My name is Coco Stewart. I began working at Old Adobe School as a teacher’s aide in November of 2007. I was born and grew up in Japan. I studied dress design at Kyoto Seian Junior College. I was also a lingerie designer for 8 years in Kyoto. In 1996 I moved to America and got married. I have lived in Sonoma since 2000, with my husband and two boys, who go to SVHS. Both of my sons attended Old Adobe School. My older son has autism and he attended Old Adobe in 2003. I sometimes stayed with him as a shadow, or aide, at school. I also served as a classroom volunteer when my second son attended. I felt so lucky to find such a great school for them!! They loved going to Old Adobe. My second son always begged me to let him stay longer at his pick up time! He learned many social skills at school: making friends, sharing toys, as well as academic skills, such as writing his name, letters, numbers, etc. When my sons were younger, I learned a lot from their school. I also took it upon myself to learn about special education such as ABA (AppliedBehavioral Analysis) and TEACCH (Treatment and Education of Autistic and Related Communication Handicapped Children). I learned that organizing the physical environment, developing schedules and work systems, making expectations clear and explicit, and using visual materials as picture cards are effective ways of developing skills for people with autism. I believe that the teaching methods I learned for my son greatly prepared me for the preschool environment.I am really happy to work here with all of the teachers and children. I hope that they say to their parents, “ Come on! Hurry up! I can’ t wait to go to school to play with my friends and teachers at Old Adobe!!”
My name is Jessica Bernabe. My hobbies include, going on runs, hiking,and listening to music. I enjoy visiting new places and trying new kinds of food with my friends and family. I’ve been working at Old Adobe since July 2016. I worked in the Pre-k room with the older kids for quite some time and now I have a chance to work with the little ones in the Preschool room! I’m very excited to work with such high-spirited 2-3 years olds with an excitement to learn and try new things!Right now, I am a part time student at the Santa Rosa Junior College, in pursuit of my Associates in Child Development. I hope to transfer to Sonoma State University where I’ll achieve my bachelor’s degree. I first became interested in working with children, in my very first semester of community college. I was inspired by one of my child development professors, who opened my mind to new ideas and career paths of working as a child care provider. I worked at the Boys and Girls Club as way to better myself as a leader, plan activities, and take on bigger responsibilities with children from all different kinds of schools. It was a pleasure working with such unique individuals and I am grateful for the amazing staff for guiding and mentoring me. I’m very passionate about our curriculum, as I believe that children can learn and acquire skills in a play-based environment. They’re exposed to colors, numbers, shapes, usage of tools (cutting with scissors, gluing, taping, etc.), and building friendships. I know that this is a very important stage for young children, as they are introduced to the basic concepts of learning. Every day I get to learn more about preschoolers and their interests (love of cars, painting, planting, dinosaurs, dress ups etc.), so that I may use it to plan my own activities. The wonderful Old Adobe teachers and I are here to support, bond, and encourage Preschool and Pre-K kids to strive for greatness!
Hello, my name is Amanda Munday and I am one of the Yellow Room teachers. While working as a preschool teacher I earned my AA in Child Development at SRJC. I’ve had a passion for working with children since the age of 14 when my sister was born. Taking care of her and helping my mom raise her was an awesome experience. Once she started preschool, actually here at OAS, I was able to volunteer here and that’s when I knew I wanted to work with preschool-age children. I took some child development classes in high school and continued taking classes in college. In my free time, I love spending time with my family. I live with my four-year-old daughter, Beya, and boyfriend Armando. We love to explore Sonoma County on our family days during the weekend. My daughter and I are excited to join the Old Adobe School family in 2022 and in many years to come.
My name is Eren Carbajal. I graduated from Sonoma Valley High School, where I was introduced to my first child development class. After I graduated in 2007, I proceeded to take several child development classes which is when I realized I had a passion for children. My first job as a preschool teacher was at The Little School here in Sonoma. Where I spent 13 years teaching in the 2-3-year-old classroom.
After 13 years I was thrilled to start my new adventure in 2021, here at Old Adobe. I am excited to be making connections with the children and their families.
In my free time, I love to spend time with my family. My hobbies include being outside and going on nature walks. I’ve been enjoying raising my almost-two-year-old daughter Mila, and I am excited for her to join the Old Adobe family in the fall.
My Name is Sara Benz, I’ve been a Preschool teacher since 2006. I knew I wanted to work with children since my occupations with children’s class in high school. I went right to the JC and got my associate teaching certificate and went right to work. I worked at another local preschool for years in the 3.5-5.5-year-old classroom and worked on getting the kids ready to move on to Kindergarten and loved every minute of it!
Now moving over to Old Adobe School I am working in the 3-year-old class and enjoying the change. Every day is a new exciting day with the 3-year-olds! My favorite part of teaching is watching the growth in each individual child and seeing them move on, happy and ready for the next step that’s ahead of them.
When I’m not teaching I love spending time with family and friends and exploring the outdoors.