L ISA A. D EXTER Teaching Values and Identity... So far!

H I ! I’ M M ISS D EXTER ! What do I value most as a teacher?... Well although I think it is very important to teach the curriculum, I think it is equally important to teach students life skills along the way such as being a good citizen, volunteering, common sense, accountability, responsibility, feeding their curiosity, encouraging their confidence, creating a safe, engaging and honest classroom, and most of all developing their sense of self. The list could go on and on, but we’ll leave it at that for now as this is not supposed to be a full season long, but only a sneak peek into my current goals and values of education. Lisa A. DexterIntroduction

Planning (I-AIM) I think a big part of education is planning. Not only planning in accordance to the curriculum, but primarily planning to include the students. And by including each student, I don’t just mean making sure you have enough work sheets for everyone, but really taking into account the ways they learn, the experiences they bring into the classroom, and the resources they can be to each lesson. I have noticed that this semester all of the six lesson plans I have written begin with a discussion activity. I tell the students what topic we’ll be talking about and ask them to tell me what they know. As they hit upon key points that I want to focus on, I guide the discussion in that area to begin the lesson. If they don’t bring up the points I was hoping for, then I know I need to give them a little background or one of my prior experiences of the topic so they have a basis to build upon. Each student has different experiences that can really be beneficial as learning tools in the classroom. Sometimes kids can explain things better to their peers than I ever could, but that not only helps the class, but gives a little boost of confidence and satisfaction to the student who had the prior knowledge. And let me tell you, as a girl who brought her own Daddy in for show and tell in first grade, I was never more excited to go to school and learn than I was that day to go to school and teach!

Teaching(Pedagogical Strategies) I also believe a huge part of a student’s education is the way in which they are taught. Everyone learns differently, so I think it is only fair that teachers present material in different ways. And again, I don’t mean just by changing the color of the worksheet from day to day, I mean giving them a worksheet one day, a PowerPoint presentation another, a craft based lesson the next day, and maybe a class discussion to round out the unit. While planning lessons and leaving room for students to share their experiences, Get Creative! As a dancer, I can’t wait to integrate subject so that students learn about maps through playing a round of United States Twister! Or let students experiment with sound using objects in and out of the classroom. Such unique teaching styles I believe promote learning in and out of the classroom, making for a more intrigued student, Which is this future teachers dream! Strict and Discipline Teaching Style? Adventuring and Hands On (Mr. Ray from Finding Nemo) Teaching Style?

Throughout this second to last semester of my college career, I have really learned a lot about teaching, and about myself as a teacher. I have learned to accept hugs even if it means the student just wants to wipe their nose across your pant leg, or to relive the excitement and fascination with things we big kids take for granted like volcanoes or tornados. This semester though, I have really learned to listen to students, and think about why they are bringing up what may seem off topic ideas, or listen to their thought process (wrong or right) on a given topic. Sometimes students are making a connection to material that may seem very off, but in their thinking is right on track! So rather than blow off such statements, get in their heads and ask them to explain. Yes, it might make things off topic for a few minutes, or take more time than the lesson plan you prepared allows, but to them, their idea was worth mentioning, so hear them out. I have also become much more comfortable and confident with science and social studies material, making me much more of a confident teacher. I’ve never been one to be interested in science because I wasn’t naturally good at it. I had to study extra hard, unlike my friends, which made me hate the subject. But it never had to be that way. I wasn’t naturally good at dancing, but I my dance teacher found ways to explain things to me to help me. I’ve never been naturally good at spelling, but a teacher early in my education taught me to use flash cards in studying, helping me immensely, and I’ve never dreaded spelling since. It’s a matter of finding ways to reach your students. Not every student is going to be naturally good at every subject, but that’s why there are teachers! To give those students the resources and encouragement they could use to improve and grow. Not only am I excited to teach because I love seeing that light bulb go off in a student’s head, but I feel equipped with different teaching styles and tons of resources to provide students to help them be the best students they can be.  As the character Derek Zoolander (from the movie Zoolander) asks, “Who am I?”