Meet Little Lion’s New Teacher

“Literacy is huge for me”

The supervision of the curriculum for all classes this school year at Little Lions’ Learning Center will be in the hands of a new teacher and instructor. Her name is Robbie Mireles, She has been in the field of childhood education for 15 years. She’ll bring that wealth of training and experience to her new position at the Little Lions Learning Center on West Oleander Street in La Feria.

Long-time La Feria residents will remember fondly her grandmother, Julia Dudley. Mireles follows the path of her grandmother who retired from the La Feria I.S.D after teaching first grade students at La Feria elementary schools for many years.

The new instructor was born in Harlingen and was raised in Boerne, Texas where she graduated from Boerne High School in 2001. “From a small child of 8-years of age, I knew I had a passion for teaching and inspiring children to better themselves and making something of their lives,” she said and continued, “That is why I studied for degrees in Childhood Psychology, Communications, Sociology and Child Development from North Vista College in San Antonio.

“I also studied to be a Dental Assistant at Texas State Technical College, but my passion for teaching won out, and I am doing now what I love” she said, then added: “While at TSTC, I was chosen to be Miss TSTC and served as their Ambassador visiting and conducting many educational workshops around the state.”

Describing her duties at Little Lions, she said her position as Curriculum Coordinator and Assistant Director will entail preparing weekly lesson plans for each age group. “We have children enrolled from as young as 3 months, and as old as 12-year-old children,” she said. “I also train our new staff members who need a minimum number of hours before they are qualified to teach in a classroom setting.”

At Little Lions, the emphasis is on making learning interesting and fun she explained. The learning facility has a full curriculum even for pre-school children. The program includes reading, writing, and arithmetic for that age group. “Even during their play periods, we make sure they are learning basic skills and learning to communicate with others.”

“Literacy is huge for me,” the instructor stressed, adding, “Three times a day we read from a book, either in groups or individually. We have math games and even a daily puppet show to share in the teaching. We also teach the children about gardening and cooking,” adding, “Our facility has just received a $5000 extension on our State Grant for that purpose. We also provide meals for the kids,” she related.

Mireles has a “hands-on” and involved style of teaching. She relates that while she was a student in Boerne, she got involved as a volunteer with the American Cancer Society, the Woman’s Auxiliary for Kendall County, and as coordinator for the 10K Run and the annual Parade and Queen’s Pageant. She urges all her students to get involved as volunteers at the Public Library and local nursing homes.

This energetic educator is also presently Events Chairman for the newly-formed La Feria Chamber of Commerce. “The pay is the satisfaction you get from helping others,” she said with a knowing smile.

Along the way, she met her husband, Isaac Mireles, a former Mercedes teacher and has now settled down to her new teaching job in the La Feria with her family. The couple have 3 children: Zachary, 11 years-old who attends Noemi Dominguez Elementary School; Joey, 5 years-old, who attends Sam Houston Elementary, and ZayLee, (11 months) who is not far behind his brothers.

For questions concerning enrollment or other matters, you can call Robbie Mireles at Little Lions Learning Center (956) 797-5466.