My Teaching Philosophy
"What a child can do today with assistance, she will be able to do by herself tomorrow." Lev Vygotsky
I believe that I need to create a classroom environment
where all students are comfortable being themselves.
I feel that it is important to foster an environment that garners respect for others, so that all students can feel safe sharing his or her thoughts and ideas. Taking time to promote positive attitudes and behaviors such as good listening skills and respectful manners teaches students that their input is important and cared about. Likewise, I feel that building strong relationships within the classroom is also imperative, and I will do this by encouraging social interaction with classmates through various cooperative learning activities and learning centers.
I believe that I need to adapt my lessons and activities in order
to meet the individual needs of each student in my classroom.
Every child is different and it's easy to forget that when teaching. Each student's individual needs must be taken into account when planning lessons and activities. It's important to make appropriate accommodations and modifications to lessons to better suit each student's needs. This ensures that each child as an equal opportunity to reach the learning goals set forth by the teacher. I acknowledge that student's have unique learning styles, and that they learn best with certain methods. These different learning styles will be taken into account when I am creating lessons for my classroom. I will incorporate various activities to reach those students who learn best with direct instruction or hands-on activities, so that they each benefit from the lesson.
I believe that all students can learn regardless of their current academic level,
language barriers, learning disorders, and behavioral disorders.
Even though some students face extraordinary barriers in their learning experiences, such as certain disabilities, all students have the ability to learn. Granted there are different levels and speeds at which students learn, however all students have the ability to learn. As a teacher, I foster this philosophy by being extra mindful of those students who have certain struggles to overcome in the classroom. I enjoy spending extra time with them working one-on-one, or modifying lessons so they can participate fully. Progress is progress no matter what rate it happens at. I intend to make sure that every student in my classroom makes progress throughout the school year by constant monitoring and goal setting.