New Teacher: Sandra Nelson, French

Benilde-St. Margaret’s welcomes 19 new teachers into our community. One including the Senior High, native french teacher from the Bordeaux region, Madame. Sandra Nelson. Nelson teaches levels three, four and AP French alongside Madame. Hyde.

As Nelson gets settled into BSM, she adjusts to the new class sizes at a private school. “I have never taught at a Catholic school in the past so that was very different, like my classes were a lot smaller. I taught at the International School, so the maximum class size was about seven or eight students…it is great to have more varied activities and opportunities for games and dialogues in class,” Nelson said.

The BSM community has made a positive impact on the new teachers including Nelson. “Just meeting a really welcoming community and just being part of a very eclectic group of people, but just going all the same direction,” Nelson said.

Along with the great community BSM offers, the students are another important aspect of the school. Nelson shares her favorite thing about the students here at BSM. “I enjoy the energy and curiosity of my students at BSM. Regardless of their level, they try to find their voice in the French language,” Nelson said in an email interview.

At first, Nelson wanted to pursue her passion of teaching English in France but her plans shortly changed. “I originally wanted to be an English teacher in France. I came to Minnesota to be a teacher in 2001 at Macalester College, and I just loved teaching French so I just decided to continue,” Nelson said.

Nelson partakes in many hobbies on the weekends or during her time off. Nelson’s top two hobbies include hiking and traveling. “I love hiking and traveling to Sedona, Arizona; it’s a very special place for me. So that’s usually what I do on the weekends. I also love traveling to Iceland,” Nelson said.

As Nelson continues in her new journey at BSM she has a thoughtful piece of advice for students. “The path to mastering a new language is long and may be difficult: however, it will broaden your horizon and expand your possibilities, so don’t give up!,” Nelson said in an email interview.