Hi! I’m Stephanie Cornais, or Mrs. Cornais to my students. I am a wife, mother, and teacher. It’s hard to believe because sometimes I still feel like a teenager, but I have been teaching for almost a quarter of a century.
This website and my substack newsletter is my attempt to become a better writer. I also love to share the things I learn.
I post a few articles here during the summers when I have time and twice a season I post a Substack newsletter where I share stories about teacher life, recipes, garden news and tips, and outdoor adventures.
You can sign up to receive my Substack newsletter, Natural and Wild Wonders here.
A little bit more about me if you are interested…
I’m certified in Earth Space Science and Biology for grades 6 through 12, technically also certified in PK3 to Grade 3 as well, but it’s been years since I taught that age group. I recently finished up a three-year “tour of duty” teaching science in the public school system. It was the hardest three years of my career, but I am grateful for every minute of it because it made me a better educator. It rounded me out and gave me a perspective I would have never gotten in the independent school system. At independent schools, I have taught lower school, middle, and upper school science. I have now taught in both public and private, and both secular and faith-based. As a parent, I also have experience homeschooling (thanks COVID), Montessori schools, and a progressive and liberal private school. I have seen it all in the education world, and no school is perfect, each has its benefits and challenges.
I’m currently teaching 7th-grade Earth Space Science and 10th-grade Environmental Science in Jacksonville, Florida. I am thrilled to be putting my time working as an Environmental Scientist and STEM skills to good use, but at the same time, I am leaning into the interdisciplinary parts of environmental studies. Intellectually, I am much more interested in reading and writing environmental literature, nature writing and journaling, and in general, the telling of stories, than I am in analyzing data. I am passionate about getting kids outside more and off their screens and feeling the healing power of time in nature.
I love teaching and I enjoy helping my students reach their full potential, figure out what their passions and gifts are in this life, and how they can offer those gifts to the world. There were years when I wasn’t sure if I was cut out to be a teacher for the rest of my life, but I am fully committed to being the best educator I can be and helping to change the education system for the better.
Way back in the day, after I quit being an Environmental Scientist, I was also the founder and creator of Mama and Baby Love, at one time a brick-and-mortar yoga studio and then a thriving online educational resource and community. I pioneered a freezer cooking method and authored a best-selling cookbook, called From Your Freezer To Your Family. I sold my cookbook rights and website to Wellness Media before I became a science teacher. Back then my articles were featured on the front page of the Huffington Post and top food and wellness blogs. I have worked with brands like Land’s End, Obasan, and Lego before the word influencer was even a thing! My hobbies include cooking, baking, gardening, and going on outdoor adventures, so that’s mostly what I post about on social media these days. I honestly try to spend as little time as possible on social media, but Instagram is my go-to.
Last, but most importantly, I am a mother to a teenage daughter. She is truly the love of my life and my constant inspiration and muse. When I was growing up the only thing I wanted to be was a wife and mother. I wanted to have 10 kids, homeschool them all, and live on a farm, but those are not the life cards I was dealt! Funny how life turns out, and I realize now that I am a mother to all my students. Instead of having 10 kids, I have hundreds each year. I truly do love and care about them as if they were my own and enjoy mothering my students as well as educating them!
You may in the future see an ad, sponsor, or affiliate link on here—I was an OG influencer but now I’m old and over social media as a marketing machine, but I do appreciate a good heads up on something from a trusted source. As an environmentalist, I am not a fan of how consumptive influencer culture can be, but there are times when I will tell you about something that I love and find helpful.
Glad you are here! Thanks for signing up for my Substack newsletter, Natural and Wild Wonders!
Love,
Mrs. Cornais 🙂