About Us :: Second Grade

Current Coursework
Students are studying our neighbor to the north, Canada. They will learn some of the history and culture of this North American nation.

The Teachers

Carolyn Dryden (Ms. Dryden)

Linn Thorburn (Ms. Thorburn) has been teaching in Baltimore City for five years, and she is excited to be joining us for a second year at SBCS. Ms. Thorburn attended college at The University of Georgia, where she majored in journalism and was also a member of the National Champion bulldogs swim team. Ms. Thorburn left her native Georgia and moved to Baltimore in 2004 as a part of Teach for America's teaching corps. She completed her Masters of Arts in Teaching at Johns Hopkins University in 2006. In her spare time, Ms. Thorburn enjoys cooking, listening to live music, and taking her dogs to the park.

Melanie Maisey (Miss Melanie) has been with SBCS since our first year in 2005. She has taught in a variety of settings for over 16 years. Her experiences range from early childhood care all the way through teaching English to adults in community college. She earned her BA in Visual and Performing Arts from UMBC in 1992, then followed with a master's level education program at Antioch New England Graduate School from 1996-1998. She is still working on that thesis, though, to earn the last four credits of her M. Ed. Her background is in classical education, alternative learning approaches and Waldorf Education methodology, but she is happiest when she is doing little bits of many different things. She is a single mother to three children, Tori 18, Benjamin 7, and Lucian 4.

Brandon Bennett (Mr. Brandon) is in his fourth year at SBCS. Prior to joining us, he worked at Bolton Hill Nursery School, which led to his fortuitous meeting with Erika Brockman. After only nine months of prodding, wheedling, and cajoling, he came on board with us in the inaugural 2005-06 school year. Mr. Brandon spent two years with the Kindergarten Team before deciding to broaden his horizons by moving to Second Grade last year. An avid fan of the arts, Mr. Brandon has self-published two novels, and spends his spare time reading and writing movies, music, and following the Washington Wizards. He is currently making plans to re-enter the University of Maryland at College Park to finish his degree in Mass Communications.