Teaching Beliefs and Practices

     I feel that as a starting teacher it is easy to claim what your teaching beliefs are, but it's slightly more difficult to actually carry out your beliefs in your curriculum. Debbie Miller, author of Teaching With Intentions, discusses how matching beliefs with practices takes time. You must make observations of your student's work and discussions, reflect on your lesson plans, and alter practices that don't align with your beliefs. Since I don't have a classroom of my own, nor have I had the opportunity to observe, reflect, modify any lesson plans to fit my beliefs, I'll do my best to explain a few teaching beliefs that I hope to work into my curriculum.
   
Holistic Approach to Teaching
     I believe that students learn best with holistic practices. Last semester I took two classes, Literature and Learning I and II, where I was able to look through basal readers, books with lesson plans designed to fit the core curriculum. Many school districts have adopted this curriculum and require teachers to use them in their classes. Glancing through them during class was surprising for me because many of the readings were small sections out of entire chapter books and students had no context whatsoever. One lesson I looked at had a reading assignment based on the last chapter of a book. Teaching reading to students like this cuts out their ability to make well developed settings, character qualities, plots, etc. I would rather have my students read an entire chapter book to find information than use various sections of books to answer questions given by a basal reader.
   
Read, Read, Read!
     As discussed in many of my education courses, reading is the best way students learn how to read. Independent reading, literature circles, & whole group reading will all be apart of my future classroom curriculum. As a teacher, it is important to know your books. Authors, titles, genres, etc. should be stored in your brain, or at least in a notebook of some sort, so that you can help students find books that are perfect for them. Giving students ample time to read and discuss their readings are important as well. Students can discuss amongst themselves about each of their books, which might even spark some reading interest from other students.

Student Led Activities
     Teachers are great for modeling how to carry out a great discussion, lead groups, and take on roles and responsibilities, but I believe that students need to eventually become less dependent on the teacher leading every activity. In my classroom, I want natural discussions and I want students to be able to take on their responsibilities with little to no guidance from the teacher. Miller talks about this being one of her teaching beliefs and how it takes time for this to happen. You can't expect students to know how to create a good and productive discussion or expect them to be able to take on classroom roles without modeling and constant practice.

Safe and Inviting Classroom Environment
     All students deserve a place where they feel safe, respected, and valued. Like many students the classroom may be that only place for them. I think creating a classroom community where students are able to freely express themselves and able to talk openly with others is one of the most important things to establish at the beginning of the school year. When students feel valued and respected, they will demonstrate that towards others and lessons will run more smoothly. There will always be hiccups and arguments that arise, but if the class has already developed a sense of community, those issues will hopefully be resolved quickly. Rules created by students will help establish the sense of respect and community because the teacher is giving them the power to determine what they want for a classroom environment. It's not created by the teacher and ordered to obey the teacher's rules.

     Most of the professors for my education classes here at the University of Iowa have discussed how the core curriculum and school district policies influence your curriculum and how you teach, even if you and your school have conflicting ideal practices. With experience and thoughtful planning, I feel like teachers not only find interesting and creative lessons, they make a classroom more enjoyable for themselves and their students. Students should have fun at school and they should enjoy being in class. Not every lesson will be enjoyable, but if you put time and effort into making lesson plans that focus on students' interests and are engaging, you are going to make your students love school.