When reflecting on this semester of student teaching, there have been so many challenges, so many

celebrations, and so much that I have learned. I have been pushed beyond my comfort zone, and I
have grown as a teacher immensely. It is hard for me to only talk about a few of the takeaways that I
have gained from this semester!

First, I have learned the importance of messing up. I know, this sounds crazy, but I have found myself
so nervous about screwing something up. I expected to always plan the perfect lesson, explain
everything perfectly, and have everything go smoothly and as planned. And let me be the first to say,
this is rarely the case. I have learned how important it is to accept that we are not perfect teachers,
and neither are our cooperating teachers! We all have things to learn, and my student teaching
experience has taught me how to learn from my mistakes rather than letting them eat away at me. I
learned something from my cooperating teacher and from the students almost every day, and being
open to this and vulnerable allowed me to grow, adapt, and think on my feet! Having these
experiences is the true life of a teacher.

With being honest about my mistakes and imperfections, I was able to also form stronger connections
with the students. This is another takeaway from the semester. I have always valued forming strong
relationships with my students in order to create the best learning environment for them, but I was
able to truly see the value of this throughout the semester. Being the first placement where I was able
to be with the students every day of the week, I was able to see the growth of my relationships with
them from day to day over the course of the semester. I was honestly intimidated working with older,
gifted students coming in, but I worked hard to break down their walls and get to know them as
individuals. I have loved getting to know each of my students likes, dislike, strengths, and
weaknesses. I believe that this has helped me better teach them and has made my classroom a
happier place to learn!

Finally, I have learned the importance of having an open mind. You can walk into any classroom and
see completely different environments, teaching styles, student personalities, curriculum, resources,
etc. It is so easy to have your own ways and your own approaches to teaching, disregarding anything
else that you encounter. I have learned that opening up to approaches and styles that I am not
particularly used to is beneficial to help me learn more ways that I can help my students and to also
learn more about what I like and dislike as a teacher. Rarely does anyone have a perfect student
teaching placement. I am fortunate to have enjoyed mine, but I have also learned that there is value in
learning about what you do not want to do as a teacher just as much as learn what you do want to do.
It is so important to continue being open minded so that you can leave room to grow into a more
effective teacher!

I have really enjoyed my student teaching experience despite all of its hardships and challenges. I
found myself in very low points but also in very high points throughout the semester, but I can clearly
see how it has all grown me as a teacher, and I feel as though I can confidently walk into whatever
classroom I will be teaching in next year. I cannot believe that the time has come for my own
classroom; I can hardly wait!