My Top 3

Holla for Anne finally being able to figure this out!!

Before I start this….I just want to ask for everyone’s thoughts and prayers for a great teacher that I had in high school. He was my English teacher for freshman, sophomore, and junior English and I T.A.ed for him during my senior year. This past week, he suffered a stroke while golfing in Eugene. He is 37 years old, and just had a baby. Such a surprise considering that he is in such great shape. He is one of those teachers that had such a deep impact on me and my family that it has been pretty hard for us. Currently, he is in intensive care and somewhat alert…he is able to respond by squeezing hands to show that he understands. If you can keep him in your thoughts…I would really appreciate it!

Here’s my top 3….

1. Respect respect respect!! I believe that a classroom needs respect. Kids should always feel that school is a place where they can feel respect and love. For some children, they might not feel this sense of respect at home so it is important to give them this at school. This respect is coming from all areas in the classroom. There should be a mutual respect between students, teachers, and parents. If there is an overall feeling of respect in the classroom, the environment will naturally feel more welcoming to everyone that enters the room. This comes with the idea of teaching by example. The teacher should lead by example by showing this respect to everyone in the classroom. As with any part of life, people should be respectful of other people.
2. Incorporating diversity in the classroom as a part of daily curriculum not just “on top” of it is so important. It seems that some teachers teach diversity as something totally separate from other things taught in school. I have seen a lot of teachers talk about diversity just at Christmas time to emphasize the importance of different religions. The fact of the matter is that diversity can be emphasized as a part of many different subjects. It should also be emphasized that diversity isn’t just found within races. Teaching children that everyone is diverse in terms of their family, their personality, their friends, as well as their race and religion shows them that appreciating the difference in everyone is part of life. I want the kids in my class to feel that I embrace their differences and appreciate what every child has to bring to the classroom community.
3. Lastly (only for the sake of narrowing it down to 3) is energy. One common thing that I have noticed of all the great teachers that I have come across is energy. All of my favorite teachers seem to have so much energy to bring to the classroom. They are excited about what they are going to teach that day and that energy definitely shows. If you think about a teacher that comes up with a lesson that seems dull and something that they obviously don’t care that much about, the children have the ability to sense that. On the other hand, if a teacher has an activity that they thought deeply about and bring enthusiasm and energy to the classroom, the children will feel that energy and want to put forth more effort. I hope to bring that energy everyday into my classroom