My Philosophy of Teachingby Monica Breaux

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My philosophy of teaching is focused on teaching the whole child in a balanced model of teaching. The classroom must be a risk-free environment that fosters cognitive growth, as well as social and emotional growth. It must be a child-centered classroom that promotes a positive attitude among students. Such a classroom promotes natural learning for all modalities; for visual, auditory, and kinesthetic learners.

Brian Cambourne identified specific conditions that must be present in a classroom for natural learning to take place. I firmly believe that those conditions must be present in every classroom, and I incorporate those conditions by following the balanced literacy model of teaching.

Monica Breaux

I believe that children are more successful learners when reading, writing, and language are integrated with other subject areas, such as mathematics and social living. Balanced literacy allows me to teach children -- not textbooks -- and to meet their individual needs.

Children must be immersed in language for them to learn language. They should be surrounded by print of all kinds. Environmental print is a great place to start with emergent readers. Modeling and thinking aloud for children plays an important part in their learning. By reading aloud and writing to my students every day, I demonstrate what I expect them to do when they read and write. Expectations in my classroom are very high. I believe that high expectations lead to a higher level of achievement. This is evidenced by the growth of my students throughout the year. Children must be responsible for their own learning. They should have certain tasks to accomplish and face consequences if those tasks are not completed. I also agree with Cambourne when he says that young children should be allowed to make mistakes. Learning takes place from the mistakes we make.

Students must use what they learn and use it often. Once a spelling word is taught, the word must be used over and over again. Employment of skills is confirmed by my students through their use of our learning centers; the centers allow them to take risks and learn from the feedback of others in small group settings.

The last condition Cambourne sets for a classroom where natural learning takes place is response from the teacher. Students must be given positive feedback often. I believe in being positive, and not focusing on the negative. This technique is especially effective for classroom management. The greatest reward I see as a teacher is when my students are so engaged in learning that they don't want to go to recess or go home for the day.

That reward is heightened by the fact that the students I teach are not all normal, average students. By the time they leave me, however, they have become just as independent -- and they perform at the same level -- as average students at other schools. I love it when I don't have to tell one student what they should be doing at any particular moment in my classroom because they are already doing what is expected of them.

I am touched when former students come up to me on the playground and say they want to come back to my classroom. I would keep them all if I could!

Article by Monica Breaux
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