Philosophy

All classrooms and all students are unique and have specific learning needs. Helping each of my students achieve their highest potential is most important to me.  Acknowledgment of the individual needs of students is important, there is no one-size-fits-all mold of teaching methods that are going to be effective for all students. Every student is going to need different learning strategies, creative spaces and tools, and feedback. I want to make my classroom the perfect learning environment in addition to my teaching methodologies in order to help my students thrive. 

Achieving this kind of classroom environment will require me to apply student-centered methods and ideas in my classroom. I will provide a safe environment where my students are encouraged to share ideas and feel safe to try new things even if the result could be a failure. I will also encourage my students to try every day, and strive to get at least 1% better every single day.  My role as the teacher is to act as a guide for students, allowing students to gain confidence in trying new things by me giving them the opportunity to try new things and being there as a model along the way. I will also give my students access to plenty of hands-on and real-world activities in my class in order to apply their learned skills to their lives in a useful manner. I will give my students plenty of choices to motivate them and allow them to use their interests to direct learning. I will also give them plenty of opportunities to practice their learned skills with me in the safe environment of the classroom. 

Overall, my teaching philosophy is student-based, and I want the students to direct how my philosophy evolves with time. I never want to stick with practices that do not work, so I will continue to learn and grow myself so I can help my students to reach their highest potential.