Dear Future Ms.
I hope this letter
finds you happy and healthy in your life and in your teaching career! What has
teaching been like now that you have been in the classroom for a few years? If
you were to look back at where I am right now in my college experience, what is
the biggest piece of advice you would give me?
So far in my education
classes I have learned a lot about reading strategies, accommodating for
diverse learners, and other strategies for improving my teaching. Something I
hope I see this year and in my student teaching experience is more feedback
from my peers in my education classes, my instructors, and my Mentor Teacher.
Classrooms, teachers,
and students are always changing, so I think it’s important to include what I
have observed in schools over the past couple years so you will be able to
compare it to what you are experiencing in your classroom now.
Observing in the middle
schools and high schools has been really beneficial to get real-world
experience – at least I’m hoping so. I am interested to look back on my student
teaching experience and see how helpful it was to my actual real-world
teaching. The Mentor Teacher I am paired with has a lot of great ideas that I
would like to implement into my classroom. I can tell that he wants to go
beyond just teaching the bare minimum. I hope to one day have student teachers
and inspire them as much as my Mentor Teacher has inspired me.
Education majors also
have a unique experience in being a student that observes students. We are learning
along with the students we observe but in different ways. Social media has a
huge influence on students in the classroom now. It has an influence on their
language, their writing process, and so much more. I am interested to see how
social media will change and affect students when I am a teacher.
I have several
predictions and goals for myself and my career in teaching. I predict that I
will be teaching in a middle school somewhere in Kansas. One goal I have is
that I will still have as much love for teaching as I did in college. One way I
can achieve this is by staying up-to-date with new strategies and techniques in
the classroom to make mine more interesting. Another goal I have is to make a
difference in students’ lives. Every student has one teacher that made their
middle school or high school years more special, and I hope to be that teacher
for at least a few of my students.
Just as I have asked
for advice to my future self as a teacher, I also have some advice for the
future teacher in me as well. My advice is that even the most accomplished
teachers have their off-days and mess up sometimes. No one has perfect lesson
plans every single day of the year. Even college professors aren’t perfect. I
also believe teaching and learning should go both ways between myself and my
students. I need to be learning from my students just as often as I should be
teaching I hope when I read this
letter in a few years, a few of my predictions have come true and I have
accomplished at least some of my goals.
Until then,
Ms. Brill
Sarah,
ReplyDeleteThank you for sharing such a thoughtful and purposeful genre reflection. I am so inspired now to write a letter to my future self! A couple of things really resonated for me. When you said, "I can tell that he wants to go beyond just teaching the bare minimum" I thought, "Yes! Me too!" I feel that it is very important that we capture this sentiment now, in writing as you have, so that we can return to it later and get re-inspired. Similarly, your entire last paragraph really captures the importance of this exercise. I believe that this is a perfect time for us to reach out to our future selves; when we are feeling overworked or insecure later, we can go back and read our letters. As you say, we mustn't focus on perfect lesson plans, but rather on creating an environment in which we and our students can exchange ideas and grow together. I can't wait for you to get your own classroom. Thanks again!
-Mary
Sarah,
ReplyDeleteThank you for sharing your letter! I love that you asked yourself questions! Your letter was a reminder of the things we all have questions about: the future. None of us know quite where we'll end up, but I know you'll be a fantastic teacher because you know the connection between teaching and learning is so important. Also because you have a genuine care for your students and your teaching. That connection is so important! You have reminded me of many of my own questions--I'll write those down and look back at them in the future. I really connected with your last paragraph. I have a tendency to strive for perfection every time, and I need to remember that off days happen and it's okay. Thank you again for sharing!
-Aleisha
Sarah,
ReplyDeleteThank you for sharing this letter! You included all the things I would want to read about as a teacher opening a letter from a few years back. This is really something I want to try, especially to prevent burnout in the profession. I hope that you keep this letter throughout your years as a teacher and return to it as often as you need a reminder about why you're doing this in the first place. I know I definitely would!
Ms. Brill