My Personal Values

Being Honest: Recently in reading about various experiences from teachers and what it means for them to show they care for their students, I found myself diving into the notion that being kind is not enough to create a meaningful relationship with your students and it caused me to reflect on the relationships I created with my teachers growing up and what would prohibited that with other teachers that I had little relationship with.  Showing that you care for your students is first, to be honest. Developing trust with students shows that you are no better than the student and can create opportunities for relatability. 

  New Experiences: The time a child spends at school can drag on. As a teacher, I feel that creating time for moments of new experiences can push children to discover a new aspect of themselves and a hobby they may come to pursue. Growing up I was raised in a home with little to no technology so most of the music I heard was from church or the occasional car radio. In being introduced to different types of music and creative outlet in classes throughout my journey I was exposed to new instruments and genres that would push me to sign up for music classes or clubs and meet new people while having fun. 

Room for Collaboration: In understanding and working with your students an attentive teacher can provide opportunities for collaboration and conversation.  As well as students, teachers can grow in taking insight from fellow teachers on things that may have not worked and ways to alter it to work better the next time. There is a plethora of information that can be delivered to children from not only their main teacher but also community members and parents as well which we see in the Everyday Anti-Racism book which details how beneficial having community involvement in the classroom can be for a student's understanding.  Collaboration can create new ideas and new ways to get students connected and learn about the community.

Nature of Kids

Curiosity  Children by nature are curious to the world of wonder that surrounds them. From every new classroom to every new student they encounter students will find themselves surrounded by new experiences outside of what they may be used to at home.

Exploratitive: With the nature of curiosity comes exploration. As students are introduced to new people and material the school environment helps to bring together new relationships and interests that will push students to explore what they enjoy.

Energetic:  Most elementary kids despite their grade enjoy being outdoors and connected to nature. Allowing for activities of high energy throughout the day as well as mindfulness can provide entertainment and cool down for moments of low energy activities.

Belief about Curriculum in the Classroom

Incorporating a different Learning Approach Curriculum is the foundation for what is needed to develop knowledge. It should be structured and realistic to where both teacher and student can have set expectations and time to reach them. While there is a good amount of organized lessons to reach a set of results, creativity and incorporating various styles of teaching like visuals and hands-on activities can enhance the experience and lesson that is being taught. Every child will not learn the same and some may learn faster than others which is why it is important to look at the curriculum and decide on various ways to implement the core ideas in a way that is universally received.  In working with and observing a student with ADHD I got to see how many of the lessons were uninteresting to him.  ADHD is normally categorized in three different ways. The first is Inattentive ADHD which consists of being distracted easily, unable to keep up with information and items, and unable to complete tasks fully by themselves. The next ADHD category is Hyperactive/ Impulsive which consists of actions like constant fidgeting, unable to stay seated for long, and can be impulsive in their decisions. The last category is a combination of the previous two which is used to identify a child who struggles with multiple symptoms from both categories. The student that I worked with falls into the combined subtype of ADHD meaning he has symptoms from both of the categories, which I learned is the most common type of ADHD. With my observation, I was able to notice, that during moments like math centers, when the addition worksheet includes pictures available to count and see, the level of motivation and concentration is increased, and the work is attempted if not finished. When he is presented with work that involves tracing or sentence building I notice that he becomes bored and begins to wander back to walking around or discussing his favorite interests. I have even found myself questioning if I had him figured out because with work that requires cutting and gluing, he is allowed to have more hands-on activity and sometimes it goes well or sometimes he will call for help many times even though he knows how to cut and glue. At the beginning of the year, he would grow impatient fast and become emotional if he was not met with immediate attention. Nowadays, I notice this more outside of the classroom as we are at snack or recess. He values a routine and when something is missing or misplaced from what he is used to it can cause frustration and anger. For example, his mom usually packs him the same snack every day: Two Danimals yogurts, cookies or crackers, and a straw. There have been days where he misplaces his straw and that triggers Rene for the rest of the day 

Getting outside: I support switching things up in the classroom. While many believe the classroom itself is the most practical to comprehend the material, being outside has many areas that can replace the classroom if even for a few minutes. Psychologists have stated that being in areas of nature such as forests or the beach can create a feeling of serenity and allow you to focus and connect to the land. John Dewey believed and supported that through environmental learning, students can learn by doing, and learn by experiencing. 

Keeping Education Engaging: In my class, I hope to be able to allow my students to creatively express themselves while progressing in the material that we are learning. Simple changes can boost motivation or perception in an activity that may not be favored. Depending on the grade I believe music art and movement in some way could be applied to math and spelling in a way that gets kids excited to learn and remember information. John Dewey believed that students should be active rather than passive and learn by inquiry. Dewey also believed in using experiential learning as part of the educational process. Student engagement was a central aspect of Dewey’s work, and he believed that students need to be meaningfully engaged in the lesson to grow. Dewey also believed that students should become problem solvers and that interest, not fear, should be used to motivate their learning.