Teaching Philosophy

All students can learn but no student learns in the same way.

There is no one sizes fits all approach to teaching.

It is essential to create a safe, secure, caring and stimulating environment so that growth and development can take place.

Classrooms must have mutual respect, curiosity and a teacher who is able to provide a student-centered learning environment.

Classrooms need to foster the students’ natural curiosity for learning and questioning. Teachers need to support the ability to discover in silence or pause.

Students learn by doing and all students can learn.

I have strong beliefs in philosophers and theorists such as: John Dewey, Parker Palmer, Frank Smith, Regie Routman, and Paolo Freire. These theorists know the student as intelligent, eager, and easily influenced. I agree with Frank Smith, teachers have the opportunity to “change the world.” I believe we make small changes each day and we change the world a little bit at a time. Each day is a new opportunity to start fresh and learn. The role of the teacher is to provide a learning environment that is conducive to just that: learning. Teachers need to teach to the students’ particular learning style and consciously incorporate Howard Gardner’s multiple intelligences into our lessons to make them meaningful for individual. The teacher must provide multiple opportunities for authentic learning and discovery. Teachers must assess themselves and their students often and thoroughly to ensure students are continuing to grow.

Examples of Student Achievement

Every teaching experience is started with each individual student in mind. I pride myself in knowing my student’s interests and learning style (re: multiple intelligence). This allows me to reengage my students when off task, anticipate distractions and questions and better prepares me in my overall lesson planning. For example, when I was teaching a unit on explorers in a 5^th grade class I had a student who was not interested or engaged during the research section of the unit. Knowing this student was a kinesthetic learner and was very creative I worked with him on creating a personalized hand’s on lesson incorporating art, reading and construction. Making small cutout of the explorer he filled in each part of his body with information – the head was why he set off to explore, the legs were how the explorer got there (the route) the heart was any problems he faced along the way, and so on until all sections were covered. He was able to use his creativity and had a more tangible and meaningful guide to help with his research. For his final project he created a game board – it was one of the best in the class, having the most detail and was the most developed. I improved this student’s academic success by being aware of his strengths and weaknesses and worked with him to creatively incorporate a method, which met the requirements of the project but embodied his personality and individual learning style.

As a group my students demonstrated great academic achievements because of my modeling, collaboration and support. In developing a classroom management strategy I held a class meeting with my 2^nd grade students to hear what they needed from me as well as from each other to be successful in our class. During this meeting my students developed “class rules” with clear expectations of behaviors. What I found most remarkable is that the rules I wanted to implement were the same set of rules the students found important. What made this practice successful, not only in making the rules but following the rules, is that the students held each other accountable for appropriate behavior. Of course they occasionally needed friendly reminders when excitement levels were high but the ownership the students felt over the rules made transitions smoother, allowing for extra time at the end of lessons for extra modeling, reviewing and sharing. In addition to developing classroom rules we discussed respectful ways to ask each other for silence, help or provide for personal space – this helped them to focus on the task at hand and be more successful. Having strong classroom management is essential to improving academic success. A successful classroom management plan needs to provide the students with clear expectations, consistency and available resources to ensure smooth transitions and more time for individual student achievement.

Teaching Related Activities

Harrison Park Elementary - Summer Academy, Portland, OR, June 2010 - July 2010

• Assisted in Reading Recovery program by providing students with a literacy rich environment and committing to the scripted lesson plans provided by the district.

• Developed and executed engaging art, math, and science activities to further students learning during the after school program ran by Impact Northwest.

• Promoted students motivation, participation and active listening skills through the implementation of positive reinforcement and awards.

Capitol Hill Elementary, Portland, OR, January 2010 – May 2010

• Effectively and intentionally implemented various teaching strategies including: cooperative learning, hands-on approaches to learning and interdisciplinary units.

• Developed and taught a themed unit on Tropical Rainforests which integrated science, math, writing, reading, art and the computer/research lab. Formed a lasting impact.

• Used Writer’s Workshop model of instruction to help students develop their writing skills, included craft lessons and graphic organizers to supplement the curriculum.

• Successfully implemented classroom management techniques that included pieces from the theories of Love and Logic and EnVoy, while promoting student achievement and self-confidence.

Llewellyn Elementary, Portland, OR, October 2009 – December 2009

• Creatively and thoughtfully developed a ten-day unit on the Explorers of the Americas, which engaged students and stretched their thinking about the first to discover America.

• Provided students with the opportunity to use creativity and higher-order thinking skills to present their final projects in ways that were nontraditional.

• Assisted cooperating teacher in grading and assessing students using the state standards in all subject areas.

• Organized and led first time small group instruction for students who struggled in reading.

• Assisted in parent-teacher conferences learning to give constructive feedback.