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I often tell students that “The more you read, the more you know and the more you know, the smarter you are.”  Knowledge is power and reading more increases your knowledge.  This is a belief that I hold and that I strive to instill in my students also.  Students are able to discover and develop their reading voices and realize that there can and should be an interaction between the reader and the writer.  It is exciting as well as rewarding to watch them move from just reading the words on a page to having a personal response to what they are reading.  I eagerly look forward to hearing formerly reluctant readers ask “Can we read today?”     

I also believe that using technology and integrating other subject area content into lesson plans promotes 21st Century learning as well as helps in developing critical thinking skills.  I embrace activities and collaborations which are facilitated by using technology.  Students should spend a large amount of their classroom time working together and discussing topics of learning.  They should also self-evaluate their own learning, conduct peer evaluations of their classmates, and work together to solve problems and answer questions.  

As a facilitator of learning, I must provide the right questions and opportunities versus the right answers so that learners begin to answer their own questions.  I encourage them to find ways to solve their problems.  I must not be afraid to say that “I don’t know” but instead must model that it is okay to not know and that it is possible to find the answer.  I do know that every student can achieve great potential when paired with an educator who has a can-do attitude.