“First Grade is a big, exciting year for students,” says Grade 1 Teacher Danielle Sarver, referring to the developmental changes that children undergo at this age intellectually, socially, and emotionally. “We gain insight into each child’s particular needs and stay agile in our strategies so each child experiences success,” she continues, adding that having two teachers is especially useful in this regard, and emphasizing the benefit of partnering with parents.

Ms. Sarver remembers using a small easel to “teach” her younger brother and her stuffed friends when she was in preschool. By high school she was supporting teachers and students in classrooms through a service-learning class. She earned a B.S. from Elizabethtown College in Pennsylvania in Elementary and Special Education (Magna Cum Laude), and has taught in classrooms and been a Learning Specialist for students in kindergarten through Grade 12, serving in administrative positions along the way. At the beginning of her career, she was named Rookie Teacher of the Year in her school district.

Before coming to Green Hedges, Ms. Sarver was Lead Classroom Teacher and Instructional Coordinator at the Vienna Presbyterian Church Preschool, and a Grade 1 and Grade 2 teacher and teacher mentor at BASIS Independent School in McLean. At Green Hedges, she says, “We care about kids and we are intentional in relating to them and to each other.”

Ms. Sarver loves cooking, reading, and spending summers with her husband and son in Ireland, where part of their family lives.