Pedagogical Philosophy
My teaching philosophy is all about truth and how to make learning accessible for everyone at any level. I always think about what kind of learner I was and am, and what helps keep me engaged in learning. I then try to model that for my students. In my classes, I often have students of all levels and abilities. I always teach students who are special education, bilingual, English language learners, general education, and IB students. Within my units, I always like to include a variety of assignments and mixed media. I always include podcasts, videos, and movies as text. We annotate and answer text-dependent questions from our mixed media just like we do for our written texts. I have always been a visual and auditory learner, and I find that most of my students are as well. Using mixed media as well as written text helps my students of all levels find a way to engage with the materials. Some of my special education or English language learners may have difficulty with written text but thrive with visuals, podcasts, or audiobooks. It also keeps the students engaged, and it helps my units not get stale and boring for students. I take student input and suggestions and always include their suggestions in my curriculum units.
This unit has been created for a senior English elective class. The class is meant to be a place for students of all levels to continue practicing and working on the skills they need in their English core class. These strategies are used for the entire school year as we circulate through our curriculum units. We start the school year with Social Emotional Learning (SEL) activities to begin to build trust and community for the entire school year. Throughout the year, SEL activities are used to maintain community in the classroom. Students learn best in environments they feel trust, care, and belonging. As an English class, students will also always Close Read and use Claim, Evidence, Reasoning (CER), when reading and analyzing a text. These three teaching strategies are the most important in our English classes.
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