My Vision- Mrs. Reynolds' ALL-STARS!

The reading this past week was very moving. Dr. Peterson wasn't joking when she said that the book Fulfilling the Promise of the Differentiated Classroom would change our lives. For some time now, I have been contemplating my vision for my classroom. After much thought over the past few semesters, I will share with you my goals and mainly my vision for my classroom. I hope I can portray in words what I feel in my heart, and see in my head.

I grew up around a lot of sports, mainly team sports. As I have become who I am today, I realize that a lot of my philosophies stem from my experiences on a team, and on a field. Not everyone has the opportunity to play sports, or be part of a team. My goal is the change that. My classroom will be a team. At the beginning of the year, we will uncover the team name- the ALL-STARS! We will have t-shirts made with our team name on them, in the color that the students choose. The students will wear our team "uniforms" on a select day of the week. I will be their coach. They can call me Mrs. Reynolds, or Coach; whichever they would like. Most teachers have something similar to the below picture in their classrooms:

I would have something similar, but I would like it to say "Reading Practice" or "Math Practice," etc. I want to do this because often the students who do have experience playing sports, enjoy going to practice because it helps them with their game. Instead of tests, we will have games. They will still be what we define as test, but in my opinion, doing it like this will really help the students recognize that as they practice, they will be better and better in order to "ace" the test. When we take important tests or have "a big game," students will wear their shirts. I hope you don't misunderstand me and think that I only want students to prepare for the test. My goal and hope is that by taking the pressure of of them and having a laid back feel, the students will learn to love different subjects and be willing to "practice" outside of the classroom of their own free will and choice, because like playing sports, learning is FUN! However, I am a firm believer in "perfect practice makes perfect play." This doesn't mean I will assign oobers of homework. Rather, I will demand perfection from my students and instill the desire in them to want to turn in perfect work. by doing this, my goal is to have a "three strikes, your out" policy. I believe that students learn best when they are able to recognize their mistakes, and then fix them. So I will allow students to turn in their work the first time for a "home-run"and bonus points if it is done perfectly. If not, they will be allowed a second, and a third re-do. After that, their mistakes will count against their grade. Of course there will be a time limit allowed, to keep the word feasible for myself.

I want to have a daily meeting with every student- meaning that they will each be assigned a number. When it is that number of the month, (March 9, September 17 etc,) they will have a meeting with me. In these 5-10 minute meetings we will discuss their progress of the month, what they like, dislike, how they feel they are doing, and set goals. This allows every student to meet with me once a month and set new academic goals and have personalized time for me to listen to them, and anything they have to say. When they are chosen to be "student of the week," they will be the class "MVP" for the week.

When we all do well, we celebrate as a team. When we struggle, we struggle as a team. A team is only as strong as their weakest teammate. My goal in this philosophy is to have students see the purpose and importance of each other. By establishing a classroom community, we will achieve optimal learning. Every day, before we go home, we will have our "team cheer" that we will develop during morning meeting. The details and the kinks in my vision are still pending, and working themselves out as I continue to visualize of my classroom.

Welcome to Mrs. Reynolds classroom and remember, you are an All-Star!