Jackie Custer

“A GOOD TEACHER CAN INSPIRE HOPE, IGNITE THE IMAGINATION

AND INSTILL A LOVE OF LEARNING.” Brad Henry

Teaching young minds is a very hard task. It is full

of challenges, heart aches, frustration, and lots

of responsibilities. But it is also a task full of

excitement, creativity, and grace.

All children are capable of learning, but each student learns differently. As a teacher, I need to

be made aware of learning capabilities, motivation, and different behaviors to push my

students to their full potential.

All children are special and they each have something unique they can bring to their

own education. Every student comes from different cultures and backgrounds. When students

combine their differences and cultures, it helps make the classroom grow. As far as pedagogy I

need to start with activities in my classroom that my students already know from home, school,

and the community. In my classroom, I want students to have some freedom that allows for

expression and creativity. By doing this I will allow my students to work independently. I also

want to create a classroom that is a safe learning environment for all. I want to provide a sense

of trust with not only my students, but parents, and faculty.

I believe that group work is the key to having a successful class. I will be teaching middle

school students so I believe that group work is beneficial. Group work can help encourage

learning and help students be cooperative with each other. When students have jobs one day,
they will need to be able to work together with their employees whether they like them or not,

so starting early helps. This changes each person and transforms the atmosphere of the class.

I will also use visual literacy in my classroom. Visual literacy not only provides

knowledge to students, but it also keeps students more engaged and takes away from pencil

and paper worksheets. I am going to be teaching math, science, or both. For math, I can use 3D

shapes and pass around to each student to count the sides and angles. For science, I can show

the students different experiments and have the students try the experiments themselves.

Besides using visual literacy, I think using technology is important as well. I think I will

give students a break in the week and let them play various math games on their devices. Some

of the math games I will use are hoodamath, prodigy math, multiplication.com and many more.

One of the classes I observed this semester, the teacher allowed the students to play math

games for 20 minutes a day. He explained to me that they were still learning but he was giving

them a break from lectures. I think that is a perfect idea, especially for middle school students.

I am very passionate about teaching and I truly believe that it is my calling. I can’t wait

to make a difference in my student’s lives just like my teachers did for me.