Teacher's Vision
The feeling of comfort overwhelms you as you walk into the bright,
warm classroom. Pictures of people from around the world are posted on the
adjacent wall circling a big world map. The colors invite you to explore the
room and all the manipulatives that are set out on the table, along with the
bins that line the far wall. You have
just walked into my multi-cultural first grade classroom.
Centers, centers and more centers. I think that centers secure
students independence yet still allow for a structured atmosphere. There is a math center with an Abacus,
colorful beads for counting, dice and a lightbrite that all enhance mathematical
counting principles. Next to the math center is beautifully draped, vibrant
cloth from around the world, which is to invite all who want to experience the
multi-cultural reading center. Animal printed pillows, bean bags and
comfortable blankets all lay within the open tent structure. More centers, like
the writing workshop, mad science center, and history mystery, are positioned
throughout the classroom.
The students work is hung on the walls, off of their desks
and from the ceiling on a clothespin and laundry line. The teacher is there to
assist and encourage the students to explore and has a flexible schedule of
when things are done, but strict enough that all the criteria will be covered
according to how the person of the day wants it set up. Parents are always
welcome to assist in class. Whether they are grading papers, assisting students
or cutting out projects, the parental role will always be included in classroom
activities.
Future Goals
As the finish line is fast approaching for my Bachelor’s
degree in Elementary education, I must start setting goals for my future. My
main goal is to simply get a job at a school. Rural or inner-city, I would love
to teach at either as long as it is low-income. It must a be low-income school
because I received government aid called the “TEACH” grant, in which you must
teach in a low-income school for the amount of years you used the aid. I will
achieve this by continually volunteering in schools that have a need for a
teacher with a literacy endorsement, which I will have with my Bachelors. This
is a necessary endorsement, especially in a low-income school, because a lot of
low-income students don’t have enough support at home.
After a few years of teaching I would like to start
accomplishing my master’s in education. By taking classes each summer, to not
only fulfill my upkeep on my teaching credentials but to also expand my
learning and teaching philosophies. I
would like to get to my doctorate degree, but I am not going to set myself up
for failure and ridiculous expectations. I would like to eventually get married
(I personally need to find a man for that first) and then have some children
(also need a man for that). Depending on that and my energy level I will keep
that objective as a not a priority.
Another main objective of mine is to get some traveling in.
I am a huge advocate for exploring other places to become a better,
well-rounded multi-cultural educator. By simply putting away some of my paycheck
into a travel fund, I am hoping that I will be able to travel to China, Japan,
India and Norway. With these travels I will be able to furnish my class with
personal experiences and fun decorations.
These are just a few of my future goals and objectives that I would like
to accomplish before I kick the bucket, which may be very soon being that I am
going to be an elementary school teacher.
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