Winter 2012 Partnership Magazine - College of Education Home ...

Sibley East
Kiley Theede
Hello! My name is Kiley Theede. I am originally from
Lewiston, a small town in southeast Minnesota. My love of
working with children was instilled early in my life. Along
with my mom’s daycare, working at schools, volunteering,
babysitting, etc my family has been graced with six beautiful
little ones. My nieces and nephews have been my fuel. I
want them to have a great education and be all they can be with the
help of great educators.
This love has grown to many other little ones throughout
my recent years. I strive to help children be all they can be. My
philosophy is to take students where they are and help them climb/
become better as a whole person. All students are different and learn
different, so the challenge is to get them to their peak. Also teaching
Waseca
Kelly Rands
1st grade, Hartley Elementary School, Waseca, MN
Enthusiasm creates chance for all students to achieve in
the classroom. Each day is a new day and each new day
is different. No matter what it is I am teaching, I teach it with
excitement and let the students explore and question. If the
students see me excited about what I am teaching and sharing
with them, then their willingness and desire to learn is outstanding.
Students who ask questions are interested in what is being presented and
explored. I ask questions right back to them to see if they can answer
their own questions. The feeling of answering an unknown question for
students gives them confidence. Confidence then turns into enthusiasm.
Mankato
Amber Leonhardi
The school year has blasted off and it has been busy
getting ready for the take-off. My crew is now on board, and
we work together everyday so we may have a successful
mission!
As the school year has begun, building classroom
community and matching individual learning needs is the
focus of my mission as a new teacher. One of our first reading
units has the theme of “We are Special,” which has led perfectly
into building our classroom community and accepting each other’s
values, beliefs, and unique characteristics. The emphasis on selfworth
is crucial to building classroom community; therefore, it has
been a goal of mine to make sure every child is a valued person
in our classroom. In addition to accepting one another’s unique
characteristics, I have emphasized the importance of learning and
accepting other cultural beliefs and rituals. Once a week, in my
classroom, we “investigate the world” by visiting another country.
We learn a small piece of information regarding something special
related to the country being studied. For example, we have learned
how to count to ten in Swahili and how to say hello and good
morning in the Somali language. This cultural awareness has been
the whole child isn’t just about reading or math, it’s teaching
respect, responsibility, academics, and the list goes on.
Helping each child grow in all parts of their day is indeed
quite a job! To get my classroom ready, I have started with a
reading corner. I’ve added many leveled readers and books
as individual as them. Next is the area for their desks. Finally,
the carpet area is by the smart board where we do most of
our learning. The math corner includes manipulatives, a calendar,
and many hands on games. Curriculum is what has helped me set up
my classroom, but the students and fun is what drives it. This first year
of teaching will truly have its challenges, but it’s great to finally jump
into teaching and use all I’ve learned! It has been a great start to a
wonderful career; thank you Minnesota State University, Mankato and
Sibley East Public Schools for this once in a lifetime opportunity!
Respect is also a key tool to any student’s success. Each day
I talk to my students in a respectful manner. I do not want to be
the “boss” in my classroom. I want to be a guide and a comfort.
Students who come to school and want to tell me everything let
me know that I am doing my job. They know that I truly care.
We can also be goofy in the classroom and if I need them to
turn off the silly, it is a simple 3-2-1 and they know exactly what
is expected. The respect I give to them comes back by the respect that
they show me every day. I believe that you have to give respect to
receive it.
Having my own classroom is more wonderful than I ever imagined
it to be. I am truly in the greatest profession.
embraced by the students, and it is exciting when a student
raises her hand in math, during our money unit, to share her
knowledge of Canada and to inform us that the coins in
Canada are called loonies and twoonies, which is different
from the pennies and nickels that we are currently studying.
While each of my students has unique personalities, each of
them also has unique learning needs. Some people may call
me the project lady because I feel as though I have several projects
completed, in the works, or still outlined only in my mind. Because I
believe that all students deserve equal opportunity to learn the material,
these projects are being created to provide the necessary hands-on
intervention and practice for individual students and the class as a
whole. Furthermore, because students vary in the amount of time it
requires to understand or complete a learning task, some finish early
and then ask, “Now what?!” In my classroom, the students have a list
of activities on the board they can engage in, as well as challenge
tasks and take-it-to-your seat learning folders. Ongoing learning and
practice is the focus of student learning and mastery!
While our mission has only begun, it is a group effort and will
be well-worth the energy and time. Not only do we want to reach
the stars, but we also want to reach the moon!
26 http://ed.mnsu.edu/csup/