Caryn Finkelstein
Lead Teacher (3-5 Years Old)
cfinkel@umd.umich.edu

Biography

Caryn Finkelstein has taught full time in the preschool classroom since 1998. She graduated from Michigan State University in 1990 with a Bachelor degree in Child Development and Teaching and a minor in Social Sciences. Caryn has had teaching experience in a variety of preschool settings including Head Start and charter schools. She most recently completed her second Master Degree in non-profit Leadership in 2008 from the University of Michigan Dearborn. In April 2012, Caryn won a Terri Lynne Lokoff/Children’s TYLENOL National Child Care Teacher Award for her project "Windows to Nature" which used to purchase materials for the Center's studio space

Personally, Caryn loves to visit her family out of state and has been to some fascinating places around the world. Malta was the most interesting place she has been, yet Alaska was breathtaking. She is recording secretary of her condo association board of directors and has been a member of Kappa Omicron Nu Human Ecology National Honor Society since 1990.

Key Conference Presentations

• Beyond the Classroom: Building community in the classroom between classrooms and with the community (MiAEYC 2010, MCECC 2011)
• Magnetism: A Long-Term Investigation Incorporating Michigan Early Childhood Standards of Quality (MCECC 2009)
• Preschool Children’s Capacity for Self Expression, Representation & Problem Solving Using Wire as Medium (MiAEYC 2008, NAEYC 2007)
• Special Friends: Helping children with special needs develop social skills MiAEYC 2006)