"When I walk into a classroom, I know that the teacher is effective if I have a hard time finding them at first."
~ Kath Murdoch
My name is Katie White. I have been a primary school teacher for ten years. My time as a teacher has been divided between Grade 2 for three years and Grade 3 for the last seven years. I have a BA in Art, I am a certified K-8 classroom teacher and K-12 art teacher, I am a technology coach, and I am completing a Master’s in Educational Technology from Michigan State University in July, 2014.
Philosophy
My philosophy of education is grounded in the notion that we as educators are preparing our students to find solutions to problems that do not necessarily exist yet. My approach is to incorporate creative, differentiated, and innovative assignments which often include technology, in an engaging and safe environment. Combining these aspects with a focus of “how” students learn is what makes me an excellent teacher.
Innovative and Engaging Lessons:
Throughout my classroom you can see innovative and creative approaches to teaching, often incorporating technology and frequently presented through inquiry/problem-based lessons, which enable students to feel connected to their learning. One example is during a unit on habitats when my students created environmental news report videos using a green screen that allowed students to simulate an on-location setting using iMovie with theme music and picture-in-picture. Students not only learned about animals in a particular habitat and the threats to that habitat but also about basic editing of a movie with a green screen and background, songs, pictures, and a title. Having multiple objectives in an assessment allows students of different learning styles to be successful and engaged. During another unit about art, I encouraged my students to be risk-takers when they chose to give persuasive presentations to an older grade. I also presented them with a challenge to look at art through an art dealer’s eye. Each student researched a piece of artwork they chose. They used both library books and safe searches on the Internet to learn about the artist and where, when, and how the pieces were created. Each student then wrote a persuasive paper about this piece of art and presented their papers to the Grade 4 classes in attempt to “sell” the art. The motivation for this project was that sometimes studying an artist or a painting can be hard to connect with but adding a twist of persuasion and competition enabled the students to take ownership, stay engaged, and have authentic inquiry for knowledge. This idea of ownership and engagement is important and prevalent in my classroom.
Devotion to Differentiation:
Differentiation, when done correctly, fosters successful and happy students. Having taught beginning ESL students in the mainstream classroom and a classroom weighted heavily with those students who have learning needs with a co-teacher, differentiation has become essential to my teaching. I feel it is extremely important for me to not only recognize where students have gaps but then to make appropriate adjustments to assignments and lessons that cater to each student, all while keeping parents closely involved with their child’s progress. One of my objectives is for each student to go home at the end of each day and be able to feel their academic growth and share this growth with their families. In my classroom, differentiation happens with everything from the amount and type of math problems students are assigned to the books they read and the questions they answer. This kind of instruction doesn’t stop at school, students take their differentiated subjects home for home-learning as well. One way parents stay informed of their children learning journey is through technology and "cloud computing" such as Google Drive and another is our grade level website which informs parents of the current curricular units and a weekly blog post that encourages family conversations on their child's learning.
In a classroom with 20 different reading levels, math abilities, and comprehension levels, and 5-6 different mother tongue languages, differentiation is key. This level of commitment to knowing my students’ strengths and needs and knowing how to meet those needs is what defines me as a great teacher.
Philosophy
My philosophy of education is grounded in the notion that we as educators are preparing our students to find solutions to problems that do not necessarily exist yet. My approach is to incorporate creative, differentiated, and innovative assignments which often include technology, in an engaging and safe environment. Combining these aspects with a focus of “how” students learn is what makes me an excellent teacher.
Innovative and Engaging Lessons:
Throughout my classroom you can see innovative and creative approaches to teaching, often incorporating technology and frequently presented through inquiry/problem-based lessons, which enable students to feel connected to their learning. One example is during a unit on habitats when my students created environmental news report videos using a green screen that allowed students to simulate an on-location setting using iMovie with theme music and picture-in-picture. Students not only learned about animals in a particular habitat and the threats to that habitat but also about basic editing of a movie with a green screen and background, songs, pictures, and a title. Having multiple objectives in an assessment allows students of different learning styles to be successful and engaged. During another unit about art, I encouraged my students to be risk-takers when they chose to give persuasive presentations to an older grade. I also presented them with a challenge to look at art through an art dealer’s eye. Each student researched a piece of artwork they chose. They used both library books and safe searches on the Internet to learn about the artist and where, when, and how the pieces were created. Each student then wrote a persuasive paper about this piece of art and presented their papers to the Grade 4 classes in attempt to “sell” the art. The motivation for this project was that sometimes studying an artist or a painting can be hard to connect with but adding a twist of persuasion and competition enabled the students to take ownership, stay engaged, and have authentic inquiry for knowledge. This idea of ownership and engagement is important and prevalent in my classroom.
Devotion to Differentiation:
Differentiation, when done correctly, fosters successful and happy students. Having taught beginning ESL students in the mainstream classroom and a classroom weighted heavily with those students who have learning needs with a co-teacher, differentiation has become essential to my teaching. I feel it is extremely important for me to not only recognize where students have gaps but then to make appropriate adjustments to assignments and lessons that cater to each student, all while keeping parents closely involved with their child’s progress. One of my objectives is for each student to go home at the end of each day and be able to feel their academic growth and share this growth with their families. In my classroom, differentiation happens with everything from the amount and type of math problems students are assigned to the books they read and the questions they answer. This kind of instruction doesn’t stop at school, students take their differentiated subjects home for home-learning as well. One way parents stay informed of their children learning journey is through technology and "cloud computing" such as Google Drive and another is our grade level website which informs parents of the current curricular units and a weekly blog post that encourages family conversations on their child's learning.
In a classroom with 20 different reading levels, math abilities, and comprehension levels, and 5-6 different mother tongue languages, differentiation is key. This level of commitment to knowing my students’ strengths and needs and knowing how to meet those needs is what defines me as a great teacher.