Standards Portfolio

          My experience student teaching could not have been more perfect and most beneficial bookend to my time at Colorado State University to launch me off into my teaching career. Both placements offered me many learning opportunities and experiences I needed to grow into who I am as a teacher.

          At my first placement I learned how I can tell my teacher story, beyond my strong passion for teaching and for the connections I make with students. I learned my why for teaching. Through discussion with many teachers including my mentor teacher, I learned my why is rooted in growing up in a low-income, single-parent household. As a child, I was often the only kid in the room and was witness to many "adult" conversations where my only action was to listen. Through many interactions with adults and living in low-income apartments where diverse individuals lived near, I grew really strong in my ability to truly listen and notice people in ways many do not take the time to. This skill of mine developed at a very young age and I now know that I must use it to be there and be that listening ear for my students, the one person that will make sure they do not go unnoitced. I teach because I want to be the safe adult for my students that they know they can aways talk to or trust. At my first placement I had the opporunity to take over a Drawing/Painting class, and a Jewelry/Metals class, as well as co-teach a few Pottery/Ceramics class. These classes challenged me in my own knowledge of art techniques, but really offered me the opportunity to build relationships with the middle schoolers. I absolutely adored all my students, despite their challenges, and was very sad to leave them.

          Despite my hesitancy to leave the middle school and start anew at the elementary school, my mentor teacher at my second placement was just the person I needed in my life to feel ready to begin my career. She immediately trusted me to take over and hear my ideas for our first few co-teaching lessons. Skyview is a school of STEM, and offered me many opportunities to ideate and act out my own interdisplinary lessons, provide natural differentiation so that ANY students can be successful in my class, and practice scaffolding lessons to meet all students at their grade level. I also appreciated getting to work with younger grade levels so that I know what my expectations should look like for students as they age. I loved the challenge of teaching art while simultaneously teaching students how to be Trustworthy, Respectful, Respnsible, Fair, Caring, and show Citizenship (Character Counts). With these challenges and with only getting to see students once a week came many conversation with my mentor tracher where we talked things out and bonded over challenges and problwm solving. I could not be more grateful for my mentor teacher trusting me to completely take over, and overall for this opportunity.

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