I grew up in a very small town in far Western Kentucky, my school had maybe 300 students per elementary, middle and high school. I had many teachers who had been there since my mom went through school, and many of them had the same mindset through all of their years teaching. From elementary to high school, I did not like going to school. I cried most mornings, and did everything I could do to get out of school. That all came back to the daily routine of paper packets, busy work tasks, etc. Now, not all teachers taught in that way, but I truly felt like this was a district norm for teachers.

I remember many times, going into class and working on a paper packet, turning it in and then continuing to get it wrong, and over. Not understanding why I could not figure it out, but that’s because I was not getting enough hands on learning to gain context of what I was doing. I decided that I wanted to make a change and help future students not feel the way I did. I wanted students to feel loved, welcome, and challenged in the environment I provide. I went to college to become an elementary school teacher, and I was so excited for this journey.

Fast forward to student teaching, I was placed in a first grade classroom. I went into that semester with high hopes to make a change, but sadly over the time I was there it changed me and my mindset. I went in every day and was made to follow certain routines and curriculum. I had little room for giving students deeper learning for them to dive into. I ended up almost not passing my first round of student teaching.

I then moved into my second round of student teaching where I was placed in a fifth grade classroom, to help teach Social Studies. I was scared to death because I did not know if I could handle the “big kids”. Turns out it was the best thing that could have happened for me. That teacher showed me that there is so much more beyond only teaching from the books. She challenged me to dive into the learning with the students, and actually have the students teach me a few things. She pushed me to be the best version of myself as a teacher, and by the end of that rotation, I had so much more confidence. I had gotten my spark back for teaching and was ready to begin my journey as a teacher.

That summer came, and after applying to many schools, I received a position to be a fourth grade science teacher. I knew in my mind that this is where I was meant to be. I could do all different hands-on experiments, allow my students to dive into being scientists, and bring joy and fun to the classroom. All of those things did happen, but that year also turned out to be one of the hardest years that I had faced. I got switched to teach all content areas, where yet again, I had to teach a certain curriculum and didn’t truly have a say in what I would like to teach.

I faced the challenge every day of not feeling like I was enough due to my test scores not being “high enough” or students not understanding what was being taught even though I was teaching the content just like the curriculum wanted me to. At the end of that year, I had once again lost my spark for teaching. I debated leaving the job field and finding a new path for myself. I didn’t love work, I didn’t look forward to coming into my class every day, and that only made things harder for myself. I truly believed that every school was like this, and I was never going to find joy being a teacher.

I kept talking to my mom about this, and she kept pushing me to try it again just one more time at a different school. She knew that I truly loved teaching deep down, I just had to find my place. She talked to many different teachers, administrators, and others in the education field that she knew to find help for me. I applied all summer and finally I applied to William Wells Brown and got an interview. From the start, I knew this school would be different because the interview questions did not involve testing and scores. They wanted to know how I could do what was best for the kids.

I ended up getting the job a week or so before the school year started and I was very nervous. I did not know how this year would go, and honestly I did not have high hopes for myself. It wasn’t until the day I was sitting in a planning session with my teammate and coach, they told me “we don't teach to the books, we use them as a resource”, I knew this was going to be the place for me. From there I have worked alongside my teammates to provide my students with opportunities to dive into their learning. I am not held back to only being able to teach what I am told through books and curriculum.

I had found my love for teaching again, and my mom was right, I had to find my place. I am excited to come to work each day, and I love what I do. I truly think when teachers can give creative freedom for their students to explore their learning and for the teacher to do that with them, it allows for everyone to be able to learn. It allows for students to be excited for school, and to challenge themselves and the teacher to be the best they can be.

When placed in William Wells Brown, I faced the challenge of now knowing how to teach with the creative freedom I had without having a book or curriculum to guide me. I truly struggled at first with how to know what to teach students without that specific “guide” of how to go about teaching it. After figuring it out, I see that not only am I more excited and happier, but so are the students. The students enjoy being in class and wanting to learn, which in return helps me enjoy what I am teaching.

I feel like all teachers share a common goal, student success and enjoyment. Giving creative freedom to teachers and students allows for this to happen. This will allow students to grow tremendously, but also allow teachers to grow in ways they wouldn’t imagine. How do you allow student agency within your classroom? How do you allow agency for yourself in what you do with your students?