Get to know me!

My family is my most fulfilling achievement! My fiancé, Jordan, and I are recently engaged and have a beautiful daughter named Kamdyn. She is 15 months old and is our greatest, craziest adventure thus far!

What I Know....

What I understand about the world.... is that diversity is important. Everything aspect in the world is diverse in some way. The cultural backgrounds of individuals, their careers, food, ways of completing tasks...everyone and everything is different. Which is a good thing! With diversity among the population, it gives individuals the opportunity to learn from one another through their struggles and successful experiences.

To become a successful teacher.... understand that it is a combination of characteristics. Communication is key! Having an open communication relationship is important between staff, parents and students. Communication is the most effective way to finding solutions to problems.

Having an empathetic mindset is one characteristic that I think most people do not think of right away. Sympathy, yes, but maybe not empathy. Being empathetic to your students can enhance your relationship and help you better understand their needs or struggles.

To create a positive learning environment, you must maintain a positive, welcoming, and patient demeanor. Your students are coming from all over the world and have many different experiences. It is important that you make them feel invited into the environment and that they matter. Each student comes with their own way of learning so patience is essential. Your delivery of instruction may differ from student to student as well as the need for multi-sensory learning.

At the end of the day, if you intend to be a successful teacher that makes a difference, you will have to possess more than just one role. It is not only being someone who teaches individuals information. To be the kind of teacher that a student bonds with, you must be part of, and sometimes their only, support system. You need to be their advocate, their mentor and their leader. These kids will learn so much more from you besides addition and subtraction. You are part of their success story.

Students, to become a functional and positive member of society.... you must be willing to have an open mind. Be willing to accept challenges, to better yourself, to admit that you need help or that you're wrong. To see that there are differences in this world, and all are just as good as your own. Understand that learning is a journey and there is not success without failure.

Be compassionate in your actions and believe that you are capable of anything that comes your way. You are not defined by your experiences. You have the ability to change the world and stand up for what is right.

Communication is the basis to everything you intend to be successful at. Without effective communication, you do not have stability.

Lastly, you are unique and beautiful and working hard toward your goals will always be beneficial.

What I need to learn...

There are plenty of things that I still need to learn in order to become the best teacher. I am just entering this field so my door is just opening. Though my list is long, I plan to always work hard on those things to be the best I can be in order for my students to succeed. I will be working alongside teachers who have been doing this for years and years and I need to keep an open mind and learn from their experiences and knowledge. I also realize that I will be in contact with a diverse group of individuals, both in my students and my colleagues. This is what excites me. I am eager to learn from their backgrounds and alter my way of teaching to make those students feel accepted. I also need to learn everything that comes with having my own classroom; classroom management, lesson planning, how to manage certain situations that arise.

The teacher I will become...

As a teacher, I strive for excellence. My goal is to become that person that those kids can rely on. As stated above, my purpose in teaching is to be a role model to my students, to be one of their biggest, if not their only, supporter in life. I want to make certain that they know that I see and hear them and that they are welcome in my classroom. Since I plan to teach art, I want to make their creativity shine. My hope is that they leave my classroom feeling powerful and omnificient. I want to dig deep into their brain and teach them how to express their feelings through their art. Art has the potential to be a powerful outlet and I hope my students will take a piece of my passion with them and apply it to their own lives.

Comments:

• I love how you organized your page! It was super easy and fun to read through. I also switched majors and transferred schools before ODU. I also agree that diversity is very important. I think it is super awesome that you want to teach art, I always loved art class when I was in school. - Jlynn Padro

• I can't even remember how many times I've switched my major even though my dream was to teach. I really enjoyed your page. I think it is sophisticated and the word cloud in the apple shape was a great touch.- Jami Muse

• Hello Kaelyn, you have a beautiful daughter her eyes are absolutely breath taking! This is my one of my favorites that I have seen, I admire your detail and passsion for teaching. You highlighted on very important topics from diversity, having an open mind and becoming a positive member of society:) I can tell you are going to be a great role model/influence. - Brittany DeLeon