About Medfield WL Teachers

Medfield World Languages
The Medfield World Language department is a vibrant team of teachers who believe in the proficiency based approach to learning languages. In the fall of 2012, our program expanded to include grades 4 and 5 at Dale St. One year later we expanded the program to grades 2 and 3 at Wheelock. Since its inception, the vision for World Language study at the elementary grades has been to emphasize speaking proficiency and the natural benefits of starting that skill at a younger age. The department also believes strongly in making connections to the rest of the child’s life both in school and at home in order to help children become globally aware and ready citizens for the 21st century. The current offerings include Spanish and Mandarin Chinese. Last year a World Language Study committee was formed of parents, teachers, and administrators to help shape the future of World Language study in the elementary schools. This committee will be making recommendations to Dr Marsden and the school committee during the 2016/17 academic year.
The grade 6-12 World Language program had been established as a traditional language program with French and Spanish offered grades 6-12 and Latin offered grades 9-12 for many years. Medfield added Mandarin Chinese first as an elective in 2008 and began to expand the language as a program in 2010. Over the past five years, the department has developed a proficiency based approach to teaching all the language skills: reading, writing, listening, and speaking. We have adapted pedagogy, assessments, and planning that depend on authentic sources and situational learning in order to make acquiring a second language meaningful and vibrant. Our teachers are a highly collaborative group that create many of their own materials and share among themselves. We use the ACTFL guidelines and can-do statements to guide our teaching and student learning. We currently offer Spanish grades 2-12, Mandarin grades 2-12, French grades 6-12, and Latin grades 9-12.

Medfield High School
Bonjour! I’m Monique Goodrow-Trach and as a French (and at times Spanish) teacher here at Medfield High School, I’ve been able to impart my love of languages and my French heritage for the last 13 years. Along with teaching AP French, French 4 and French 2, I organize a trip to France and serve as French National Honor Society Advisor.



¡Hola!  I am Sra. Gonzalez, and I teach Spanish in eighth grade and Spanish 3 at the high school.  My international experience comes from living in Mexico for five years, and I really enjoy encouraging students to learn about the world’s different cultures and communicate in a new language.


¡Hola!  I’m Paula Hamilton and I have been teaching Spanish at Medfield High School since 2012.  I am passionate about helping students find their voice in another language and enjoy sharing my love of all things Spanish with them.




Salvete! My name is Matthew Holms, and I teach at Latin and Medfield High School. It is a joy to share the heritage of the Latin language and its culture with my students. Today Latin is a language that transcends borders and time. While reflecting on the Classics, students find themselves pondering their own world, and in the tradition of Socrates understand themselves to be "Cives mundi" or citizens of the world.
Email:MHolms@email.medfield.net


¡Hola!  My name is Sarah Rodenhi and I have been teaching Spanish at Medfield High School since 2000.  I love sharing my excitement and enthusiasm for anything and everything related to the Spanish language with my students.





¡Hola! My name is Leora Seri and I have been teaching Spanish at Medfield High School since 2006. I am excited to share my love of languages and Spanish-speaking cultures so that my students can communicate proficiently and become global citizens.





¡Hola! My name is Tracy Tasi and I am proud to be member of our World Language Department, teaching Spanish and Latin I at Medfield High School since 2002. I am truly passionate about building language proficiency and cultural awareness in my students.
“Meaningful communication is knowing how and when to say what to whom.” (ACTFL)





¡Saludos! I am Ellen Toubman, the proud Content Specialist of our World Languages and Cultures department in Medfield. I have been in the teaching profession since 1982, with about half of my career in private schools, before coming to Medfield in 2002. I also teach AP Spanish, a program that I started in 2005 in Medfield. I am passionate and eager to share about Spanish Language and Culture, in particular, I love Latin music and modern Latino-literature!
Email: etoubman@email.medfield.net

Bonjour, I am Madame Welling and I currently teach 7th grade French at Blake as well as French 2 and 3 at the high school. I’ve been teaching in Medfield since 2004 and through the years have taught 6th-10th grades. I am a native French speaker and I love to share my language and culture with students.
Email:  VWelling@email.medfield.net



你好!My name is Xuguang Zhang. I used to be a news anchor for a TV station in China. For the past two years I have taught fourth and fifth grade Mandarin at Dale Street School. Currently, I am teaching Mandarin levels 2, 3, 4, and 5 at Medfield High School. I love teaching Chinese and I hope to share my passion for teaching with my students. I love to see students having a great experience learning Mandarin and getting to know the culture of China. I am very proud to be a part of our high school World Languages team.


Blake Middle School
Hola, my name is Maura Batts, and I teach 6th, 7th and 8th grade Spanish at Blake.   This is my 23rd year teaching in Medfield, and my 5th year at Blake!  I love studying and learning anything to do with Spanish language and the varied cultures of all Spanish speaking countries!  2016-2017 is going to be a great language learning year!


Hola! I’m Susie Boulos and I teach grades 6,7, and Spanish at Blake Middle School. I’ve been teaching for 19 years, 18 of them in Medfield. I love to travel and learn about other cultures around the world, then bring back my experiences and share them with students!

Bonjour & Hola!  I am Eileen Buckham, and I teach French and Spanish at Blake Middle School.  This is my tenth year at Blake. I love to visit French and Spanish speaking places and enjoy spreading my enthusiasm for learning about other languages and cultures.  

Bonjour & Hola!  My name is Sam Cowell, and I am a 6th and 7th grade French and Spanish Teacher.  I am very excited to be joining the Medfield World Language team in my first year at Blake Middle School.  Check out the websites for links to videos and vocabulary practice activities.

你好!My name is Liu laoshi and I have been teaching Mandarin Chinese in Medfield Schools since 2012. I taught 2nd, 3rd, 4th, and 5th grade Mandarin and now I teach 6th, 7th, and 8th grade Mandarin. I love to share my passion for Chinese language and culture with students.

I am Kristin Manning and have been teaching Spanish in Medfield for 15 years. I spent five years living in Puerto Rico as a child and majored in Spanish at the University of Vermont. I am an avid photographer and am passionate about sharing my love of the Spanish language and culture with my students!


Dale Street School
¡Hola!  My name is Maria DellaMonica and I am delighted to be the newest addition to the Elementary World Language department.  I teach 4th and 5th grade Spanish at Dale Street School.  I hope to instill my students with a passion for language and a curiosity about other cultures that will inspire them to broaden their worldview.  

¡Hola!  My name is Kristen LeVangie and I have been teaching fourth and fifth grade Spanish at Dale Street since 2013.  I also taught eighth grade Spanish for many years.  I love teaching at the elementary level because my students are so open and eager to learn a new language.  I am proud to be a part of our Elementary World Language team!


您好!I am Xiaoqing Lucy Song, 宋小青, the new Mandarin teacher at Dale Street School. A native Mandarin speaker, I love to work with students with my many years of teaching experience. It is my pleasure to share the language and Chinese culture with the young kids.
Email: lsong@email.medfield.net



Wheelock School


¡ Hola!  My name is Jessica Marinelli and I am the new 2nd and 3rd grade Spanish teacher at Wheelock Elementary School.  I began my teaching career in 1997 and have spent most of that time as a Spanish teacher.  Prior to my time in Medfield, I taught in an Elementary Spanish program for 10 years and spent the last 8 years teaching middle school Spanish in another school district.  I am thrilled to be back at the elementary level and to be part of the Medfield community!   I hope to instill a love of language and cultures upon my students at Wheelock.  

Grace Wang
你好!I am Grace Wang 王旭竹, a native speaker from Beijing, China.  I love to share my language and culture with my students. I have taught Mandarin to elementary level students for the last 5 years, and currently teach 2nd and 3rd grade at Wheelock.