I want to teach because I want to see in students what my teachers saw in me: a love for math. I want to teach because it is more than achieving content requirements; It is about shaping little humans into the best, kindest, and respectful human beings they can be. Everyone I tell that I am studying to be a teacher tells me I am a brave person. They tell me I am an even braver person because I want to teach math specifically. I don't see myself as brave; I see myself as caring. I care about our future generations and I want them to succeed as best as they can.
My name is Peyton Moore! I was born and raised in the North Shore of Chicago. Starting in elementary schools, I would always fill out that I would be a teacher one day. Through middle school and high school I played around with the ideas of becoming a fashion designer, the first female in the MLB, or becoming a sports journalist. While I have always had a wide range of interests, theater, sports, and video games have always dominated my life. I directed and acted through out high school and was one of four senior captains of our Forensics team. I played on both the golf and softball teams. I even had a part time job! Somehow I still found time to join academic clubs too. I was a loyal member to the Math Team all four years (going to state each year!) and enjoyed Scholastic Bowl, too.
From a young age I always found math to be challenging and fun. While I also excelled at reading and writing, I didn't love those like I loved math. I quickly became every math teacher's "teacher's pet." I loved having teachers be so excited to see me do well and it made them happy to see how much I loved math too.
When it came time to pick a college, I had no idea where to go. My whole life I had thought I would become a Fighting Illini like the rest of my family. The year before applications were due, I decided I wanted to go somewhere different, but had no idea where. I applied to 17 schools all across the country, some in states I had never even been to. One of my randomly selected colleges happened to be THE University of Texas; and I got in. My parents and I took a road trip down to Texas for my senior year spring break and I was instantly in love with Austin and UT.
The University of Texas has been a fantastic place for me to live the past 5 years. During my time at UT, I learned to take time for myself and mental health, I had two knee surgeries, and I learned all I could to become the best teacher I could be. While challenging at times, I have learned how to persevere and keep my head up at all times.