When reflecting on what I do everyday, I quickly realized that I could not contain it in a brief description or a box. Yes, I am a teacher, but what exactly does that mean? To me, when I asked myself this question, my mind went in about a million different directions....But I think that is what it was supposed to do. It is imperative when you work within the education world to be able to wear millions of hats everyday. No child and no day is ever the same and so, you must have a LARGE hat collection.
In our ever changing world our students need us to be their ROCK, a division in their SUPPORT SYSTEM, and their HERO. These to me are the three hats that have to stay consistent all day and everyday. Our kids have to know without a doubt that we are on their team, we love them for who they are, and they are ALL important.
Here are some other hats that I wear with real-life examples: hahahaha
Entertainer Hat: When I am in my classroom I am "on stage" everyday. I feel that it is critical to entertain your students so they can have a once in a lifetime experience every time they walk into their classroom. Some things that I do that have worked in the past....
*I jump up on my desk or tables and teach for a few minutes
*Maybe I sing (at the top of my lungs) old songs to wake them up
*Brainbreak!
*Take a walk outside or work outside
*Dress up everyday
*Be passionate about their learning
*Have a strong poker face
*Be funny
*be a blockbuster hit
Coaching Hat: Some students need a little extra motivation or drive. I believe that every student is "coachable". You can reach every student if you know them. As a coach encourages their players and comes up with a game plan to win, I do the same thing with my students:
*Be their biggest fan
*Use inspiring words
*Be positive
*When they struggle with something, support them
*Use relevant constructive criticism
*whooohoooo....get fired UUUPPPP!!!!!!!!!
Crazy Aunt Hat: Everyone has one and I am one in real-life lol. For me it is extremely important for my students to understand that I am a human. That I understand what they are going through and sometimes life is hard. I try to relate to them as a role-model that offers advise to help them navigate through their crazy teenage lives...This one is easy for me:)
*Humanize yourself
*Listen
*Don't judge
*love them even when it's hard
*offer advise that you wished someone would have given you
*open their minds to new things
Tour Guide Hat: Teaching in rural Missouri my students don't get to experience different cultures on a daily basis. To me, experience is a KEY component in educating our students. They don't get exposure through text books or movies. They need to be able to truly understand what other humans are doing throughout our world!
*Current Event Monday: What is going on in their world and how does it affect them?
*I cook food from other cultures: India, China, Australia, Germany, etc...
*Etiquette lessons (here and around the world)
*diversity activities
The hats that are mentioned above are just a few that teachers wear everyday. Like I said there are millions of them. I will write about more later...Don't want you to get bored with it hahaha.
It is important that we as educators remember that we have to continue to accumulate our hat collections and be able to interchange them on a dime!
Happy reading!
Ms. Leigh xoxo
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