strategies through her everyday curriculum, including early math.

Maritza is also excellent at Google Classroom and demonstrates a strong understanding of the intersection of child development, dual-language strategies and technology. Her virtual classroom showcases social-emotional development evidenced by the families’ home projects with their children and their active participation in Zoom sessions. Many times, the children do not want to end their Zoom sessions.

"I love the children and I want to provide the best foundation because I believe the future begins in our classroom,” said Maritza. “It's great to be able to do it in two languages"