Culture and Community

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I believe it is important to foster both community and culture in your classroom as well as the culture and community outside of your classroom. I think we as teachers, no matter our age, ethnicity or interests need to make an honest effort to connect to our students. This means we should know what is popular with our students ie silly bandz, t.v. shows, movies and community events. This shows our students their thoughts and interests are important and worth our time. There are ways to bring in the positive outside community and culture into your classroom and have a deeper connection. If there are community events going on (fall carnival, 5k fun run etc.) we should make an effort to attend and get to know our students outside the classroom so we can see them as more than just someone who produces work we grade. They are functional members of their community that are rich in culture and experiences, once we accept this we can allow it in our classroom and can form our own classroom culture/community where learners can take ownership of their learning and we don't have to be an overbearing dictator.

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