Teaching Philsophy

Making learning engaging and meaningful:

My goal when I plan lessons is to make sure my lessons are relatable to my students while still delivering the necessary academic content. I find when lessons are culturally relevant and are applicable for the students, then the students will be more likely to take in the concepts. I find that “lecture-based” lessons tend to be unengaging and do not make the experience of learning meaningful for the students. Therefore, the lessons I develop involve students in discovery based learning where students are engaged, challenged, and scaffolded until they eventually reach that “Ah-ha!” moment. Students are placed in the position of being problem-solvers, and they have to collaborate with their peers to make sense of the given situation.

Here's how I made a lecture-based lesson more dynamic! Instead of using book problems, I drew and made my own problems. My students found it hilarious and enjoyed doing these word problems!

Establishing a positive learning environment:

In the classroom, I strive to establish a learning environment where students have mutual respect for their classmates and ultimately the teacher. I insist that students voice their opinions in class while also remembering to respect the opinions of their peers. I let students voice their opinions by developing giving them the opportunity to develop the classroom rules and expectations. I am a firm believer in applying the 100% rule and making sure that all my students understand the classroom rules, so it is important to have my students develop their own rules. In turn, this will give my students a safe environment where they can feel comfortable to learn and ultimately to be themselves. 

Developing a Vision:

As a beginning level teacher, I find that it is important to establish your vision. What learning goals can I expect my students to accomplish in the following week? What can I do to make students successful at reaching these goals? What do I expect my students to get out of my class?
These are all questions that all teachers have had to ask themselves throughout the year. It is my priority as a teacher to know the answer to these questions before I enter into my classroom. I need to develop my expectations and goals for my students, so I can readily plan and readjust if needed.