About Melissa

Melissa Panara is a certified teacher and lifelong advocate of children.  Even after twenty-four years in the field, she considers herself to be as much a learner as she is a teacher.  She has taught in various traditional and nontraditional educational settings but has found her professional home in the K-2 school just up the street.

Melissa uses humor, music, and open-ended play as powerful tools for connecting with children.  She believes it is only after this connection is established that children feel safe taking the necessary learning risks.  These relationships foster both confidence and resilience.

 

When she isn’t writing (or trying to find her cell phone), Melissa enjoys kayaking, doing crossword puzzles, and being in almost any audience, but especially those of musicals and local bands.  A native Long Islander, Melissa lives in Fairport, New York, with her husband, two teenage children, and their Goldendoodle, Ruby.