​

 

“I can’t do this.” “I don’t know what this is about.” “I don’t like this.” “That is too hard for me.”Teachers hear these, and other statements like these, more times than would like to. But I do not hear these statements and shutter. Rather, I view them as an open door to ignite wonder, embolden self-discovery, stimulate confidence, and help students to develop their best self-practices when it comes to what they take away when they succeed, or possibly fail, a task.

​

To me, teaching and educating is not just about books and homework. Teaching is about guiding students through experiences on a deeper level, helping them learn more about themselves through learned experiences. By guiding students through meaningful experiences, a teacher becomes a portal of possibility for their minds. 

​

Teaching is essential in building up environments for inspiration, creativity, imagination, and self-expression for young minds. What blankets all of these is the ability for the student to step out of their own box, to gain courage, and self-reflect when starting and trying something new. I am hoping to give students a jumping off point for their future lives. 

​

I believe in the power of knowing when to do straight forward teaching, to supportively coach, and when to stand back and let students make every effort on their own in order to gain independence. Guiding students through a new activity and seeing them accomplish the final results either on their own or with some guidance shows them the possibilities for growth in many aspects of their lives. 

​

Inspiring a new passion in themselves that they will carry with them for the rest of their lives is what I am striving for. Whether it is a big accomplishment that they will be able to reference often in their future or a small activity that had meaning to them and they can have in their stockpile of accomplishments or learning activities. 

​

The most powerful learning is driven by students who are empowered to make choices, solve problems, and reflect on their progress throughout their learning. Taking a student from “I don’t know anything about this” to “Wow, I can’t believe I did that” or “Even though it was challenging, this is what I learned and am taking from this” is more important to me than the amount of perfection that is placed in students today. I believe that focusing on areas of growth are essential to maintaining and enriching self-confidence, creativity, openness, and vulnerability pertaining to self-learning.