Why Teach?

I am not sure why I exactly want to be a teacher but I know that I want to work with kids the rest of my life and I really want to make an impact in their lives and just help them. I really like teaching people new things and am really excited to have my own classroom. I am not sure what grade I want to teach yet, but I am thinking upper elementary right now. I think that 4th and 5th graders begin to have that sense of independence that I like, but yet they still need someone to guide them on the right path. Being a teacher means taht I need to be passionate about learning and my students in order to help give them the most beneficial education I can give them. I hope to drive a passion of learning into them as well.

I think the difference between 'school work' and 'student learning' is that sometimes teachers give 'work' to students so they can do something else, such as read a book or work on grades while the kids are doing their work. Homework can also be a form of 'school work'. Some teachers may use it to reinforce a lesson they learned in school, and some teachers may assign it because they are not sure if the kids are doing anything worthiwhile when they get home. I think student learning is how a student actually learns and also what they take out of their learning and how they apply it to their everyday life.

I think that a good teacher needs to be passionate about what they do so students can be excited about learning. A teacher also needs to be enthusiastic, empathetic, influential, a good role model, and needs to have fun in the classroom because school can sometimes get boring, especially for older kids.