WEEK 2
SHELLY FRYER: an inspiration to students & fellow teachers
I’ll be honest about something here: I oftentimes wonder to myself “Do I have what it takes to be a good teacher? Am I going to be just another name of a long list of names of people who decided to give everything they had and put them self out there for the sake of the next generation? Do I have what it takes to make a difference in my future students’ lives?” As a Junior at Kansas State University going into Elementary Education for Special Education, I am getting closer and closer to the time when this question will be tested. And this question will not be just tested internally; it will also be tested by external sources by Cooperating Teachers, Advisors, parents, Cooperating Principals, etc. YIKES, talk about pressure! But one resource, among many, that gives me strength to continue to pursue this path is observing real teachers that have made it - inspirational teachers that have great advice, stories, experiences, and developed Pedagogy, that can give me the best counsel. So, with that, here is one teacher that I have only had the pleasure of reading her blog, that I have been inspired by. Reading her perspective on her students and recognizing similarities to my own helps me feel encouraged, refreshed, and courageous!
Shelly sounds like an absolutely wonderful teacher - the kind of teacher that I can only hope and pray that I will be! Her main focus in her classroom is creating a warm, comfortable, friendly environment for her students. She wants her students to feel as if they have just walked into their new home, with all of their family members alongside them. The idea of creating a “Family” in the classroom is something that has stuck out to me in the 1 year I have been in the Education program at Kansas State University, and is something I strongly believe will make a secure and successful classroom environment. One way Shelly does this in her classroom is by investing in cozy furniture and decorations that will create nice spaces for her students to be in during the day. The following shows how much Shelly cares about creating the perfect environment for her students’ comfort: “I do everything I can to create a physical classroom environment for my students where they feel safe and welcome. I want my students to start feeling, from the first day, that they are part of our classroom family..It’s important there are appealing, tactile elements to our classroom, and that my students have choices about where they choose to sit, work and learn.”
Another way Shelly does this is by starting off the activities of the first few days of school as Name Games and Get-to-Know-You Games. One of her favorite parts of the class’ schedule on an average day is what she calls “Class Meetings,” where all the students get together as a group and just talk. Shelly will ask discussion questions that lead into good, solid conversations where students are free to talk candidly. I think moments where there are no expectations given to students about what is expected of them to say, but they are given the free reigns to talk openly about what they think about certain things, encourages students to be thinking individuals and helps them along their journey of self-discovery.
Another thing Shelly does to encourage a family atmosphere is more of a mindset that she has when viewing her students. On her blog she talks about how important it is to her for her students to be silly and playful in her classroom. She values her students’ idiosyncrasies and child-like tendencies. I would love to be a student in her classroom, because as a kid, I was always goofy and silly, but oftentimes didn’t feel like that was an acceptable way to behave in the classroom. I’m sure I would have felt more free to be myself and therefore felt more free to be vulnerable, make mistakes, ask questions, and learn in the classroom if I had felt this acceptance from my teacher!
SHELLY FRYER: an inspiration to students & fellow teachers
I’ll be honest about something here: I oftentimes wonder to myself “Do I have what it takes to be a good teacher? Am I going to be just another name of a long list of names of people who decided to give everything they had and put them self out there for the sake of the next generation? Do I have what it takes to make a difference in my future students’ lives?” As a Junior at Kansas State University going into Elementary Education for Special Education, I am getting closer and closer to the time when this question will be tested. And this question will not be just tested internally; it will also be tested by external sources by Cooperating Teachers, Advisors, parents, Cooperating Principals, etc. YIKES, talk about pressure! But one resource, among many, that gives me strength to continue to pursue this path is observing real teachers that have made it - inspirational teachers that have great advice, stories, experiences, and developed Pedagogy, that can give me the best counsel. So, with that, here is one teacher that I have only had the pleasure of reading her blog, that I have been inspired by. Reading her perspective on her students and recognizing similarities to my own helps me feel encouraged, refreshed, and courageous!
Shelly sounds like an absolutely wonderful teacher - the kind of teacher that I can only hope and pray that I will be! Her main focus in her classroom is creating a warm, comfortable, friendly environment for her students. She wants her students to feel as if they have just walked into their new home, with all of their family members alongside them. The idea of creating a “Family” in the classroom is something that has stuck out to me in the 1 year I have been in the Education program at Kansas State University, and is something I strongly believe will make a secure and successful classroom environment. One way Shelly does this in her classroom is by investing in cozy furniture and decorations that will create nice spaces for her students to be in during the day. The following shows how much Shelly cares about creating the perfect environment for her students’ comfort: “I do everything I can to create a physical classroom environment for my students where they feel safe and welcome. I want my students to start feeling, from the first day, that they are part of our classroom family..It’s important there are appealing, tactile elements to our classroom, and that my students have choices about where they choose to sit, work and learn.”
Another way Shelly does this is by starting off the activities of the first few days of school as Name Games and Get-to-Know-You Games. One of her favorite parts of the class’ schedule on an average day is what she calls “Class Meetings,” where all the students get together as a group and just talk. Shelly will ask discussion questions that lead into good, solid conversations where students are free to talk candidly. I think moments where there are no expectations given to students about what is expected of them to say, but they are given the free reigns to talk openly about what they think about certain things, encourages students to be thinking individuals and helps them along their journey of self-discovery.
Another thing Shelly does to encourage a family atmosphere is more of a mindset that she has when viewing her students. On her blog she talks about how important it is to her for her students to be silly and playful in her classroom. She values her students’ idiosyncrasies and child-like tendencies. I would love to be a student in her classroom, because as a kid, I was always goofy and silly, but oftentimes didn’t feel like that was an acceptable way to behave in the classroom. I’m sure I would have felt more free to be myself and therefore felt more free to be vulnerable, make mistakes, ask questions, and learn in the classroom if I had felt this acceptance from my teacher!