Today, I'm excited to share with you a diverse array of philosophy of education examples. Now, it's important to note that these examples, while illustrative, might come across as simplified. But rest assured, their simplicity is intentional.
What goals do you have for yourself and your students?
Examples of things to emphasize in a teaching philosophy statement include: (1) A student-centered approach to education. (2) A focus on active learning. (3) High expectations for yourself and your students. Read on for more.
I grew up attending school in France and never liked it. I have always been successful, ranking top of my classes, graduated high school at age 16… but I always hated school. I felt like I did not belong. I was not interested in the way we were taught – […]
A teaching philosophy statement is a reflective essay about one's teaching beliefs and practices. It's commonly needed in academic job applications.
What goals do you have for yourself and your students?
What is an educational philosophy? An educational philosophy is used by educators as a guide for how he or she will educate students and...
Learn about 5 common preschool philosophies: Montessori, Reggio Emilia, Waldorf, Play-Based, and Forest. Print our free infographic.
Everyone has a story, and everyone should share that story. It’s therapy for the writer and an education for the reader. That’s my philosophy and I’m stic
What does it mean to have a Charlotte Mason homeschooling approach and how do we do it? Read this simple summary to see if it's right for you!
Unschooling, a term coined by educator John Holt, is a unique approach to education that places children at the center of their learning journey. It encourages them to explore their interests, pass…
Examples of things to emphasize in a teaching philosophy statement include: (1) A student-centered approach to education. (2) A focus on active learning. (3) High expectations for yourself and your students. Read on for more.
What goals do you have for yourself and your students?
Four problems with the philosophy behind classical education. Read on and see if you agree with the problems with classical education!
Why I teach comics.
I use this booklet with my Peer Counselling Skills course, however, it could be used in many subject areas such as English Language Arts, Film Studies, Personal Development, Philosophy, Career Education, and more. Earth pass activity suitable for all ages; discussion questions suitable for middle sc...
Examples of things to emphasize in a teaching philosophy statement include: (1) A student-centered approach to education. (2) A focus on active learning. (3) High expectations for yourself and your students. Read on for more.
I have often been asked how I feel about a certain aspect of teaching, or to express my philosophy of teaching. It’s hard to write into one sentence, or even a small paragraph, beca…
In a Charlotte Mason education (To which we now primarily subscribe), you will hear certain terms and phrases, like "copywork", that may seem foreign when thinking about education. Charlotte Mason was a British educator in the late 1800's that revolutionized how the upbringing and education of a child should be approached. Her philosophy is best understood by reading her 6-volume set of books she wrote for the people of her time.
My role as a teacher is to create a safe, positive, welcoming environment for students to learn and grow as both musicians and members of...
Need some fall nature study tips? Fall is one of the best seasons to get outside and explore nature! Use these nature study ideas this fall.
Are you ready to embark on an exciting exploration of Montessori education? Get ready to uncover the ten guiding principles that make this approach so...
Winterstein’s student-focused teaching philosophy helped to inspire and guide multiple career paths
Project-Based Homeschooling is based on the Reggio Emilia philosophy. If you're interested in encouraging deep, complex learning, read this!
You might or might not have heard of a Home Education mission statement — it's one of those things that can easily be overlooked because not everyone thinks they need one. Well, let me tell you that having one is better than not having one.
An overview of the Wild + Free homeschooling philosophy, which emphasizes preserving the natural learning elements of childhood.
Two Points: This is MY method, and not necessarily right for you, your teaching or care philosophy, your set-up, or your students. Curriculum participation by my students is VOLUNTARY. I invite them to participate, but if they choose not to, then that is fine. I usually offer them a choice of a few of the activities and let them decide where we start and where we go. An engaged child learns, a dis-engaged child rebels. The 3-year rotating curriculum is theme based. Some times we stick to the plan, but usually I observe what they are interested in learning about, what they are asking questions about, and suggest up to three different themes they can choose from for us to study. I make my own 3-year rotating curriculum for many reasons: Packaged curriculum is often only one year. Since I teach for 3 years, this would be redundant. Most packaged curriculum focuses on skills my students master early. My 2s count to 20, know 11 colors, know most of their phonics, uppercase and lowercase letters, 10 shapes and some of their numbers and I still have 3 years of curriculum to teach them. They often are worksheet intensive. My students usually are cognitively advanced from their fine motor skills. I have 4 year olds that still can't write well. If I had relied on worksheets for the last 2 years, there is no way they would have the skill sets they have. Worksheets are also not considered Developmentally Appropriate Practice [DAP] for children under the age of 8. We use them here for writing practice starting at age 4. [Yes, worksheet-intensive public schools are not using DAP for kindy through 3rd grade!] They can be expensive. If you are purchasing worksheets, why would you spend even $1 a week/$52 a year when you can purchase a 400 page Scholastic preschool workbook from Sam's Club for $8 that covers probably more material, is most likely aligned with the public school expectations, and is colorful. Colored copies are NOT affordable to make from packaged curriculum. Most [ALL!] preschool learning should be interactive. Pinterest is a better source for ideas. My students change every time I do a theme. I have to be able to tweak it to the interests and capabilities of those currently in my care. Plus, I'll find more interesting activities on Pinterest, have an idea for a new game, etc. It's a constant evolution to keep my curriculum relevant to our current group, situation and resources. However, curriculum planning and creation is very time consuming. Even with older curriculum I spend several hours going over it prior to teaching - updating, creating new materials, purchasing and setting new classroom decorations. While I have had my 3 year curriculum, this year I found myself wanting a more specific schedule to focus on specific skill sets for this particular group of children. Most of these skills can be incorporated into our themed curriculum, or they take 5 minute sessions to pop into our day. I have two groups, the younger preschoolers are 2-3 years old and the older ones are 4-5 years old, all at the same developmental and skill set level within their group. This makes it easier, as I can tailor everything to just 2 groups. If I were to have additional levels of children, then it would be tailored to each level. Children here are taught at their developmental level, not age. Asychronastic development is normal, so I may be teaching a child at various levels depending upon the subject matter. For the younger preschoolers, I came up with this structure. For the older pre-k students, I came up with this one. For instance, both of them have Measurement & Comparison on Friday for Reasoning. However, for the younger students, this would be a more/less, longer/shorter, big/little, etc. activity, while the older students would be measuring with rulers, yardsticks, tape measures, measuring cups, unit blocks, foot steps or themed units, and graphing the measurements to compare. Same skill set, differentiated at vastly different levels. Even this needs conditional tweaking. All the pre-k's know how to spell their last names now, so that is no longer a relevant skill activity for music and will be changed out. In another post I'll get into the curriculum components and the importance of each. For instance, how counting on Friday teaches 1-to-1 correspondence and creating method processes for counting groups of objects. CLICK PICTURES TO VIEW LARGER I use this MS Word template, available for FREE on TPT, for curriculum planning. Often, the daily skill sets above are either already incorporated, or can easily be incorporated, into the theme planning. For an example of a completed curriculum unit, check out our Owls Theme. Each monthly theme is broken down into 4 sub-themes. For instance: SPACE Astronauts & Rockets The Universe Our Solar System Aliens & Robots We also have a musical component, often classical, and an art component, often a master, and Spanish vocabulary component that we incorporate. This planning form may not include all games, file folder games, manipulatives, room-set up, etc. that I utilize. For those of you trained in curriculum creation, I do NOT do a full curriculum development for each activity. With having these children usually from infant to school-age, I keep an internal evaluation of progression and plan out only weekly learning objectives. Since I am creating the activities for my personal use, I do not need to create written procedures and evaluations. My curriculum is stored currently in file folders in a large office bookcase unit. I would like to get it into boxes so that I could have EVERY theme-related item, including dress-up, room set-up, manipulatives, etc. together for an easy pull. File boxes will most likely be the easiest, but they do take up a lot of space. In each file some of the things I probably have: Completed planning sheets All the books I own for that theme Flannel board Sentence and word walls File folder games Samples of previous crafts DVDs CDs Coloring pages Mini-book(s) Build-a-[theme item] game Curriculum creation is one of my great joys. I love the research and compilation, the creativity and excitement of bringing something fun and educational to my students. Learning is rarely linear. Children take developmental leaps, sometimes in odd directions. As a teacher, it is important that I keep each one challenged without pushing or inhibiting their growth, and that takes constant evaluation and a good eye for when those leaps happen so that we can move on to a higher level of instruction. When we do an activity, I constantly question if they WANT to do another round, another activity, and I usually cut them off while they are still engaged. I want them wanting more, and they will usually ask if they can continue. One of the most important desires and abilities I can instill in them is that of self-directed learning. So as they choose to go off with their rulers after we've spent several minutes doing a measuring activity, conferring between themselves as to procedures and what to measure next, I step back and let them. They know I am here as a resource, rather than an intrusive director. It is my job to ensure that when I invite my students to learn, they glow with excitement and anticipation of a fun, interactive, playful time. The results, so far, have been astounding. A few of my complete curriculum units are available through my TPT store. Apples Dental Ice Cream Penguins Rainbows St. Patrick's Day Valentine's Follow Connie -'s board Classroom on Pinterest. Tags: preschool, child care, pre-k, curriculum, development, teaching, education, homeschooling, homeschool, home, school, preschool curriculum development, planning
The Waldorf curriculum approach stands out as a beacon of creativity, imagination, and holistic child development.
