In the Classroom

I am a teacher in title, but I like to consider myself a coach. I am always tickled by how excited kids are to come to one of my after school practices. Whether it be soccer or track practice, the smiles on their face and their relaxed, engaged countenance is moving. They WANT to be there. They want to play; they want to have fun. So I design my classroom structure in the same way that I design a practice. Because I want them to want to come to class.

I coach students into mathematical understanding, into expression, and into emotional understanding. I sing to them on days when they are sad in their soul, and I sing along with them on the days when they are happy. And because my students are in middle school...they sing and dance all the time. I cannot help myself and dance alongside them. Putting myself on an accessible level is of the utmost importance. The theory that learning that is approachable creates coachable kids, is my philosophy, and knowing that it is safe and encouraged to be a learner in my classroom makes their job as a student easy.

Once students view me as their coach, I stay their coach until I become their mentor. And the nuance there everything. Coaching is more performance based, but when I am able to earn their trust, our working relationship takes on a new shape. By the end of the year, I have an honest understanding of each student. I work to develop each student as a whole person. It allows for me to promote academic excellence and talk about the rewards and recompense of lifelong learning. My job is to equip them with skills they need to be effective seers and doers, and then clothe them with courage to share their voice. Their job is to assess and articulate their ability to adapt and execute as a student. My job is to make sure they are ready to walk out into the wide and wonderful world.