Sarah's Adventures in Inquiry

"Respect, Balance, Kindness". These are three of the values Robin Wall Kimmerer shared during the "Reconciling Ways of Knowing" seminar. In particular I feel that these values beautifully represent what it means to be an educator. I have a page in my notes full of quotes from Dr Kimmerer and approaches to life that I find align with who I want to be as an educator very closely. She definitely has sparked a curiosity in me which led to me googling the following prompts after the seminar, along with purchasing two of her books.  My Google Search Engine History After Class:  "Indigenous approaches to technology"  My second teachable is computer science - the world filled of human-made creations (it's) - how do I approach indigenizing a tech-focused classroom"   "Indigenous perspectives on skin care, makeup and clothing"  I have a passion for skin care, make-up and clothing, and I find it as a way to express myself. I wanted to see how I cou...

Wow. Can I just start this blog entry with a huge round of applause for Jo Boaler who communicated so effectively all of the reasons why I am so passionate about becoming a math educator.  One of the things that really stood out to me when listening to her talk was her points about encouraging and praising a growth mindset instead of a fixed mindset. The reason this stood out to me is because I am a direct product of the fixed mindset praise. She mainly focused on how saying “you’re so smart” affects the way students learn and engage in education, however, I additionally wanted to touch on the emotional stress that this sort of praise can have on a student. I remember since I was 10 and all through high school, I felt a pressure to perform because I had been labeled as smart since I was young and now that was who I was. That was my identity, and with that was a fear of making mistakes. I cannot wait to get to the classroom and celebrate students specific successes with a focus on g...

Humanizing a human, what a strange concept, but one of the major ones I took away from today's assigned videos.  Through the first passthrough of these interviews, I'll be honest I thought I had all the answers. Frank McCourt handing us the answer to being a perfect educator on our second day of teaching school, wow. However, after discussing with my peers, and having my second coffee of the day, I realized I am left with more questions than answers.  Should I have students call me by my first name instead of "Ms. Reny"? Frank breaks society's constructs, I should too!!! How do we build bridges and relationships with students, yet still be able to maintain authority when it is required? "Hey students I've stole, and lied, and cheat, but I need you to not cheat on your tests!" How will I have enough time to incorporate thought provoking lessons in the classroom, while still delivering the required curriculum so that my students don't "fail...