8 Questions
Who am I and what motivates me?
When have I been the most motivated?
When I believe in my purpose.
John Dewey - "I believe.." Each one
of Deweys lines in his pedagogic decree
starts with "I believe".
Write a list of things that I believe in.
This will help me see how I can act on
my beliefs and make a difference.
When am I experiencing joy and bliss?
When I am strengthening relationships
and building others up.
Each day in class I could do a positive
activity that would help all of us get to know each other better. Thus creating an environment of friendship and confidence.
Empowering Students to Learn
How do I view and magnify
those I teach?
How would Christ view the students
that I teach?
Christ would view His students
as intelligent human beings who have
unlimited potential.
Pray for that ability when I am a teacher.
Horace Mann - First thing
he talks about is each childs
ability to become whatever they
want to become.
Equality
Why is it important
that the students
believe in themselves?
Believing in yourself can bring more
self motivation.
Self motivation is key to learning.
How do I help students become self motivated?
I believe it comes through example.
Share with the students what you have
learned that week that has nothing to do with what we are talking about in class.
Building a Foundation
Create a foundation of self belief.
Create an environment where the child
finds himself excited to ask questions
and learn for himself.
John Dewey - Believed that a students
education came from the power of his or
her social environment.
Have a system where I give students
a compliment about how they are doing in class. I would write it out and give it to them personally. Each student would get one and nobody would get more than anyone else. This would help them see that they are good students and have potential to learn even more.
What is my work as learner
and teacher?
Always be innovating new ways to teach.
Never teach the same topic the same way.
How can I accomplish this?
Resources such as books, teachers
blogs, seminars, Ted Talks.
Creativity
What is worth teaching?
The real question might be what is not
worth teaching?
Are there things that the students don't need to know?
Are hundreds of work sheets really
going to teach a student?
Creativity in the learning place
drives new learning experiences.
Wolk - Worksheets lead to a devoid
in original thoughts and ideas.
Creativity
Who is to decide on whats worthy of
of teaching?
Is it possible for children to learn
and teach themselves to a certain degree?
Do an experiment in class where the
students spend the day or part of the day teaching each other, then reporting what they learned.
How do I learn?
Who has gotten me excited to learn? Why?
Many of my teachers and my little
brother.
What about them inspired you to
learn?
I feel that sharing these examples
with the students is very important. They can decide what kind of person they want to be based off of these examples.
Building a Foundation
Upon what foundation are U.S.
public schools built?
What was the first lesson ever taught?
This would be a tricky one because the
first lesson ever taught was to Adam and Eve. That being a religious topic would not be okay to share in a classroom. I would share with the students a lesson that would have been taught in an old school house when the United States was just formed.
Creativity
What can I do to start building
a new foundation?
Don't be afraid to push the boundaries.
Try new things in the classroom. Do
something that has never been done before.
Rousseau - Feels education system is
restricted. Not open to new ideas.
Why is it important to know our countries history.
Knowing the past helps you appreciate
the present.
Help the students imagine what it
would feel like to grow up in that day and age.
Gratitude
It allows us to know our role as citizens
of this country.
Equality
Racism. Why it is so important.
I think teaching children about
the Brown Vs. Board case is very
important. It is something they can
relate to. It is a very powerful story.
Du Bois - Equality. All children,
regardless of race or color deserve
and need an education.
What is the role of school in society?
How did my school experience shape who
I am and how I contribute to society?
My school experience taught me how to just
get by. Not the power of learning and how fun it can be.
What can I do to prevent students from
just getting by?
In the classroom I can get to know each
student personally. I can talk to them one on one to see how they are doing.
Teach them the benefits of working hard.
Empowering Students
to Learn
Show what it means to be a learner.
Pestalozzi - Must pick up the crumb.
Follow different trains of thought.
Show that there isn't one correct way of learning.
What is the role of learning and teaching
in the home?
How can I learn while teaching?
What do our prophets and apostles
say about learning in the home?
What's more important, being an
example or actually teaching your kids
lessons on whats right and wrong?
There isn't one that is more important.
They both depend on parenting styles and the situation.