Journal 4

What kind of teacher/youth worker do I want to be?
Given everything you have experienced this semester, write a journal entry about yourself.  What can you take away from this experience to use in your own classroom or youth setting someday?  What kind of teacher/youth worker do you want to be? Be specific about how you will act on those ideals in your practice.


After being in a kindergarten classroom this semester, I know I want to teach younger kids. I would love to teach first or second grade. There are so many things I have learned this semester that I want to use in my future career as an educator.
When it comes to race and gender, I know not to encourage stereotypes. I know not to say “boys and girls” because there may be some students that do not feel like they fit into one specific category. I have learned that children can wear any color they want, play with any types of toys, and dress however they want. If I have a male student who wants to wear dresses, I would never say anything. As long as the student is happy, I will be happy. I may have students of many different races. I need to teach everyone’s history, not just whitewashed history. I need to teach all of my students cultures to make sure everyone feels included.
As a teacher, I want to have fun posters and book all over my classroom. I need posters and books that show all different types of people, including people with disabilities. I want to have an inclusive classroom  I am going to make sure my future classroom feels welcoming and that every student feels like they can be themselves. I will call all my students by their preferred names and pronouns.

I want to be a teacher that students feel comfortable being themselves around. I want to be the type of teacher that makes kids look forward to going to school. I feel like I can do this by having a participatory democracy style in my classroom. I will not be the only one asking questions. I want my students to ask questions and be inquisitive learners. I feel like if I can do all of this, then I will be a great teacher.

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