Anna has been awarded Master's degree in pedagogy and has also received a postgraduate degree in journalism and social communication from Warsaw University. She has graduated from the Methodists' English Language College as well. She has got a substantial experiance while working for several educational institutions in the United Kingdom and the United States. Finally she worked as university teacher. She was been granted Cambridge University English language certificates as well as American TOEFL. The range of her skills include music therapy, book therapy as well as Helen Doron method of teaching. For many years she was involved in scouting organising summer camps and educational activities for children of all ages. For the last years Anna was working as English language teacher. She especially enjoys working with the youngest ones.
Magdalena Karnowska
Neuro speech specialist, educator
Magda has a Masters degree in Speech Therapy from the University of Bydgoszcz.
She completed Graduate Studies in Neuro Speech Therapy and Pre-School Education from the University of Gdańsk. She has completed courses in Dennison's Kinesiology, Sherborne's Developmental Movement, The Good Start Method, kinesis-therapy, oligophrenopedagogy, orthodontics, surd pedagogy, logorhythmics, dyslexia, neurospeech, interpersonal communication, participation and therapy for people after laryngectomy, and neurological diseases. She completed a course in the Maria Montessori Method of Teaching at the Polish Montessori Society in Łódź. She has also worked in a Speech Disorder and Learning Problems Outpatient Clinic and in hospital. Her favourite job before she joined Koala was in the Montessori Club in Gdynia. She worked there for two years as a teacher and speech therapist.
She loves children and cannot imagine to work without them.
Dorota Mioduszewska
Chief educator
Dorota graduated from Teaching College in Białystok (Nauczycielskie Kolegium w Białymstoku). She participated in such training as: "Teaching reading and writing in preschool", "School maturity of six year old children", "Project methods in preschool work", "Motor-music activity", "Speech therapy prevention as an element of preschool teacher activity".
She believes that adults can learn from children's sincerity, kindness, imagination, and ability to notice beauty in simple things.
Dorota finds working with children incredibly rewarding and immensely satisfying. It is like working in a world of good fairies and magicians! In the presence of children adults become more considerate and smile more often!! Everyday she discovers the word of children as the children discover the world of adults. The happiness of their discoveries and their smiles give Dorota real pleasure as she lives their great journey of adventure with them.
Katarzyna Hejduk
Educator - English language
Miss Kate is a student of pedagogy for pre-school aged children and the English language. Her studies have increased her fascination in children's development and in the English language. She spent over a year in England to improve her language skills and get to know the culture.
After that she worked as a baby sitter for two pre-schoolers. For Kate, working with children encourages a positive attitude and provides her with a sense of fullfillment. Her philosophy on education is: "When children feel safe and loved, we know that they are happy".
Dorota Waszczuk
Chief Educator
Dorota has obtained BA from Academy of Social Psychology in Warsaw. At the moment she is on Education Management course.
While at the university she has gained a wealth of practical experience in social work. As an educator she likes direct contact with toddlers the most. She loves entering their world, not only as their teacher but also as someone who would enjoy what they do, the same way as they do.
Dorota believes that in every person there is a child that does not die with age but lives there if only we find in ourselves a bit of empathy, innocence, ease with expressing our feelings and a bit of a distance to the world around us. She thinks that the adults are supposed to give the children the maximum dose of support, warmth, respect so in their adult life, the children are able to discover that little inner child.
Katarzyna Wachnik
Educator
Katarzyna is a student of pedagogy. Her faculty is based on work with young children.
Her passion to work with them started in high school when she was working as an au-pair. After that she worked as an organizer of activities for children and as a teacher's helper in the nursery. Her motto is "Where there are no kids, it's not heaven".
Her aspiration is to learn and grow as a teacher while at the same time making the children smile and earning their trust. She believes that involvement and openness can unleash great emotions.
Jaklini Jozi Fundi
Educator assistant
Jaklini was born in Burundi. After she finished school she moved to Poland. She has been living here for 2 years. She speaks English, Suahili and Polish. She loves working with kids and it gives her happines.
Abigail Buchhalter
Native speaker
Abigail is a graduate of Mount Holyoke College in Massachusetts, USA, where she received a Bachelor's Degree in Slavic History and Russian Literature. She has always loved taking care of children, and has been a nanny all over the States. In addition, she has spent time tutoring in mathematics, Polish and English. She is excited to be in Warsaw and looks forward to contributing to the community of education and enthusiasm provided by KOALA!
Stacy Clearman
Native speaker
Stacy is a graduate of the College of Charleston in Charleston, South Carolina. She received a Bachelor's degree in Spanish language with a minor in linguistics. She has always enjoyed working with children and is very excited to have the opportunity to work with them at Koala. She hopes she may help to encourage the children at Koala to be as enthusiastic about languages as she is.
Ewa Nowakowska
Music classes instructor
Ms Ewa was born in Australia - in a country of Coala bears - in a family of musicians. From her youth she got into mysteries of the world of music, songs, and playing musical instruments. She graduated from Musicial Academy in Bydgoszcz. She worked in Nova Opera. Ms Ewa participated actively in master classes in Łańcut. She cooperated with outstanding musicians. She has been composing music for many years. She write texts including the one for children. She loves them and working with them is a great challenge for her but primarely a great enjoyment.
Michał Ordowski
Sports instructor
Mr Michał Ordowski represents The Mazovian Association of Traditional Ai-Do Karate (Mazowieckie Stowarzyszenie Karate Tradycyjnego "Ai-Do") being its President and training manager.
He is a recreation instructor specializing in Self-defense (MENiS1) certificate obtained in 2004) as well as a sports' instructor specializing in Traditional Karate (MSiT2) certificate obtained in 2007). He cooperates with The School of Dreams (Szkoła Marzeń) and with private schools of The Varsovia Foundation. He leads Karate courses with elements of corrective gymnastics, which support the balanced development of each child and initiates their interest in sport.
1) - Ministerstwo Edukacji Narodowej i Szkolnictwa Wyższego - Ministry of Scence and Higher Education 2) - Ministerstwo Sportu i Turystyki - Ministry of Sport and Tourism
Karolina Siewierska
Drama and photography instructor
Graduated from Polish literature studies at UKSW in Warsaw. She started working with children while at the university, first with the youngest ones, then for those of pre-kindergarten age and finally she worked with children at Ochota Culture Club. For over a year she was working as a teacher at one of private bilingual kindergartens in Warsaw. Her passion is photography. She has developed a photography teaching program for children. She has also written a book on Jozef Bem High School in Ostroleka.
She says that her work with children gives her so much pleasure and satisfaction that she would change it to nothing else.
Paulina Walczak
Psychologist
Ms Paulina has a master degree in psychology at the University of Cardinal Stefan Wyszyński in Warsaw and a master degree in special education at the Maria Grzegorzewska Academy of Special Education in Warsaw. She also has a FCE certificate in English.
She has begun her work with children in 2002 and since then she has been cooperating with SOS children's villages in Poland - Public Benefit Organization that brings the assistance to orphaned and abandoned children and the home organization: SOS Children's Villages - the world's largest orphan and abandoned children's charity, providing help a new family and home for more than 78,000 children in 500 unique Children's Villages in 124 countries. In SOS Children's villages Ms. Paulina's functions are: educator, pedagogue, psychologist, lifeguard and an interpreter.
Ms Paulina worked with children from different countries, backgrounds, cultures. She was also providing assistance and support to 10-person foster family for one year time. Ms Paulina has also conducted English lessons for youngsters. She loves working with children and it gives her enormous satisfaction and a lot of fun.
Joanna Ławicka
Speech specialist
She is the special education graduate with major in speech therapy at Maria Grzegorzewska Special Education Academy in Warsaw (Akademia Pedagogiki Specjalnej im. Marii Grzegorzewskiej). She graduated from Paul Dennyson Education Kinesiology Course (I and II level) and passed the First Aid Course. During her studies she has also participated in additional courses of preschool speech therapy, i.e. speech eurhythmics, orthophonics course. She is interested in ancient dance and historic reconstruction.
