Welcome! My name is Dr. Laura Grayson and I am a one of the members of the third grade teaching team.  I love the work I do each day, and can’t ever remember wanting to be anything other than a teacher.  I look forward to having you as part of our learning community. My educational journey began when I completed my Bachelor of Science in Education with emphasis areas of Elementary and Special Education in 1995 from UMSL.  I returned to the classroom and completed my Masters of Education-Educational Leadership from Lindenwood University in 2000.  Along with my Master’s Degree, I completed my certification for TESOL, Teaching English to Students of Other Languages, as well as qualifying as a professional developer in the area of Brain studies as related to Education.  It seems that after all of that I still was not finished as I completed my Doctoral work with an emphasis in Instructional Leadership from Lindenwood University in 2014.  However, my learning is never complete.  I am a learner and continue to grow in my craft each year that I am in the classroom.

My Teaching career started in the Mehlville School District where I had the pleasure of teaching second, third, fourth and fifth grade students.  In 2006, I was chosen as of one of the State of Missouri’s STARR teachers (Select Teachers as Regional Resources) where I had the pleasure of learning at the feet of some of the best educators in the business, and then worked as a regional professional developer to share my learning with other educators.  When I completed that program, I served as the Elementary Curriculum Director for the district for six years.  I transitioned back to the classroom in Kirkwood in 2012, where I have had the pleasure of teaching second, third, fourth and fifth grade students.  This year I will begin my 28th year of education and I am excited to grow alongside my third grade students.

I have been married to my husband, Steve for 27 years; he is a middle school math teacher.  We love to cook together, travel, especially to Disney World, read, laugh, and have our family together as often as possible. Our son, Timothy has graduated from Mizzou with an Engineering degree and is working full-time. He and his wife Katie, who serves students as an Occupational Therapist live in Columbia, MO.   Our daughter Carolyn is entering her senior year at Mizzou completing her Health Sciences degree in their radiography program where she is learning to be an X-ray technician.  She also dances on the Mizzou Golden Girl dance team, and we love watching her perform.

“Educating the Mind without Educating the Heart is no Education at All”—Aristotle. I look forward to learning your stories as we take this journey together.