My Teaching Philosophy
“Every day is a school day.” I can’t begin to tell you how often that quote was hammered into my mind by a family friend, Judy, who taught elementary school. Every time she showed me something new it was followed by, “What do I always say, Lumpy? Every day is a school day!” And she’s absolutely right. Every day we are learning; it’s a process that reaches far beyond the limits of the classroom walls. I firmly believe that every student can learn, and so it is my hope that I can help all of my students become receptive to every learning experience that comes their way, not just the ones in a school setting. I understand that students come into my class with different abilities, interests, and learning styles, so I try to use differentiate instruction when teaching. I structure my classes so that they are learning not only from me, but from their peers as well. We have pair and whole class discussions, debates, and individual presentations. I work hard to construct a safe environment where every student’s ideas are valued and their differences respected. I also uphold the belief that everyone has the right to learn; and as to not detract from this learning, rules and expectations are provided daily which help to ensure that the classroom remains an environment conductive to learning. So remember: Every day is a school day – Let’s get learning!
Reading
I’ve found that students’ responses to reading vary from “it’s a dreaded chore” to “I’m a classic
bookworm” and everything in between. While not all students will like what we are reading, I hope that I can make the process of learning about the reading enjoyable for them. I try to facilitate classroom discussions about the reading through activities such as pointing, debates, and providing guiding questions (see the “sample lessons” tab for more information on these activities). I try to avoid comprehension questions and take a more analytical approach; students need more opportunities to think deeply about what they’ve read. Part of thinking critically includes connecting to personal experiences and beliefs. A literary piece can be interpreted many different ways, depending on what each reader brings to the text. I stand somewhere in the middle of reader response theory and the new criticism theory. The first states that the reader completes the interpretation of the literature based on his or her reactions to the reading, without much outside interference (such as the
author’s intent or historical information); the latter takes into account not only the reader’s reaction, but also the author’s intent and historical and cultural contexts. I tend to allow my students to first draw on their own conclusions (reader response), then provide the other contexts (new criticism) to see if this additional information changed their interpretation.
Writing
Writing is a powerful form of communication, and will undoubtedly be a necessary skill for every student’s future. I always get a chuckle when students moan about writing a paper and claim they “don’t know how to write.” What they don’t realize is that they compose different forms of literature every day, and that they’re already “writers.” All I have to do is take a poll of how many students e-mail, blog, text or use a social networking site to show them writing is an everyday part of their lives. The difference between their daily writings and those done in the classroom is a matter of mechanics.
Many students have become dependent upon spelling and grammar checks and auto-correction, which deters them from understanding why certain grammatical rules exist and how to write properly. Writing is a process, and it takes many revision sessions before a polished piece can be considered publishable (i.e., turned in for a grade). I work with students to understand this process and its importance. Everyone wants their voice to be heard, and writing is just one way to express it!
Reading
I’ve found that students’ responses to reading vary from “it’s a dreaded chore” to “I’m a classic
bookworm” and everything in between. While not all students will like what we are reading, I hope that I can make the process of learning about the reading enjoyable for them. I try to facilitate classroom discussions about the reading through activities such as pointing, debates, and providing guiding questions (see the “sample lessons” tab for more information on these activities). I try to avoid comprehension questions and take a more analytical approach; students need more opportunities to think deeply about what they’ve read. Part of thinking critically includes connecting to personal experiences and beliefs. A literary piece can be interpreted many different ways, depending on what each reader brings to the text. I stand somewhere in the middle of reader response theory and the new criticism theory. The first states that the reader completes the interpretation of the literature based on his or her reactions to the reading, without much outside interference (such as the
author’s intent or historical information); the latter takes into account not only the reader’s reaction, but also the author’s intent and historical and cultural contexts. I tend to allow my students to first draw on their own conclusions (reader response), then provide the other contexts (new criticism) to see if this additional information changed their interpretation.
Writing
Writing is a powerful form of communication, and will undoubtedly be a necessary skill for every student’s future. I always get a chuckle when students moan about writing a paper and claim they “don’t know how to write.” What they don’t realize is that they compose different forms of literature every day, and that they’re already “writers.” All I have to do is take a poll of how many students e-mail, blog, text or use a social networking site to show them writing is an everyday part of their lives. The difference between their daily writings and those done in the classroom is a matter of mechanics.
Many students have become dependent upon spelling and grammar checks and auto-correction, which deters them from understanding why certain grammatical rules exist and how to write properly. Writing is a process, and it takes many revision sessions before a polished piece can be considered publishable (i.e., turned in for a grade). I work with students to understand this process and its importance. Everyone wants their voice to be heard, and writing is just one way to express it!
Using Best Practices in the Classroom- Reading
As adopted from: Best Practice, Third Edition by Zemelman, Daniels, and Hyde (Heinemann: Portsmouth, NH);© 2005.
Increase
- Teacher reading good literature aloud to students
- Time for independent reading
- Children's choice of their own reading materials
- Balance of esay and hard books
- Exposing children to a wide and rich range of literature
- Teacher modeling and discussing his/her own reading processes
- Primary instructional emphasis on comprehension
- Teaching reading as a process:
- Use strategies that activate prior knowledge
- Help students make and test predictions
- Structure help during reading
- Provide after-reading application
- Social, collaborative activities with much discussion and interaction
- Grouping by interests or book choices
- Silent reading followed by discussion
- Teaching skills in the context of whole and meaningful literature
- Writing before and after reading
- Encouraging invented spelling in children's early writings
- Use of reading in content fields (e.g., historical novels in social studies)
- Evaluation focused on holistic, higher-order thinking processes
- Measuring success of reading program by students' reading habits, attitudes and
comprehension
Increase
- Teacher reading good literature aloud to students
- Time for independent reading
- Children's choice of their own reading materials
- Balance of esay and hard books
- Exposing children to a wide and rich range of literature
- Teacher modeling and discussing his/her own reading processes
- Primary instructional emphasis on comprehension
- Teaching reading as a process:
- Use strategies that activate prior knowledge
- Help students make and test predictions
- Structure help during reading
- Provide after-reading application
- Social, collaborative activities with much discussion and interaction
- Grouping by interests or book choices
- Silent reading followed by discussion
- Teaching skills in the context of whole and meaningful literature
- Writing before and after reading
- Encouraging invented spelling in children's early writings
- Use of reading in content fields (e.g., historical novels in social studies)
- Evaluation focused on holistic, higher-order thinking processes
- Measuring success of reading program by students' reading habits, attitudes and
comprehension
Using Best Practices in the Classroom - Writing
As adopted from: Best Practice, Third Edition by Zemelman, Daniels, and Hyde (Heinemann: Portsmouth, NH);© 2005.
Increase
- Student ownership and responsibility by:
- helping students choose their own topics and goals for improvement
- using brief teacher-student conferences
- teaching students to review their own progress
- Class time spent on writing whole, original pieces through:
- establishing real purposes for writing and students' involvement in the task
- instruction in and support for all stages of writing process
- prewriting, drafting, revising, editing
- Teacher modeling writing - drafting, revising, sharing - as a fellow author and as
demonstration of processes
- Learning of grammar and mechanics in context, at the editing stage, and as items
are needed
- Writing for real audiences, publishing for the class and for wider communities
- Making the classroom a supportive setting for shared learning, using:
- active exchange and valuing of students' work
- collaborative small-group work
- conferences and peer critiquing that give responsibility for improvement to
authors
- Writing across the curriculum as a tool for learning
- Constructive and efficient evaluation that involves:
- brief informal oral responses as students work
- thorough grading of just a few of student-selected, polished pieces
- focus on a few errors at a time
- Cumulative view of growth and self-evaluation
- Encouragement of risk taking and honest expression
Increase
- Student ownership and responsibility by:
- helping students choose their own topics and goals for improvement
- using brief teacher-student conferences
- teaching students to review their own progress
- Class time spent on writing whole, original pieces through:
- establishing real purposes for writing and students' involvement in the task
- instruction in and support for all stages of writing process
- prewriting, drafting, revising, editing
- Teacher modeling writing - drafting, revising, sharing - as a fellow author and as
demonstration of processes
- Learning of grammar and mechanics in context, at the editing stage, and as items
are needed
- Writing for real audiences, publishing for the class and for wider communities
- Making the classroom a supportive setting for shared learning, using:
- active exchange and valuing of students' work
- collaborative small-group work
- conferences and peer critiquing that give responsibility for improvement to
authors
- Writing across the curriculum as a tool for learning
- Constructive and efficient evaluation that involves:
- brief informal oral responses as students work
- thorough grading of just a few of student-selected, polished pieces
- focus on a few errors at a time
- Cumulative view of growth and self-evaluation
- Encouragement of risk taking and honest expression