Blog Assignment #1

If I built a school, what would it be like? This is a tough question. It is not something I have ever thought about. I will be teaching children with special needs. So, ideally, I would like to teach at a k-6 school for children with all types of all special needs.

What do you want your students to know?

First of all, I want my students to know and understand that it is ok to be different. I will teach them to be confident and accepting of others. I want my students to know the skills that the "typical" students know. They need to know about everyday life skills such as responsibility, manners, the importance of setting goals, etc. I will teach the importance of education. I want them to know it is ok to not know some things, and to not be afraid of asking.

What do you want your students to be able to do?

Well, I want them to be able to work to their full potential. I want them to feel comfortable in the learning environment I provide, and to be comfortable with myself and one another. They will know learning is fun, and that they can be silly in the classroom. Just because it is school does not mean everyone has to be boring and serious. I want them to do everything they wish to do. My hope is to be the teacher that pushes the students to work harder and do things they were told they would never do.

What will be your primary way of teaching your students what you want them to know and to do?

I definitely want to be a hands on teacher. Not very many worksheets will be used-that is when children get bored and start to dislike school. I want to play learning games and read interactive books on the smart board. Students will most likely have iPads or something of that nature, so I want the learning to be very interactive and have the students get intermediate feedback. I will have a lot of sensory projects and learning activities. Everything will be modified around each students individual need. Once again, I want learning to be fun. I feel that the more interactive and hands on the activities are, the better the outcome will be.

What tools will you use in your classroom?

There will be a sensory area for sure! They are so therapeutic for children with special needs. There will be a ball pit, trampoline, toys that move or shake, and lots of different textures in the sensory area. Every child gets tired and needs a break sometimes, the sensory are can be used for that, for rewards, or just at random times. I obviously would love to have an iPad for each student. Since I will be teaching special needs, some of my children will have problems expressing themselves verbally. Therefore I will have different options they can use: soundboard, picture cards, the iPad, etc. I want a lot of books! Circle time and reading books is something children always enjoy. I'm not sure this is considered a tool, but I would have an occupational, physical, and speech therapist work with children who need it two to three times a week.

What role will students play in your classroom?

They will be a pretty important part of how my lessons are taught. I will cater to each need a child may have, in the way I feel is best. My kids will be my main focus, obviously. They will also play sort of a teacher role, as I get to know each student and how he or she learns the most effectively.