... Having the opportunity to teach 8th grade students at High Tech Middle Mesa has helped me learn to become a better teacher. Before teaching, I thought that it was okay to force kids to learn, do their work, and pay attention in class without distractions. I have come to the understanding that I should not and also do not have to control students' thinking. One solution that I have found is having the students come up with classroom agreements. These classroom agreements are a set of expectations that they came up with themselves, to help them respect each other and the lesson being taught. In one instance, I had a student talking while one of their classmates was presenting. After giving them a reminder the student persisted to talk so I asked them to meet me after class. When speaking to this student after class I made sure to set the tone of the conversation by complimenting their usual positive behaviors followed by asking them why they were not acting that usual way. This conversation led to the student opening up to me about difficult times at home which helped me better understand them. Doing this allowed me to rebuild that relationship and better help the student to grow in the classroom. 

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Another solution to this is working with the students one on one. I have found it extremely helpful to independently talk to my students and ask them ways they believe will help them stay focused during class. These solutions are things like using a computer instead of pencil, having breaks outside the classroom or even using a fidget toy during class. To me, being a teacher is more than just me teaching them, but also showing them they have the potential inside of them to be leaders. In order to do this I prove to my students that I care about them and their education, so that they can begin to believe in themselves the same way.

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When setting up activities for the class, I am aware of the students that struggle and am able to better support them along with everyone else. I believe that when we design activities with these students in mind first, in result we are helping everybody. For example, a building with stairs inside can help most people, but a building with ramps can help everyone. These are ways that I am able to include the whole class in learning and growing together. This method proved to be beneficial one day when I realized all my students could use the graphic organizer. Normally I just give out this paper to the students that could use a little extra support, but this day I realized that when the whole class was able to use them they also benefited. I witnessed greater results from not only the kids that need it but the ones that normally do not from being all inclusive.

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When designing my lessons I always keep my students in mind. Personally I have found it the most engaging when my students are able to have fun and learn at the same time. However, I have realized that making all my lessons this way can cause the students to not appreciate the lessons. So I have found a balance of challenging them, while still making a fun and entertaining lesson. During my first year of teaching, our first project that we worked on was a “zine” magazine where students created an art piece that culturally represented them. Then, they presented their magazine in an exhibition where they celebrated themselves and were able to connect with others. I believe this project highlighted the importance of empathy in the community, as well as enhanced students' communication, and encouraged students to learn from others. For the future, I am excited to create lessons that will help the students learn more about themselves like their identity and culture. I believe that it is important for students to learn to celebrate their identities because loving yourself is the first step in being able to care about others. 

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Throughout my life I have experienced trauma around me, to my loved ones and in me. However, my life is not a tragedy. I am a firm believer that everything happens for a reason. Even though these experiences can be extremely painful at times, it is just as important to learn from past mistakes and grow as an individual. As a child of an immigrant, I grew up poor but more importantly I grew up happy. This can be attributed to God, my momma, my step dad, and myself. Special emphasis on God because without Him I would not be here and with him I feel like I can help so many others. I am committed to working in the realms of K-12 because I know from experience that classrooms, especially from lower socioeconomic neighborhoods, lack teachers that genuinely care about their students’ success. Most of this is a result of lack of teacher support economically and physically. Nevertheless, I am committed to helping students, my colleagues, and everyone else around me. My main concentrations are in helping students be and feel safe, feel prepared for the next step, and help them become more empathetic human beings.