BIO

Rona Kader Wolfe has been a kindergarten teacher for 27 years. She earned her degree in early childhood and elementary education from University Wisconsin-Milwaukee. In her time as an educator, Rona has served both Milwaukee’s Indigenous community and its Jewish community as a kindergarten teacher at the Indian Community School and currently at Milwaukee Jewish Day School. In her summer months, Rona works for Milwaukee Public Library’s Super Reader program. Through this role, she visits city schools and works with educators to enrich their reading curriculum. As an educator, Rona recognizes the need to form connections across communities in Milwaukee. Centered in social emotional learning, she builds her classroom curriculum around empathy and diversity inclusion. Partnering with Milwaukee’s refugee community, her kindergarten forms lasting relationships with refugee students of all ages and their families. Her class has also developed relationships with kindergarten students at Indian Community School, high school students at Milwaukee’s Riverside High School, and students at Cardinal Stritch University, to name a few. These relationships are nurtured through kindness to others,  building friendships, and hearing each other’s stories. Rona’s goal for her students is understanding and celebrating differences while recognizing the similarities and connections we share. Rona has presented her curriculum, Knowing the Souls of Strangers, at ASCD’s Empower Conference, and will be presenting at NAEYC’s Annual Conference and ASCD’s Kindergarten Conference in the coming year.