Respect is a major focus in our classroom. I strive to guide my students in creating a safe learning space for all. We learn to listen with open minds and understand that everyone has the right to their own opinions and thoughts. We honor each others ideas and understand that we might not agree with them, but will respect them. With a safe learning environment where students feel comfortable sharing without fear, we are able to truly help each other learn at our highest potential. This isn't easy and it takes a lot of patience and class meetings for us to build a strong and loving classroom community. I don't believe in one sided management systems. There is no one size fits all plan for each group of students that come into my room. My students and I build our community together each year. I am a facilitator in our molding of our classroom community. My students are given the main roles of creating a respectful and safe environment for all of us.

By the end of the school year, my students will be independent scholars in the classroom. With practice, patience and routines to guide them, my students will be able to move through a school day with efficiency and little reminders for daily tasks. We will foster a strong sense of independence and leadership among us. Students are encouraged to lean on each other for support first before leaning on the teacher. My goal is to help them create a supportive and helpful learning partnerships between their peers. This will both help them this school year as well as the rest of their academic career. Again, I am a facilitator guiding them into develop positive and lasting habits that help them beyond the year in my classroom. I will guide them and help them, but I will not provide solutions without encouraging them to do some critical thinking. I truly believe that learning is hard, but no impossible. With a supportive and safe community my students can reach any goal they set their minds on. I will support, cheer and encourage them when needed, but give them the space to also overcome some speed bumps on their own and help them reflect on what helped them be successful.

Respect and independence cannot happen without responsibility. I work hard to help my students understand that they are responsible for their own learning. Adults and peers are there to guide and help them, but if they don't take responsibility or their learning their achievements will not be at their greatest potential. Being responsible means asking for help when they need it, managing their work time, using their time wisely to complete their work, and much more.

Beyond the academics, we will also work on taking responsibility of our actions in and outside of the classroom. We will learn to reflect on what we say and do in our communities. When we make a mistake, get in trouble, or make a hurt someone's feelings we recognize what we've done and make apologies. We also recognize that everyone makes these mistakes and it's how we clean-up the situation that makes the biggest difference. I work closely with my students and through open dialogue we reflect and discuss how we can make a change in ourselves to make positive contributions to our community. My goal is to help students learn that taking responsibility for our actions is a strength. It's okay to make mistakes and get in trouble as we learn to be more mindful people. With reflection and self awareness we are able to try not repeat the same mistakes in the future.