Curriculum and Instructional Specialist

Dear Manatee Elementary parents and families,

Welcome to the Curriculum and Instructional Specialist's webpage for Manatee Elementary School. My name is Cynthia Brigance and I am the Curriculum and Instruction Specialist (CIS) at Manatee Elementary. Although I may wear many hats, as a curriculum and instruction specialist, my primary and most important activity is working directly with teachers in their classrooms. I model how to teach, train our instructional staff, and help them develop lesson plans. I also observe our teachers in their classrooms and provide feedback on their lessons and technique. In sum, I assist and support teachers as they refine their teaching skills and techniques. As the CIS at Manatee Elementary, I act as the instructional leader of the school.

As the Curriculum and Instruction Specialist, my job is different from interventionists in that, as a curriculum specialist, I spend most of my time with teachers, not students. Interventionists, on the other hand, spend some of their time working with teachers, but most of their time working directly with students.

I always liken my responsibilities to those of a coach in sports who assists and supports athletes as they learn their sport. Coaches are sometimes cheerleaders and sometimes critics. They guide athletes and help them become better at what they do. Likewise, as a curriculum and instruction specialist, I support and guide classroom teachers and act as mentor and assistant.  As a curriculum specialist, I use my own teaching knowledge and expertise to assist teachers in the complex act and art of teaching.

Our principal and school staff wholeheartedly support my mission and believe that supporting our amazing educators is crucial to fulfilling our purpose--to help our children achieve the highest of goals in school and beyond. It is my goal to prepare our students to become leaders at the K-12 level and beyond and to nurture and support the student’s intrinsic interest in learning and reaching their goals in life.

I, and our leadership team, want our students to eventually graduate from high school with a full understanding of the social, historical, economic, scientific, and technological components of the global age. To achieve this, we must ensure their academic success so that they may ask questions, share insights, study, embrace challenges, and give their time and energy to their communities. I am convinced that by accomplishing my goal, I will help them graduate prepared for the finest universities and with the critical understandings needed to engage and lead on a global level.

Cynthia Brigance

Manatee Elementary Curriculum and Instruction Specialist

"To learn to read is to light a fire; every syllable that is spelled out is a spark." ~ Victor Hugo