There is no excuse to be anything but excellent; this is a philosophy my school believes in. It is also a philosophy I intend to use in my future teaching career and in setting my goals.
My first goal, is to get to know all of my students’ names. This is an important goal for me, because it will allow me to recognize and acknowledge my students outside of the classroom. In my opinion acknowledging students outside of the classroom helps make a connection with them, because they realize that you care about them inside and outside the classroom.
In addition to learning all of my students’ names, I also want to get to know them through their reading selections. I know this will be difficult with the number of students in my classroom (33), but I feel it is necessary to put this kind of effort forward. Knowing what my students enjoy reading will allow me to suggest some new titles and authors to them, and it will also allow for me to see what kinds of texts keep them engaged. Not to mention it will give me a booklist of suggested reading. It is another policy in my placement school for students to carry a book to read with them at all times. When there is extra time within classrooms, teachers often have students take out their books and read. So I know in advance that every student has a book that they can share with me.
Knowing a broad span of books students are actually checking out and reading will lead me to my next goal. This semester I not only want to discover new books through my students but to expand my own personal library as well. In my future classroom I want to have a plethora of books, authors, and all genres available to my future students. By knowing what my students are reading, I can ensure that the books on my shelf can hold some future student’s imagination as well.
Next I want to find a way to make English an enjoyable experience for all of my students, especially when I get to teach my unit. I will do this in several different ways. First, I will be sure to find a way to relate the material to my students by connecting it to some aspect of their life, whether that might be music, community, or special interests. It is important to remember that even things like grammar worksheets can be made to relate to students. This requires more work on my part, but as I said there are no excuses for giving my students anything but my absolute best. Second, I will always bring high energy and enthusiasm into the classroom and into my unit. Excitement is contagious, and it is up to me to bring the excitement into the classroom. Once it is there I am sure my students will spread it around the room. Third, I will ensure to incorporate activities for different learning styles. Not only will this make my unit more enjoyable, but it will help all students learn through their strengths, not through the majorities strengths.
My goal this semester, and for the rest of my teaching career, is to always bring everything I can to the table. Anything less than excellence on my part, excuses or not, is disservice to my students.
Keeping Excellence in Mind response.
ReplyDeletePhilosophy is the study of principles, underlying conduct, thought, and the nature of the universe. For education in literature, it is the foundation, which applies correctness, analytical thinking, synthesis, and the ability to apply it in the universe of many things. I think any school that strives for excellence sets a bar for the students to reach and achieve. It is a standard. Excellence is what all teachers should aspire and it sounds like you want to also.
I also have a large classroom of 25 students and I have a problem with remembering names. Yet, I can always remember a face and relate it to a place. One of my goals is to learn all of my student’s names and be able to use it when talking with them in class. My students are given their reading selections and often our exercises include pictograms as a connection of learning. Five descriptive paragraphs are read in class from which students must draw a picture. This I have found to be highly effective. Students respond to their reading connecting what they have through visual, auditory, kinesthetic, and tactile learning processes. You might want to try this approach as an extra form of teaching to your students.
You discussed that you want to broaden your scope of reading for your age group. Dr. Mason has a class she taught this summer, which was specifically representing youth reading materials. You may wish to contact her and see if this class will be taught again next summer as a way to acquaint yourself with youth literature. Does your school have a book club that you may want to be a part? This would also be a way to keep up with the literature that is being read. I think it is admirable in wanting to know the literature of the youth from which you will be teaching. This displays a willingness to meet their needs of genres, which they like to read. Good for you.
In regards to you connecting with your students in your lesson plan, any form of lively learning approaches that are creative lends itself for student involvement and different learning experiences. I like to apply several learning styles into my lesson plan to make sure students are learning what I am teaching. First, I present my instruction using visual and auditory means. Then I follow through with an exercise that will incorporate tactile and kinesthetic applications to make for relevant connections. I then follow up with a quiz to qualify my students learning.
Good luck.
Pat Strelow
Thanks Pat for your wonderful comment. I took the same class two summers ago with Professor Mukes. I loved it, because it did give me an idea of where to look for good YA books. As a 20 year old, I am still very familiar with the broad genre of YA literature of every kind. I enjoy a broad scope of books to read. However, I feel that while you can gather as many book lists as possible, there is never a book list as great as those derived from actual students. They know what they like and what they don't and they will be sure to let you know. For example I love the author Ellen Hopkins because she uses poetry in a way that I think could really speak to students. However students may read her books on their own and think it is dreadful. So i want to know what keeps them engaged, along with finding my own books by browsing through the library or bookstore or gathering suggestions from other people. Not that there was anything wrong with your suggestion in regarding expanding my booklists, I just wanted to fully explain my point.
ReplyDeleteI have seen a similar exercise to the one you are talking about where students draw pictures while listening to a certain story or essay being read. I agree that this is a great way for students to connect to the story. It is also a great way to compare how students think. This can be helpful not for only us as teachers but for the students as well. It allows them to see inside the minds of other people while opening their eyes to new ideas.
I hope you have a wonderful year with your students. I am sure you will remember their names within a few days! Thanks for the comments and ideas!
Good luck to you too!
Katie Hollas