Ms. Sophie's Teaching Philosophy

A balance of structure, creativity, and personal development is essential in a well-rounded classroom. A classroom is a community, and for each community to thrive, they must feel seen and heard. I strive to create an environment where each child and family has an individual connection with me. To build a safe space where children and families understand the structure and guidelines of my classroom, along with allowing their input on the topics we will be studying. Developing an atmosphere that nurtures the unique development of each child is a priority for me. To be able to do this, forming relationships with students and families is the first step. Families can give valuable insight into a student’s dispositions, personal attributes, and cultural values their family and child have. Building and maintaining a strong relationship with students’ families allows for the learning in school to extend at home. Additionally, this ensures the classroom learning topics are authentic to my students' lives, families, and experiences. This communication with families should be supported through weekly newsletters, recurring conferences, updates on their child’s success in the classroom, and opportunities for families to get involved in the classroom.

         

  I have been working with kids my entire life. I come from a very large family of nineteen cousins, two siblings, seven aunts, seven uncles, multiple great-aunts, and thirty distant cousins. Everyone is welcome in my family. Due to this, I have always been working, playing, learning, and creating with kids my entire life, even when I was a child. This is when   I discovered how vital it was for students to have a balance of structure and creativity in the spaces they are in.

 Once I turned fourteen, I started teaching dance classes to dancers aged six through nine. In this teaching environment, amid my passion for dance,  I realized what an exciting and eventful time this age is for a child’s development. After exploring different age groups, I finally decided I wanted to major in Early Childhood Education because of the quick developmental changes and to ensure children have a strong educational foundation and a positive disposition for learning from a young age. Through my education at UVM, I have been able to work with a variety of age groups including one-year-olds, preschoolers, kindergarten, and first grade. Each age group has helped me develop my teaching skills and helped me become the most well-rounded teacher possible.

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My background helped me to develop my philosophy.  I believe learning can only take place after a child feels free to explore their curiosity and to be vulnerable. Therefore, relationships with adults and peers in the classroom need to be rooted in positive and honest interactions that are formed with strength-based philosophies in mind. This is particularly true when working with children who have experienced adversities and trauma. These connections help recognize the students' traumas, and triggers, and how best to support them while making them feel safe. When children are given the reassurance and support to express themselves, they can connect to others who can support them. This social interaction is a critical aspect of learning and supports a child’s competence in social/emotional skills along with problem-solving solutions.

 

After being in several different classrooms, I have learned the core values and philosophies I bring into my classroom. I align heavily with the extensive studies of Vygotsky. He believed that education should be rooted in social interaction. When peers are added to the learning process, it becomes more enjoyable and feels almost like a fun game. Learning how to socially interact with peers and adults at a young age can develop communication skills allowing young children to independently interact and work with each other at a young age. Strengthening these skills early will benefit them their whole life. For example, learning about dinosaurs with your friends helps children learn to work together. It allows them to verbally express their feelings and create compromises together; both vital communication skills for working in the workforce when they are ready.

My teaching focuses on the development of the child as a whole. I stress the individual development of each child and understanding the natural variance between children. In turn, children can learn about the topics mentioned, but in a fun, playful way. I consider each student on their educational journey and learn at different speeds and have different strengths and growth points. Therefore, ensuring each activity has multiple means of engagement, representation, and assessment allows each student to have an opportunity to share their knowledge. Many of these philosophies are principles and goals derived from the “The Bank Street Model” of teaching early education.

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Through my teaching experience I have seen learning can only take place after curiosity. A child who is curious about the specific topic being discussed will pay attention more, will be more excited about the class, and will ultimately absorb and retain more information.  Learning should be fun! A class should not be something a child dreads or hates attending. I make it my mission to have every child smiling every day. Families will be involved in the topics of study, the cultural values incorporated in my classroom and brainstorming how best to support their child. In my classroom, students will be playing with friends, discovering fun facts about topics they love, interacting with hands-on materials, and developing their understanding of the world around them.  My classroom will be somewhere your child looks forward to going to!