My philosophy changes and evolves as I grow as a teacher.  I try to learn, along with my students, and I will always try to remain open-minded and willing to grow in my beliefs and practices as a teacher.  Since society is constantly evolving, so must we as teachers.                            One way I communicate my philosophy is through my weekly newsletters.  Each week I try to share not only what we're doing in class, but also a topic that is important in the current age of educational reform.                                                                             For example, one week I generally write about how emotional intelligence is a big part of my teaching philosophy. I believe that students should be taught about the importance of different perspectives. Seeing new points of view can be truly eye-opening.  I try to make the environment of my classroom mirror a community, with students being productive members.  Therefore, when a problem arises, I will guide students in solving it as diplomatically and democratically as possible.  I would like to see my students possess self-respect, respect of others, and a strong will for what they believe in—yet they must be able to compromise. These traits can be accomplished through group discussions, one-on-one talks with students, and the learning of different perspectives within my classroom.                                                                                  I try to take into account the individuality of all students.  Students have diverse needs and I will try to accommodate each one as successfully as possible.                                                        I believe that sharing personal stories should be valued in a learning community and students who are making life connections to the lessons we teach are far more likely to understand and remember the material being taught. Therefore, these connections should be embraced.                                                                                                                              One way to guide personal connections is to be involved with the children outside of the classroom. I try to attend as many events as possible.                                                                      I try to remember that when students are rewarded for effort, rather than quality of work, they will in turn keep trying to do their best.  Bad grades for strong effort are discouraging.  One of my main goals as a teacher is to produce life-long learners with strong core values.  Every person learns at a different speed and in a different way, and this fact should be respected in the classroom as much as possible.                                                                                              I am looking forward to growing as a teacher and as a student of education each year.  I believe that learning along with the students is one of the greatests benefits of this profession.​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​