Credo

I believe that every young adolescent …

Wants to build relationships and to be understood by their teachers
Needs social interaction, but is searching to find their place in middle school and wants to feel accepted, but just doesn’t quite know where they fit in yet
Experiences a large variety of emotions each and every day that can make it hard for them to find consistency in their lives
Is very capable of excelling at school and wants to excel, but this can be interrupted by the busyness and chaos of their lives
Needs to feel supported by the many adults in their lives in order to grow through the many social, emotional, and physical challenges presented
Should have someone in their lives to help them find their strengths and positive attributes about themselves
Is trying to figure out who they are as person, rather than worrying about college and a future career
Wants to save the world and everyone around them
Needs assistance when making decisions, but also needs to fail in order to learn
Likes to share about themselves and their interests

For the reasons above, I commit myself to becoming the very best possible educator for this special group of people.

Manifesto

In order to achieve excellence as a middle school teacher, I commit myself to …

Creating a safe and welcoming environment for my students where they feel comfortable being themselves
Finding something unique about each student in my class
Convincing all my students that they are all mathematicians
Being a role model for my students, especially in showing them that mistakes are normal and expected
Being a reflective teacher and never settling for good enough in my classroom
Showing my students where math is important in each of their lives outside of the classroom
Building relationships with my students by getting to know each of their interests, goals, and dreams that they have for themselves
Treating each student with the utmost respect and kindness that they deserve
Providing a rich and engaging learning experience that challenges each student in their own way, but also allows each student to have success
Encouraging each student to be their whole unique self when they enter the classroom
Teaching to all types of learners so that each student in my classroom feels they are learning something in a way that they learn most effectively

By committing myself to these statements, I will continue to work towards becoming the best teacher I can possibly be.