Reflecting on my Unique Journey
Shy, late, active, prepared, friendly, frustrating- each child enters the classroom with a pre-arranged personality. Each child carries their own strengths and weaknesses linked to their individual experiences with the world. Just like the students, the teacher has her own previous life experiences and neither the teacher nor the child should be expected to drop their out-of-class life at the classroom door. Teachers can use their past experiences to assist other children. Teachers also need to learn each child’s individual strengths and weakness to create the best learning experience for them; teachers can use the students already formed personality to create a useful environment. During my practicum this summer I was able to use each child’s unique personality to create an experience each child could thrive in, I created lesson plans that were best suited for my students and I adjusted what was needed in the classroom for my students to improve.
As a teacher, my strengths have been formed through my past classroom experiences. As a student, I thought very highly of some of my grade school teachers. Teachers that took the time to consider my funds of knowledge and took a few seconds out of their day to jot down quotes to use to create a better environment are teachers I strive to be like. My tenth-grade math teacher taught me that each student has their own identity and a different personality. Through this practicum, I have discovered parts of teaching I didn’t know existed, such as funds of knowledge. A fund of knowledge refers to an individual’s personal knowledge, which is based on their personal experiences in life. Each individual will have a unique fund of knowledge shaped through their own personal experiences, thoughts, and values.
My second-grade teacher taught me to have patience and that some students take longer to understand the lesson than others but it is important to take the time to help those who need an extra push to comprehend just as much as the child next to him. Through this practicum, I’ve been able to verify that children do need their own individual attention. Creating a monthly learning story for each child is one of my new favorite ways to focus on children individually. Learning stories also help me form a better relationship with the children’s families. Before this practicum, I didn’t really think of useful ideas I could incorporate in my classroom to focus on one child while building a bond with that child’s family.
As I got older I learned that as a student I played a big role in my teachers’ lives, but as a teacher, I’d play an even bigger role in my students' life. It’s okay for a teacher to make mistakes but it’s not okay for a teacher to continue making the same mistakes. Teachers need to learn from their mistakes to allow children to give better opportunities to succeed. My tenth grade English teacher taught me I can succeed and that I should never give up on my goal. Through this practicum, I dealt with a lot of complicated situations that honestly made me question my career path. I spent many nights this summer reflecting on why I chose to be a teacher and each night I circled back to –the kids. The sole reason I want to be a teacher is for the kids, I want to be the person they count on to always show up, to always support them and to always make them feel they can trust. Instead of allowing the negative parts of this summer to tear me down I learned from them, I took the good out of each situation and made a lesson.
For example, some days I struggled with Victor’s behavior. I didn’t know what to do and I didn’t know what to do next so I took the opportunity to speak to Victor’s mom. I was nervous and overwhelmed but overall it helped form a better relationship with his mom. Just from one talk, I felt comfortable speaking with Victor and I was eager to give his mom updates throughout the camp. She informed me of what she does at home and it helped me deal with Victor. During this practicum, I realized a parent-teacher relationship is a great tool for every party involved.
While I did improve greatly this summer as a teacher I still need improvement. And I believe I will always need improvement, even after working in a school for decades teachers can still learn. A few years ago while I was working at a deaf school I realized I learn more life lessons from my students than they learn from me. Every day I learn something new in the classroom, even when I’m the oldest one in the classroom. I still need to work on patience with children, in certain situations I have to excuse myself or ignore the situation as a whole and I feel like a teacher shouldn’t walk away from a child’s need. Certain days Aiden required a lot of attention and at moments I felt the best thing was to ignore him, but I wish I hadn’t. Aiden clearly needed more attention and I failed him. I need to work on that in my future classrooms and in life in general. I can continue to work on my classroom manners even outside of the classroom.
In my future practicums and coursework, I will work on patience and I will try to understand the child’s needs. If I can understand what the child is struggling with I can find the patience to guide the child into what is best for them. Londyn was struggling with letter recognition and sometimes it was hard to find the patience to continue working with her but once I discovered, through my teacher’s help, Londyn was struggling with a fine motor skill as well I was able to find a better avenue for her to learn her letters. Londyn needed tangible letters to manipulate and touch as she worked with them. In my future practicum, I will use notes, observations and the child’s responses to understand the whole situation.
As a teacher, I need to guide children to what is best for them. Even if I don’t agree or don’t understand what is best for them I need to guide children into the best path for them. Each child is different and deserves my undivided attention. From this practicum, I’ve learned each child needs their own lesson, their own attention, their own questions and as their teacher I need to find what works best for them. Instead of giving children the rules we asked the children what rules they believed would work best in the classroom. I was amazed at the children’s answers and I was even more amazed at the respect the children gave to their own answers. Some guidelines they set didn’t make much sense to me but they had ample respect for what they came up and as a teacher, it’s important for me to continue allowing children the ability to find their own path. As a teacher, I should guide children rather than direct them.