About Laura H.
All children are highly capable learners. It is our job as teachers to tap into students’ skills and show them how brilliant they are. In order to do this, I believe it is important to listen to ou... more
All children are highly capable learners. It is our job as teachers to tap into students’ skills and show them how brilliant they are. In order to do this, I believe it is important to listen to our students and to utilize their many languages. As Malaguzzi stated, there are a hundred languages to children. By catering to all hundred languages and providing content in various forms according to their multiple intelligences, a student can be taught anything. In addition to creating exceptional learners, we must instill confidence and compassion within our students. We have a duty to our nation and to our world to make sure that we are building up the human race rather than tearing it down. It is our job to make sure that students are globally and culturally aware so that they may participate not only on a local community scale but on a national and global scale. As role models, we prepare students with the knowledge, communication, and leadership skills necessary to lead happy and personally successful lives.
A key component of creating students with these skills is how I manage my classroom. My goal for classroom management is to motivate students intrinsically to learn and participate as a member of the classroom community. This is achieved by student input towards appropriate behaviors in the classroom community. Respecting their input helps to create self-aware and responsible students. This also leads to students becoming problem solvers and mediating their own issues as they arise. When the community agreement cannot fix an issue, I believe in using positive reinforcement to regain influence. As a firm believer in asset-based thinking, I prefer to redirect my students by focusing on the amazing and wonderful achievements they make in my class. This strategy sets students up for reaching higher goals than they themselves could imagine. On the occasion, negative reinforcement becomes necessary, and when it does, I discuss the student's actions with them. This encourages self-reflection on their actions and fosters a bond of trust, which in turn allows me to create a deeper understanding of how to support them better in the future.
Another factor in managing my students is the environment of my classroom. As a teacher, it is my job to be diligent and proactive towards positive and negative stimuli for my students. One thing that can contribute to this is the layout of my classroom. Establishing an open and inviting classroom where students have flexible seating to learn is essential to me as it allows for each student the opportunity to have a comfortable learning space. As long as they are engaged and participating, it does not matter to me if they are sitting on a pillow, at a table, or on the carpet. In addition, it is vital for me to bring the outdoors in as I see the outdoor environment as a natural teaching tool and enhancer of learning. Through these changes to normal school environments, I can enhance the engagement of my students.
Student involvement in a class is critical to managing a classroom. Through STEM, arts integration, and 21st-century strategies I can foster engagement and curiosity within lessons. It is my belief that these strategies allow for the natural development of differentiated and project-based learning which takes into consideration the students’ multiple intelligences. These techniques play to each child’s strength and allow them to demonstrate their knowledge through a variety of methods. Tied in with this is critical thinking. The above strategies teach students to think critically about the world around them and how they can utilize their schema to move forward in learning. In addition, these strategies teach students how to think about their thinking, making them more mindful scholars. These strategies also allow students to use Howard Gardner’s whole brain thinking as they are challenged not just to regurgitate information but to analyze, transform, and construct meaning.
Lastly, it is also my goal to incorporate technology throughout my lessons. In preparing my students to be globally aware and capable learners, I believe that it is necessary to expose and utilize technology in the classroom. It is my role as the teacher to make sure my students are prepared to use technology, and that they use it appropriately. Technology also keeps students engaged which lessens the outbreak of disruptive behavior in class. I do not expect it to be silent all the time. On the contrary, I expect there to be a buzz of inquiry, sharing, and formulating ideas as we integrate technology. According to Lev Vygotsky, learning is a community event. It does not happen just by sitting alone in a room. It happens by sharing and discussing ideas locally and globally through the internet. In my classroom, there will always be room for a bit of buzz as I expect my students to help each other discover and understand new ideas.