Meet the Fifth Grade Team

5th grade

  • Sherri DeVoto

    I was born in Winston Salem, NC. While attending Appalachian University I received two degrees. My first degree was in Child Psychology and second was in Elementary Education. This school year, 2015-2016, celebrates my 22nd year teaching. I taught middle school math and science for ten years in Morganton, NC before moving to Raleigh. I have been at Washington teaching math and science since then. Mr. Shaw and I team teach. I wanted to be a teacher because I wanted to try and make school fun and engaging. The best thing about teaching is watching the students grow and learn I love to be outside. I enjoy the mountains, the beach, and sitting by a pool. I also like animals. I have two dogs, two cats, a hamster, and a brid. My husband and I have two children. My son is in high school and my daughter is in middle school. Both children attended Washington and LOVED it.

     

    Julie Edwards

    I am thrilled to be a part of  the Washington Elementary family. I look forward to teaching math and science on the Edwards/Staley team. I am of a product of Wake County schools kindergarten through 12th grade. I graduated from Agnes Scott Women's College in Decatur, Georgia in 1997 with a BA in Sociology and Anthropology in addition to my K-6 teaching certification. After graduation,I returned home to Raleigh to begin my teaching career at York Elementary. I received my Master of Education from Meredith College in 2000. I earned my National Board Teaching Certification in 2003. During my twenty years of teaching I have taught 4th, 5th and 6th grade. I was also a reading teacher for grades K-2. Teaching 5th grade is my passion. I love the sense of humor, inquisitive nature, as well as the desire for independence at this age. My goal is to make the classroom environment active place where students feel comfortable taking risks. My style of teaching math and science lends itself to hands on exploration and problem solving. My husband and I have two sons. Henry is starting middle school and Neil is starting Kindergarten. We love traveling and enjoy spending time at our lake house, boating, fishing and birding.

      

    Ken Smith

     

    Fred Staley

    My long and winding road to teaching began in 1983 when I received my Bachelor of Science in Commerce from the University of Virginia. In the first half of my working career, I spent 20 years in advertising, direct marketing, and marketing promotions with a small ad agency first, next with the American Diabetes Association, and then finally with IBM. After digging deep to find my true calling in life, I found education. Once I made the decision to change careers, I started on the WES staff as a teacher assistant in the fall of 2003 and began working on my teacher certification at Campbell University during the following fall (2004). After several years of working and attending graduate school, I received my K-6 teaching certificate and was hired as a 5th grade teacher at WES in the fall of 2006. Once I finished my first four years of teaching, I went back to Campbell University (taking evening and summer courses) to complete my Masters in Education and added on an AIG certification (graduating in the spring of 2012). During this reinvigorated second half of my working career, I enjoy teaching language arts and social studies. My true desire as a teacher is to equip our students with the tools, experience, and passion to be the best readers, writers, historians, and, most importantly, life-long learners they can be.