Teach them to fish

This past weeks resources have made it clear to me that I have a love and talent for teaching. I day this with confidence because everything ive tried on my own as a teacher has been proved to be in the right direction.

Firstly the way I tried to create a classroom environment through the use of my understanding of behavioural psychology seems to be a good start. In the video they speak of creating a safe classroom environment which is controlled through focusing on creating  and promoting acceptable  behaviour. In my classroom I was clear about wach learners responsibility in creating an environment for themselves conducive to learning. I asked them to list the rules they wanted and the results of breaking those rules. They did this with ease and they managed the environment to that end. They learnt that they could play and focus whilst learning if they kept to the rules they set themselves. Eventually the classroom became a beautifully open space for expression and learning.

Secondly the idea of being mindful as explored in the reading was clearly a thing I could create in my class. All I did was ask them questions about what they wanted, how they felt in the classroom and when they felt calm and focused. The main themes were that they liked to participate but didnt not like it when one learner took over and made a noise. Thus I told them that we needed to respect each other and let everyone have an uninterupted turn. Most classes I let them read out the textbook, giving everyone a chance to read. This eventually lead to each child feeling valued and as a result they started to give each other a chance to speak. The dynamic of the class became a place of calm and focus. The learners became mindful and thus could perform much better.

My conclusion of the resources given to us this past week is that they are a great addition to help any teacher become more than a talk and chalker. We as teachers must not be afraid to give the learners the power. We as teachers must create the space and then guide rather than command. We as teacher must feel part of the class rather than above it.