My Teaching Style?

When I consider my years within the public school and how I taught, the first word that comes to mind is "organized". Nothing made me feel more at ease and comfortable than an organized classroom and lesson structure.

Thinking about this more, I noticed that I focused more on the methodology and subject time more than anything. Reflecting back on when I was a student, one of the things I hated most was when we studied a unit over and over and over and over until we spent at least a month on a five-page story. By that time the teacher beat the topics into our heads and we were sick of them when the test or final project came around. To keep my lessons organized, I aim to set a timeline for how long it will cover everything. As Christenbury and Lindlom state, it is important to consider the needs of the students when learning a topic. In this case, I try (but need to work on) leaving some cushion time in class my students don't understand a topic.

For methodology, I love to incorporate the idea of "I do, WE do, YOU do" for lessons. When I was able to form this pattern in the classroom, my lessons went very well. Students were able to have some kind of a lecture from me followed by an example before an activity they do on their own or with a group. This seems to help both myself and my students get into a pattern to help keep the class functioning and productive with some fun. With this, I also like to add time for discussion in the classroom for any questions or concerns on the work or topic.

I fear I might struggle at times with keeping all lessons current though. Let's face it...many of our current events suck to talk about. Though some of my most engaging classroom conversations were based on different current events (ex: equality in the classroom, different forms of mass violence, and racism today) not all students were invested and some were even made uncomfortable after a while. Learning the right balance of when to discuss these topics and when to take a step back is something I'm working on. What I have found has worked well is making connections between our work and the present day.  Christenbury and Lindlom note that there are topics, such as British poetry, that are difficult to make relevant to today, but that doesn't mean its impossible. When learning about the American Revolution, I had fifth-grade students make connections on their own to today. One student asked "Why does it always talk about me? All MEN are created equal...why not say people and include women?" This let to the best discussion on equality today and through the years. The whole class (including the boys!!!) agreed that the wording should change. Sure, the American Revolution is in the past, but it still relates to today by showing how we got here.

(When Jasmine Cephas Jones, Renee Elise Goldsberry, and Phillipa Soo added "and sisterhood" to America the Beautiful during Superbowl LI)

I know what works best for me in the classroom, but in the end, is that really what matters? Sure it helps for me to enjoy the way I'm teaching, but sometimes a compromise needs to be reached and I'll need to start stepping outside my comfort zone.