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My name is Ms. Tara Adams. I was born and raised in the great state of West
Virginia. Go Mountaineers! I lived in the same small town for most
of my life. I grew up in the house that was built by my
great-grandparents. My dad and his sister were born in this house
and his parents were married in it. The fact that I lived in the
same place for so long is unusual because most Americans are more mobile than that, moving five or more times
(on average) throughout their lives.
I grew up in a region called Appalachia. Many of
you probably know a little bit about Appalachia because of your
proximity to it. Appalachian culture is made up of family ties,
work, the environment in which you live, and the regional history. We define ourselves
by these things. This is how I define myself.
My family is very much like most of the others where I
grew up. Most of West Virginia's economy is based upon coal
mining, recreation and tourism, and the chemical industry (especially
along the Ohio and Kanawha Rivers). My father worked for a natural
gas refinery. During WWII it was the largest refinery east of the
Mississippi and was a major target on Hitler's plans to invade America.
My brother became the first person in my immediate family to become a
coal miner.
 The
people in West Virginia, like Kentucky and other states that rely on
coal mining, must find a way to balance industries like coal mining with
ecological and environmental preservation. My brother and I are
huge outdoorsmen (not very p.c.) and it is important to us to maintain the balance
between the environment and the economy.
My mother was a very hard working stay-at-home mom.
My brothers and I always kept her on her toes. I am the middle
child, with an older brother who is 30 and a younger one who is 14.
So, my mom has been raising kids for a long time now. I think
she's ready for retirement!
After I graduated high school, I went to college to study music
education. I love music but decided it was something I wanted to
keep as a hobby, not a career. So, I started studying a lot of
history. I was hooked before I knew it!
I decided to leave my home in 2001 and move to Kentucky when I married
my husband. I enrolled at the University of Louisville, where I
earned a B.A. in History, with a concentration in Social Studies. (A
side note: I'm a Cards fan until they play the Mountaineers!)
I have always loved history and current events and find it exciting to
teach what I know and to share in the learning experience with my
students. My main goal is to make history and social studies more
than just a whole bunch of facts that you need to memorize. I want
each student to connect to it in some way by making the process fun.
Social Studies can be fun, as much as you all may disagree.
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