My Philosophy of education
My whole life I have had a passion for education and helping children. I come from a family of educators who have inspired me to enter the field with an open mind, hard work ethic, and passion. One thing that really excites me about the education field is that an educator is constantly learning. I not only teach my students but they in turn teach me how I can better assist them in their education. I am reflective of my teaching practices and adjust to the needs of students. Each student is unique and has individual needs thus it is imperative that I get to know each of my students and their families. I see my role as an educator as part of a team, working with my students, their families, and their communities to build upon strengths and push them to their fullest potentials.
1) I believe in valuing equity and diversity in the classroom.
I differentiate instruction in my classroom to support multiple intelligences, the various ways students learn, and the multiple languages they bring into the classroom. Each child deserves the right to an education in which content will be made accessible and their learning will be supported. I will achieve this through the use of scaffolds (sentence stems, visuals, cognate charts), multiple representations (written, oral, visual means), and multiple entry points (student choice in activities, academic games, open lessons).
I create a positive and supportive classroom environment so all children feel safe, comfortable, and respected thus the environment is conducive to learning. I will use morning meetings as a space where students can discuss their personal and academic concerns in a safe environment. In addition, this space will be used to build classroom community through the use of joyous activities to get to know, encourage, and support one another. Through this classroom community and meetings, students will learn important social and emotional skills to apply both inside and outside of the classroom.
I tap home and community as valuable resources of knowledge to be incorporated into the classroom. Children enter the classroom with a plethora of knowledge and strengths; I will get to know each of my students and their communities to tap into this mine. Projects, art, activities, and instruction will incorporate student interests, culture, and knowledge to make education meaningful and engaging. In addition, I view second languages as great resources and strengths! I will tap into this resource through the use of cognates and knowledge of other similarities in the language whether semantic or grammatical.
2) I think the classroom should be student focused.
I base instruction off of student inquiry and interests to best serve the needs of my students. Such lessons will provide hands on experience, focus on building conceptual knowledge, and will have students critical think and analyze. Art integration into the content areas is a wonderful method for providing this type of experience. An example of this is the creation of origami structures, such as a windmills, to better understand reusable energy and the structures that support this. Children have a natural curiosity thus lessons should build off of their own ideas, questions, and predictions to lead further instruction or investigation.
I encourage student autonomy of their learning. Students will be given a choice in activities and projects to pursue their own academic interests. A great method to achieve this is the use of ‘academic menus’ in which students have a choice in what activity they would like to do to further their learning in a content area. Students will be an integral aspect of the assessment process, in which students will be asked to assess their own learning and work by recognizing their successes and acknowledging areas that need additional help. Student will have portfolios in which they can look back at their work and the progress they have made during the school year. It is vital for students to become aware of their own progression to build confidence and pride.
I am reflective in my teaching practices. My role as an educators is to serve the needs of my students, thus I must evaluate whether my teaching is helping my students. Children enter the classroom with strengths and eager to learn, I must get to know each child as an individual and the class as a whole to better understand which practices will best serve my students. I will continually plan, instruct, reflect, and adapt to make the content accessible for ALL students.
3) I utilize technology as a valuable resource in the classroom to enrich my curriculum.
I provide the foundations for computer and digital literacy as it is increasingly important in the world we now live in. Students can receive exposure in computer skills such as typing, browsing the internet, power point, movie software, or art programs. I will utilize technology for research with student activities such as power point presentations or webquests. Through these student activities I will teach student how to evaluate the credibility of sources.
I use technology to complement and support academic content. The possibilities with technology are endless is providing further instruction in content areas such as educational games (ST Math, starfall) or providing great visual aids and better presentation of concepts (Promethean boards, Brainpop website). In addition, I have my own website in which I can post additional resources to provide further instruction and support for students but also parents and other teachers.
I incorporate the use of technology as means of student engagement and integration of student interests. Technology is now an artifact of youth culture and a medium in which they are familiar. Integrating technology into the classroom is a part of tapping student interests and an engaging modality for learning. For example, I can utilize blogs as means of student discussion of academic material and access to such discussion both inside and outside of the classroom. Through the use of blogs, I will also teach students social media etiquette and responsibility.
As I am looking into the future of my students I want them to leave the classroom with critical life skills. These skills are not limited to academic skills but rather encompass skills needed to succeed in life such as hard work ethic, ability to collaborate with others, responsibility of one’s work, culturally sensitivity/awareness, self-control, confidence, and critical thinking/reasoning. Such skills complement the academic knowledge to create a well-rounded individual, thus educating a child should be holistic in terms of the social and academic learning. I strive to achieve this through my classroom instruction as described in my teaching philosophy. Children are the future citizens and thinkers of our world, let’s inspire and prepare them!
1) I believe in valuing equity and diversity in the classroom.
I differentiate instruction in my classroom to support multiple intelligences, the various ways students learn, and the multiple languages they bring into the classroom. Each child deserves the right to an education in which content will be made accessible and their learning will be supported. I will achieve this through the use of scaffolds (sentence stems, visuals, cognate charts), multiple representations (written, oral, visual means), and multiple entry points (student choice in activities, academic games, open lessons).
I create a positive and supportive classroom environment so all children feel safe, comfortable, and respected thus the environment is conducive to learning. I will use morning meetings as a space where students can discuss their personal and academic concerns in a safe environment. In addition, this space will be used to build classroom community through the use of joyous activities to get to know, encourage, and support one another. Through this classroom community and meetings, students will learn important social and emotional skills to apply both inside and outside of the classroom.
I tap home and community as valuable resources of knowledge to be incorporated into the classroom. Children enter the classroom with a plethora of knowledge and strengths; I will get to know each of my students and their communities to tap into this mine. Projects, art, activities, and instruction will incorporate student interests, culture, and knowledge to make education meaningful and engaging. In addition, I view second languages as great resources and strengths! I will tap into this resource through the use of cognates and knowledge of other similarities in the language whether semantic or grammatical.
2) I think the classroom should be student focused.
I base instruction off of student inquiry and interests to best serve the needs of my students. Such lessons will provide hands on experience, focus on building conceptual knowledge, and will have students critical think and analyze. Art integration into the content areas is a wonderful method for providing this type of experience. An example of this is the creation of origami structures, such as a windmills, to better understand reusable energy and the structures that support this. Children have a natural curiosity thus lessons should build off of their own ideas, questions, and predictions to lead further instruction or investigation.
I encourage student autonomy of their learning. Students will be given a choice in activities and projects to pursue their own academic interests. A great method to achieve this is the use of ‘academic menus’ in which students have a choice in what activity they would like to do to further their learning in a content area. Students will be an integral aspect of the assessment process, in which students will be asked to assess their own learning and work by recognizing their successes and acknowledging areas that need additional help. Student will have portfolios in which they can look back at their work and the progress they have made during the school year. It is vital for students to become aware of their own progression to build confidence and pride.
I am reflective in my teaching practices. My role as an educators is to serve the needs of my students, thus I must evaluate whether my teaching is helping my students. Children enter the classroom with strengths and eager to learn, I must get to know each child as an individual and the class as a whole to better understand which practices will best serve my students. I will continually plan, instruct, reflect, and adapt to make the content accessible for ALL students.
3) I utilize technology as a valuable resource in the classroom to enrich my curriculum.
I provide the foundations for computer and digital literacy as it is increasingly important in the world we now live in. Students can receive exposure in computer skills such as typing, browsing the internet, power point, movie software, or art programs. I will utilize technology for research with student activities such as power point presentations or webquests. Through these student activities I will teach student how to evaluate the credibility of sources.
I use technology to complement and support academic content. The possibilities with technology are endless is providing further instruction in content areas such as educational games (ST Math, starfall) or providing great visual aids and better presentation of concepts (Promethean boards, Brainpop website). In addition, I have my own website in which I can post additional resources to provide further instruction and support for students but also parents and other teachers.
I incorporate the use of technology as means of student engagement and integration of student interests. Technology is now an artifact of youth culture and a medium in which they are familiar. Integrating technology into the classroom is a part of tapping student interests and an engaging modality for learning. For example, I can utilize blogs as means of student discussion of academic material and access to such discussion both inside and outside of the classroom. Through the use of blogs, I will also teach students social media etiquette and responsibility.
As I am looking into the future of my students I want them to leave the classroom with critical life skills. These skills are not limited to academic skills but rather encompass skills needed to succeed in life such as hard work ethic, ability to collaborate with others, responsibility of one’s work, culturally sensitivity/awareness, self-control, confidence, and critical thinking/reasoning. Such skills complement the academic knowledge to create a well-rounded individual, thus educating a child should be holistic in terms of the social and academic learning. I strive to achieve this through my classroom instruction as described in my teaching philosophy. Children are the future citizens and thinkers of our world, let’s inspire and prepare them!