Connection Approximately two years ago, I embarked
on an adventure to become an elementary educator. Throughout my career as an
industrial designer (imagining, visualizing, and designing new ideas for toys, games,
and products for children), I became aware of the many connections between the
iterative design process I know so well, and the ways that children experience
and learn about the world we share. The disciplines of design are well aligned
with those of discovering and constructing new knowledge through investigation
and hands-on experience. Curiosity, creativity, inquiry, planning, observation,
communication, and assessment are common to design and teaching. Expanding this scope to
encompass technology, engineering, and both the visual and performing arts,
makes my personal connection and professional experience doubly significant and
relevant to what I hope to achieve as a teacher.
Compassion
I value and encourage a learning
environment that celebrates and honors every child as an individual.
Experiencing cultural diversity and multiple perspectives is a critical
component to a comprehensive education. A diverse classroom is filled with
social and academic learning opportunities that enable children to understand
the ideas and feelings of others, fostering intellectual growth and developing
better learners. If true social harmony is indeed possible, it will surely
emerge from the “small society” of elementary school. That is where positive
behavior modeling and leadership by teachers and parents will produce the next
good citizens of the world, and truly kind human beings.
Curiosity Education is a relentless iterative
process, and I will always be looking for what works for each learner.
Reflection, refinement, and revision are all vital necessities to making
planning, instructing, assessing, and connecting function properly. In my
classroom, I hope to provide an environment that is like a gymnasium for
conditioning the growth mindset. In this “learning studio” we will not be
afraid to fail. We will tolerate disequilibrium as we learn, assimilate, and
accommodate new knowledge. I will share my curiosity about animals, plants,
people, oceans, space, machines, geography, history, art, design, music, food,
and more. Most of all I want to share my love of learning new things about
anything, because the real love is truly in the learning.
Commitment My love for children and their sound
development is boundless, and that commitment is what has primarily driven me
to pursue the teaching arts. I believe that all children deserve the
opportunity to learn in a safe, fair, consistent, collaborative, and enjoyable
environment of kindness and respect. I support the idea that enjoyable lessons
are memorable, so I am a proponent of meaningful play in learning. This belief,
my intuitive and positive connection with children, combined with my intensive
study of pedagogy and teaching practices while earning my Master of Arts in
Teaching in Elementary Education at Rhode Island College, finds me
fundamentally prepared to enter the profession as an elementary educator who is
ready to teach, and so importantly, ready to learn.