Mrs. Arnold grew up on the East Side of Milwaukee and attended a Catholic school.  Her parents owned a bicycle shop and she learned how to fix bicycles from her grandmother. When she was in 4th grade she was a professional flat tire technician!  Ms. Arnold has 3 children- a 7th grader, a 4th grader, and a freshman at Carmel Catholic High School.  She and her family love hiking, biking, swimming and loads of watersports.  Melissa graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Parkside with a Bachelor's degree. When she moved to Illinois, she found her love for the classroom when her own children started school.  She  decided to join the school and spent 4 years as an Elementary (grades 1-3) Montessori Teacher's Assistant as well as substitute teacher. Ms. Arnold  loved every minute of it. She then moved on to work for the Special Education Department of Lake County.  She spent 4 years helping Special Education students find success in the classroom. In that time, she also took on the task of a long term substitute, running the class in all aspects. Lastly, her most recent adventure was teaching 4th grade at another Catholic school in Lake Villa.  Ms. Arnold absolutely loves teaching 4th grade and is very excited to start the year. She is looking forward to a wonderful year of growth and learning!