Over the years I would always say I don't want to be "just" a teacher. For quite some time; to me, it seemed to be just a typical major. It took me a long time, and even some different life experiences to realize that I wanted to head down the path of becoming a teacher. As I have come to realize strengths that I have, and what I love to do there is no better place for me than to be in a classroom. A teacher will spend their day planning a lesson, and teaching a lesson specially for the needs of the students in the class. Being a teacher goes far beyond just those two things. As I have been able to spend time in a school setting a teacher is a motivator, leader, facilitator, behavior manager, supporter, encourager, and need to give praise. As I mentioned earlier one of the roles of a teacher, and this could possibly be a challenge is being able to adapt and specifically meet the needs of your students. From an early age children need to know that they can succeed, but we also need to recognize that each child is different. Which is how we want it to be. I have noticed that it applies a dynamic to a classroom setting as you watch children excel with learning in different ways. We have explored in this section three different types of learners which are: auditory, visual, and kinesthetic.
Auditory Learners - would rather listen to given information than read about it.
Visual Learners - learn the best by looking at something such as: graphs, pictures, charts, or even reading.
Kinesthetic Learners - Like the "hands on" experiences. For them an activity is more beneficial than sitting down for a discussion.
As a teacher we have the responsibility to apply each of these in are classrooms realizing that the students fall into different categories. I work at a school with a decent percent of Spanish speaking families, and most of the children are bilingual. In a particular first grade class there is a little boy who only speaks Spanish. I have been blessed with the ability to know Spanish. The other day the teacher was going to be absent, and she let me know that because there was going to be a substitute the next day in class. Which means that this specific child would especially be out of their element, and if I would go make sure that he was doing OK. She explained to me that he is always a good kid, but because there is that language barrier I needed to make sure he was on task. I was able to visit with this little boy, and I noticed that he likes to look at picture books, and will start talking in Spanish as he is looking through them. Now what I observed is that even if this child is an auditory learner it makes it extremely difficult for him where he does not completely understand whats happening. Also, as he looks at picture books I can see his creative mind. For him in that specific situation he may not understand all the the words but he can visually see a picture, and want to come up with something on his own. In situations such as these often times there can be other issues such as distraction or board-em. Its important to understand the specific needs of EACH child, and what ways are going to help them succeed the most.
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