Teaching Philosophy Statement

Reading is an essential component of learning. As educators, it is our responsibility to implement strategies, supports, and techniques that will enhance our student’s ability to learn from reading. Regardless of content area, all educators should consider themselves as reading instructors, and they should make a conscious effort to teach students how to effectively read and to also encourage the practice of reading as a lifelong skill. As an educator, I will teach students how to read effectively and develop and enjoyment for reading, by providing them with instructional strategies and techniques that will enhance their reading ability and enjoyment. As a social studies teacher, reading is an essential component of the curriculum in my

As an educator, I need to choose texts that match the curriculum of my school district and the standards of the state I teach in. I need to ensure that the texts are at the appropriate reading level for the grade and content that I am teaching. This is important because if a text is too hard, students will have a difficult time comprehending it, if a text is too easy, students will not be challenged to reach their fullest learning potential. In order to ensure that the texts I use in my classroom are appropriate for the course and grade level I am teaching, I will preview every text myself and conduct a series of readability tests. The readability test I will use most often is the fry model. However, I will also use different software available to test the readability of a text as well. When conducting a preview of a particular text, I will have the state standards for the particular subject available so I am able to see how well the text aligns with the standards. Finally, I will consult with other colleagues to get their opinions and advice on appropriate texts. It is essential for myself as an educator to choose appropriate texts for my content area courses to ensure that the students will be able to effectively learn from these required

These strategies will help students with vocabulary, writing to learn, word recognition, and studying techniques. I will use pre-reading strategies to gauge and spark student interest in the text. Some strategies that I plan on using in my teaching will include but will not be limited to: anticipation guides, KWL charts, and entrance notes. These strategies will introduce the students to the content and vocabulary, and also give them an opportunity to develop questions and think critically about what they are going to read. This will make the students interested and engaged it what they are about to read. I will also include many during reading strategies in my teaching, these are designed to guide the student through the reading and help them think about what the content of the reading is. Some during strategies that I will use include: reading guides, graphic organizers, and word hunts. These activities are designed to help with reading comprehension, vocabulary, and word recognition. During reading strategies gives the reader a task while reading to help guide them and keep them focused on the content discussed in the reading. Finally, I will also incorporate after reading strategies into my teaching. These give students an opportunity to reflect on what they have read, which can help build reading comprehension. Some after