Some grumbles and jumbles as I read!
*Haha! Palmer nailed it! Teaching is a profession that makes you feel many ups and downs. I am constantly questioning if I am good enough to teach. I reflect daily.
*Teaching could seem so simple if you only had to teach from the book, but students themselves come to the table with so many issues/complexities, that reaching and teaching everyone seems impossible!
*DIFFERENTIATED INSTRUCTION
*It is easier for a highschool teacher to know their subject. Usually they are specialized in that area and/or teach 2 or 3 different subjects. Elementary teachers need to be experts in every subject.
*Do we teach subjects we are not passionate about, as well as the ones we are passionate about? No! I know my enthusiasm for ELA is evident and I try to bring that same enthusiasm to all subjects, but my students always recognize the enthusiasm I have for language arts.
*A person comes across teachers who have lost the “heart” in teaching. Students and colleagues suffer because of it!
*”How many teachers inflict their own pain on their students?” -students are on the receiving end of a teachers emotions- good or bad.
*I think talking to the teacher within is what I am doing every time I reflect on my profession, a lesson, my day, etc.
*Authority
*I think as teachers we are scared to look less that an expectation we perceive to be out there. We do not want to look vulnerable.
*I, like Palmer, start each year with some trepidation and nervousness and I teach 10 year olds!
My reflection after I read
I truly believe that a teacher needs to know themselves wholly to be confident in their personal and professional lives. They can not try to emulate the teacher across the hall because they think they are successfully teaching. Many great teachers often only have the profession in common. They use different teaching methods and tools but all find success. Teaching is not a one size fits all. Every educator brings their own strengths and weaknesses. They continue to build on their strengths and recognize their weaknesses. The same is also true for the student. They will not all learn the same. I try to open up to my students and provide an environment that is comfortable and safe for them to do the same. I need to know who they are! I work in a community school with “at risk” students. I need to know what is happening in their lives and within themselves if I am going to provide an environment where they will be successful. In saying this though, I need to own the fact that I will not reach every student and every student may not like me or find success in my classroom. They do however need to know that I respected them and tried my very best!
carlabernier 
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