About
Hello, friends! My name is Teri, and I am the creator of Tony the Tourist resources. I have 16+ years of classroom experience and a Master’s degree in Social Studies education. I live just outside of Buffalo, NY with my husband and small (but mighty!) dog, Mo. I have taught in both urban and rural school districts, making forever connections with all sorts of people with varying life experiences.
Tony the Tourist is a character that I had created years ago as a way to engage and excite my students about learning Social Studies. After talking with other teachers about the need for better social studies lessons, I decided to take Tony public. I began to share Tony the Tourist resources and curriculums on Teacher Pay Teachers in 2021, and then launched this website to reach even more parents and teachers, like you!
The feedback and support I have received has been tremendous and humbling, to say the least. I believe that social studies is vitally important to understanding the world around us, but sometimes (gulp), it can seem a little boring. My hope was to make resources that are informative, but engaging, while also promoting invaluable learning skills, like critical thinking and literacy development. As a teacher, it became obvious that big, corporate, textbook companies are too disconnected from what actually works in the classroom. My goal is to provide classroom-tested lessons that are engaging to students and involve zero-to-little prep work for teachers. A successful year of social studies makes me quite happy 🙂
I look forward to having you join me on this journey! If you have any questions, I’d be happy to hear them. In the meantime, follow along as Tony the Tourist continues to grow and connect with students all over the place.