Sston008

Hello!!! My name is Susan and I currently reside in Fredericksburg, VA. I just graduated with a BS from Radford University in Athletic Training. I have also graduated with a certificate in K-12 Health and Physical Education. I plan to further my education in Special Education and/or a Reading Specialist. My entire family is in education. My sister has a degree in English and history and a master's in special education. My mother has also been in the education system for over thirty years. I have grown up around it my whole life and I see what a difference it can make, especially in the early years of education.

I absolutely love the summer time and vacationing. Last summer I was able to go white water rafting in West Virginia. It was an amazing experience. My sister, especially, is always trying to find new and interesting places to see. I also love animals. I have two cats, Kiwi and Belle. My sister also has two dogs. Shorty is a lab and corgi mix and Whillie is a mix breed. When I have free time I enjoy reading books. I also just love spending time with the family and relaxing whenever I get the chance

Education and philosophy conversations surround us all and there are many theories and ideas as to what really works in any classroom. I believe through discussions with family, educators, and peers and through my own personal experiences as a student I have developed a strong philosophy that I believe in.

I believe an effective teacher establishes on the first day of school an atmosphere that declares all children will be successful. An effective teacher makes it difficult for a student to fail. In this classroom there is much student-teacher interaction. Everyone in the classroom is contributing in some way. The busy classroom environment should include at varying times; the communication of new ideas, students and teacher posing higher level thinking questions, work in a collaborate setting, and an atmosphere that allows students to feel safe in order to achieve academic success. The teacher and students present an attitude of contentment, and genuinely enjoy their classroom setting.

The instructional strategies that a teacher uses in the classroom should be varied. No one method is effective for all students. All students learn differently, and at a different rate. A teacher who recognizes these differences will allow for varied approaches to the same topic. This will hopefully allow each student the much needed success to move on to the next level of learning. A teacher who cannot differentiation the instruction in the classroom is doing his/her students a disservice and will probably not generate much student success.