One of my favorite words is respect. No community, our classroom in this case, can move forward without it. As soon as my students step foot into the classroom, I want them to know that it becomes our classroom. They will be treated like the adults they are fast becoming as long as they treat each other, myself, our classroom, and the school with respect.
My hope is that creating a positive, respectful environment will lead to a more productive class. Not all of the projects and work we take on have simple, straightforward answers. Through discussion, problem solving and patient perseverance we can make attempts at solving our problems. I encourage my students to take risks in their work. The more risks we take, the better problem solvers we will become!
In order to give my students the best of my practices, I actively reflect on what I have done, what I am doing and what I could be doing. By reflecting I am able to step back and acknowledge when something isn't working as well as it could be for the class or an individual student. It is challenging to take a different perspective, but when I do come across that feeling I am able to ask for an observation or a conference to get assistance to better develop a plan or activity. Through these practices I hope to model excellent learning practices for my students. It is hard to ask for help and find a different way to accomplish a goal. Not everything is perfect or works the first time, even for adults. If my students seeing me asking for help, I hope they will know it's my hope they will too. Asking for help is how we grow!
No comments:
Post a Comment