I am a middle school science teacher. Middle schoolers have a lot of enthusiasm for science and exploring science questions. They are just so fun to teach! The days we do labs are so engaging for them and for me. They are so happy to be "scientists" and I enjoy watching them think things through, ask questions, plan, test, and then the joy as they observe the results. We are just such curious beings and middle schoolers will happily ask if they can try it again and test a new question. They also love to debate and argue, which becomes a very exciting part of our class learning process. My passion is most of all for the people I teach. I would like to work on establishing a model for our middle school that connects students in a meaningful way with a mentor teacher. Our school is so large (820 students) and I worry that students are slipping through the cracks and not really having their needs for belonging met. These mentors could be selected by a period of the day, like a homeroom model, or maybe by projects or clubs. Students need to know there is a teacher they can go to when school is overwhelming, when they just need some extra help, or they need some direction on how to get help, a person to lead them in reflecting on their learning and planning the next steps. There is a line in the song "Beautiful Anyway" by the band Judah and the Lion that says, "I'm here for a reason...I'm known and loved". That message is so powerful. Imagine if we could embed that message solidly in every middle schooler, along with a feeling of being a capable learner, a problem solver. They would just be unstoppable! And they would change the world!
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AuthorHello! Welcome to my blog! This will be a fun place to share thoughts about teaching and learning. I am a middle school science teacher at Redwood. When I'm not teaching, I'm hanging out at home with my family or enjoying nature somewhere in the valley. Archives
March 2021
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