My name is Rachael Lacoste and I recently graduated from the University of South Carolina with a B.F.A. in Art Education. I am a strong advocate for visual arts and I believe it is essential in a child's development and discovery of their personal identities. I am passionate for teaching and aim to develop original lesson plans that engage students in individual thinking and problem solving skills, while incorporating other core subjects such as language arts, math, and science. I truly believe that every child is an artist, and my goal as an educator is to encourage every child to reach their highest potential. I also have a passion for experiencing other cultures, and recently returned from teaching English and studying Arabic in the Middle East for 6 months. I learned a lot from this experience and am excited to incorporate it in my future classroom!