Positive Student/Teacher Relationship
My philosophy is that the student and teacher relationship is paramount to learning. My greatest strength as a teacher is building positive relationships with my students. One of my favorite parts of teaching is the conversations I have with students in the hallway about them, and I take note of their interests to build rapport with students. Students need to know that their teacher cares about them in order for them to learn effectively.
Active and Engaging Learning Experiences
Students need active and engaging learning experiences in order to successfully transfer the skills and concepts being taught in the classroom. In order to create active learning experiences, teachers must choose relevant, real world activities that provide students with a great deal of choice. Teachers must differentiate these activities so that students are challenged. Students need to be given choice in the materials that they read, and the reading materials must be highly engaging. Students should also be given choice with the topics they are researching and the products they are creating to demonstrate their learning.
Differentiation and Self-Paced Learning
It is really important that teachers differentiate their instruction by giving students pre-assessments before beginning units of instruction. Students are then placed in flexible groups based on the pre-assessment results and given instruction based on their learning gaps. These flexible groups change throughout the school year based on the unit of instruction. Meanwhile, students who are not receiving direct instruction are working on an enrichment project, reviewing for a test, independently reading, etc. Therefore, students who have already mastered specific skills and concepts can move forward with more advanced material rather than learning about something they’ve already mastered.
Structure and Classroom Management
I use the CHAMPS program as my model for classroom structure, routines, and management. As in Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs, students must feel safe in order to learn. I know that by providing routines and structure in class, students feel safe to learn. Part of my classroom management is to set behavior expectations at the very beginning of the school year. We discuss and model what acceptable and unacceptable behavior looks like and sounds like, so that the expectations are crystal clear. It is essential to post the expectations and review the expectations as needed throughout the school year. Both rewards and consequences are discussed, posted, and reviewed throughout the school year as well.
Goals, Learning Standards, and Self-Assessment
Yearlong class goals should be verbally repeated throughout the school year, and students should frequently measure their progress against those goals. Students must know the learning standards/targets that they are working on each day and where they are headed on their learning journey. Students must assess themselves often and meet with the teacher to discuss how their self-assessment compares to the teacher’s assessment of their work.
