Although it may sound like a cliche, I have wanted to be a teacher for as long as I can remember. Every day that passes strengthens my love for teaching. I am inspired by my professors, past teachers, family members, children I work with, and schools I have visited. I enjoy hearing different perspectives and stories from my experienced professors and fellow classmates, and I often consider how they will benefit my students and I in my future classrooms.

My goal is to not just simply to teach, but to make a lasting impact on my students' lives. Teachers wear many different hats during their careers: role models, inspirations, counselors, friends, superhero, comedian, and if need be, a parent. These roles could vary depending on the individual student, day, or school. In order to make a lasting impact on my students, my dedication to every role will not waiver or become lackadaisical. I personally believe all teachers need to be prepared to carry this heavy responsibility because so many students depend on the presence of strong adults in their lives that may or may not already exist.Teachers have the power to change this absence of strong adults' presence in students' lives.

I have had the opportunity to visit many schools and to meet many teachers who have set great examples in their classrooms. The teachers that I have observed and worked with at Mason Prep School, Laing Middle School, Laurel Hill, and St. Andrews School of Math and Science have all been wonderful teachers, and I have thoroughly enjoyed observing their classes. I have had the pleasure of teaching Sunday School at my church, volunteering as a mentor and teachers aide for Communities In Schools, tutoring kindergartners every Friday at Mason Prep School, substitue teaching at Mason Prep School, and helping the children that I babysit for with their homework and studying for various tests and quizzes. These observations, volunteer work, and jobs, have not only given me more experience in teaching, but have reaffirmed my calling for teaching as my true passion.

All teachers have different ideas of what effective teaching and learning may be; I personally believe that both teaching and learning can start with the student-teacher relationships, students using their strengths in the classroom, and teachers advocating and focusing on the individual. The student-teacher relationship is the foundation for everything; no learning will take place unless there is a positive connection. To form this relationship, teachers must be caring and reach for one of the many hats they occasionally wear. One of the many aspects that fall under this relationship is respecting diversity in your classroom. A second way to promote effective teaching and learning is allowing students to use their strengths in the classroom. Since we all learn differently, what works best for student A, may not work best for student B. I feel that it is important to address each student’s learning styles in the classroom, so each student has an equal chance of being successful. Being that there are multiple intelligence types among students, when teachers take the time to discover these differnet learning styles, every student can benefit. Finally, teachers must advocate and focus on the individual. Teachers must be willing to stand up for their student and to advocate for them while continually knowing each student as an individual, not simply as a whole class.

I hope to not only develop these ideas in the future as I continue my career as an educator, but also, to carry on with my volunteer work an earn my Master of Education, working full-time as an early childhood teacher in a South Carolina elementary school. I am excited to continue to learn and discover more about education as I look to begin my future career as an educator!