Welcome Letter:
Dear students and guardians, I welcome you to my kindergarten grade classroom. I am looking forward to working with each and every one of you. I hope that this school year is a year filled with rich, informative, and fun-filled learning experiences for both you and me. Please take a few seconds to browse through this webpage, click on the several categories available, and please do read my philosophy of teaching so you may receive a clear idea of my goals and plans for teaching this year! Enjoy!
Philosophy of Teaching:
Teaching is truly a rewarding and noble profession. Education is highly crucial in any stable society. Education teaches people right from wrong and thus, people can live meaningful and productive lives. The teacher is responsible for educating and modeling excellent behavior and learning strategies. A successful teacher plans for effective, student-centered activities that are based on research. Planning should be done to achieve state standards and objectives. I believe it is important to make the most out of the resources that I am provided with by the school; I also continue to research and evaluate the actions and choices I make that will affect my students. I believe in incorporating various instructional strategies that meet the various learning needs of my students. Differentiating instruction is key in creating instructional opportunities that will meet all of the learning needs. I like to use more of a hands-on approach in many of the activities I design and have students actually apply what they are learning. I have worked with large groups, small groups and even one-on-one to help all learners (high and struggling). I believe in cooperative learning and students would work together for certain center activities and class assignments. I believe in challenging students to think deeper by using higher-level Bloom Taxonomy questions and making content meaningful by connecting knowledge to real life situations that the students can understand. I also believe in incorporating the use of technology such as elmos, videos, stereos, projectors, and the smartboard to enhance student learning. These are the many ways I have differentiated instruction throughout my teaching.
Moreover, I believe it is crucial to develop nurturing relationships with students. A nurturing environment strengthens student social and emotional growth. I am their motivator and their helper. I want them to feel confident about themselves, their goals, and their work. In order to do this, I have to create and maintain a safe learning environment. I have a responsive classroom management plan. I believe in positive reinforcement and logical consequences. I establish smooth routines and provide students with jobs so they may be ‘classroom helpers.’ This provides them to take an active and supportive role in the classroom.
Furthermore, the teacher’s role is to diagnose student learning and to determine solutions to problems.Teachers should constantly assess- formally and informally. I believe in using KWLs, checklists, MBWA (management by walking around), whiteboards, questionnaires, journaling, and the technique of thumbs up/thumbs down to informally assess my students. Teachers should be flexible and adjust instruction when assessments show students may benefit from more instruction and practice. The teacher should also display student work and accomplishments to encourage learning and satisfaction in one’s work. Moreover, keeping student portfolios on continual work and writings is key to demonstrate growth of child's abilities. Throughout my teaching career, I have used all of these strategies to assess my students.
In addition, for effective learning and teaching to take place, I believe that teachers should understand the role of the professional learning communities in education. I have attended several meetings such as: weekly grade-level meetings, faculty meetings, special education meetings, and parent-teacher conferences. I have learned the importance of collaborating and sharing ideas, resources, and concerns with other faculty members. I also believe in ongoing communication with parents about their child’s learning progress, behavior, strengths, and areas of improvement. I communicate with parents through weekly newsletters, phone calls, and parent-teacher conferences. I am very flexible and accommodating when meeting with all parents.
During my years of teaching, I participated in monthly professional development meetings at school. I also attended professional development seminars in distant locations on the topic of center-related activities and developmental writing for elementary school students. I believe an effective teacher is a reflective teacher and takes part in ongoing learning to enhance teaching abilities/strategies.
From a personal perspective, my take on teaching is that it is fun and exciting. It may be a hard line of work, but it is truly fun and that makes it worth it. I have P.E.P: passion, enthusiasm, and professionalism. Teaching is exciting because I am exposed to all kinds of students with different beliefs and abilities and something new is happening every day. I believe as I teach, I learn as well and I also learn a lot about myself as I continue to teach. I am a positive role model and I challenge students to become better individuals intellectually, socially, and personally. I make a big difference in the world and I take this job very seriously. I understand the importance of the role and responsibility of being a teacher and I take pleasure in being honored to teach and raise America’s next generation of children.