Laura Steen

Teacher & Board President

Laura is born and raised in southern California and a homeschooling mom of four. Her family has been a part of The Arbor community for many years, and it has been an integral part of her kids’ education.

She has a BS in Biology from CSU Fullerton. She completed her graduate work in Animal Communication/Ornithology, her thesis research focused on communication in Anna’s Hummingbird populations in California. Before homeschooling, she was a college lecturer and lab instructor, both in the field and classroom. Her teaching philosophy is to facilitate learning as students discover new concepts and follow their interests. Science is a wonderful subject to engage curiosity and it provides a platform to encourage students to ask questions and learn in a multisensory environment. Her passion for connecting ideas to the world around us makes learning meaningful and allows students to gain confidence in exploring new ideas and finding solutions to challenging problems.

Laura lives in Whittier with her husband, four kids, and a goofball dog named Penny Lane. When she isn’t driving her kids all over, she enjoys hiking, bird watching, camping, and reading. She is a book collector and has amassed an extensive collection of curriculum and science-themed books. She loves to find opportunities to spend time in nature with other homeschooling families because the outdoors makes for a perfect learning environment!