Certified Teachers

After beginning her journey as a Group Supervisor at the Children’s Museum in Puerto Rico in 2006, Diane discovered her deep passion for education and early childhood development. She went on to earn a B.A. in Psychology with a minor in Theatre, followed by a Master’s Degree in Early Childhood Education from NYU. This academic and professional experience inspired her to become an inclusive educator in New York City and motivated her to create an immersive language program where children could learn a second language. Through this program, called Pantomima, Diane combines theatre and music as dynamic educational platforms, allowing children to explore their personalities and build confidence while learning. With the support of a dedicated community, she launched Pantomima as a place for children to play, grow, and cultivate essential skills like cooperation, kindness, and self-esteem.

Hello, my name is Sonia Nacipucha, co-founder of Pantomima since 2011. I began my educational career from a very young age back in my country Ecuador. I started off teaching young children in pre-k and kindergarten. After moving to the  U.S. I obtained my teacher assistant’s certificate at City Tech College and  began my first official teaching position working as an assistant teacher in Park Slope, Brooklyn. I previously ran a successful soccer program for young children from the age of 3 years until 16 years old. After the program ended I began my formal educational career as a co-founder, Head Supervisor at Pantomima, working with such an amazing group of children and developing the program to its maximum capacity of quality for all our families in the area of Brooklyn.

As an educator, it is a privilege for Tanya serve the community by providing a secure, nurturing and inclusive learning environment for all the children, staff and parents. The main goal throughout her work is to build a diverse learning community that is filled with creativity, independence, responsibility, care and genuine respect for self and others. Through a variety of effective pedagogical strategies and cooperative partnership between families and staff, she works on implementing protocols and activities that enhances the child’s learning experience. Working at Pantomima, she feels honored to be part of an extraordinary program where all teachers, students and families are actively engaged in developing a love and enthusiasm for learning through theatre and art. She is dedicated to help our children to confidently reach their full potential through performing arts, hands-on experience and second language. Undoubtedly, she believes the following: “Every child is a different kind of flower, and all together, make this world a beautiful garden.”
She looks forward to “planting” a garden together full of beautiful, diverse and unique flowers!
Tanya has an educational background that includes a B.A. in Education and Children and Youth Studies (concentration) from Brooklyn College. She is licensed by the New York State in Childhood Education. Previously, she has served in the Department of Education in Brooklyn from 2017-2019. She is currently working on a M.A. in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL).