Teaching Pedagogy

Haley Ringkob

4/28/2021

I was born to be a teacher. Whether I knew it at the time or not, it’s always been my

calling. I began teaching at 11 when my little sister started working outside in the barn with my

brother and me I. Then I began assistant teaching dance lessons in the 7th grade. In the 9th

grade, I began teaching Sunday school music and clover bud lessons. In the 10th grade, I took

over teaching dance classes by myself until I graduated. When I began my classes at SDSU, my

dedication to my chosen occupation grew. This semester I have experienced the most growth

in becoming a stronger, more understanding teacher.

Education today can be seen as a factory line. You turn it on, repeat the process 1,000

times, and out pops a single product. However, in my opinion, every class, every day, and every

student should be given the opportunity to have an individualized education. I believe that

education needs a turn on its head because children are some of the most creative and

knowledgeable humans. Their minds are like huge pieces of artwork with new colors and

shapes being added every day. They also look at everything in their own way. One of the

biggest pieces of my pedagogy is to create a safe and authentic environment for students to

learn. This means allowing them to be themselves and create. We should be creating lessons

that challenge their minds and their ideas instead of reproducing the same basic lessons.

Learning should be an adventure. We, as educators, should hold dear a child’s individuality and

their ability to see the world in ways we never imagined. To do this, we combine classroom

lessons built around student interests that can be layered on each other to build scholastic and
worldly skills all at once. Is this as easy as reproducing worksheets and classroom assignments

you have used for 10 years? No, each year is different, each student is unique and they are

worth the work.

The arts play a huge role in student self-discovery. This is where students can become

someone new or express words and emotions through movement when they are unable to

voice them. When schools take away these experiences, we are creating copies of students and

not individuals. We are removing the ability for small humans to blossom into the truest

versions of themselves. The arts preserve classic plays and readings, teach world-renowned

movement theories, and open the mind to look at school subjects in a different way. By

increasing a student's art education they can begin to use it in math class and reading. Their

math equations are artistically thought out, their reading projects reach a new level of depth

we didn’t know was there. The arts allow children and students of all ages to learn how to

express themselves.

You already know this about me but I feel that kinesthetic learning should have a larger

role in the common classroom. There are multiple studies to prove that the brain works better

and has more room for information movement is incorporated. To aid this, we should be

allowing the same lessons done in drama, music, and dance class in math, and science, and

reading. Teaching should be done in parallel with each other. This means we should offer

students the same amount of time to study history, science, and literature as we allow for

dance, music, and art.

I value a student’s outlook on life as well as their past classroom experiences. I value their

ability to grow in my classroom by studying things they enjoy and asking them to step outside

of their comfort zone. I value their laughs, their ideas, their troubles, and their worries. I value

their friendships and their ability to navigate all relationships. I value an educational

experience that offers them the best opportunity to become a truer version of their best self. In

terms of teaching dance, I value the same things. I also value how they move and how

comfortable they are in their bodies. I value how they express themselves. I value how they

combine technique and creative intent. All of these are valued in a classroom I will be in one

day. Whether it be a dance class or a school class, all of these values will be taken into

consideration for each student.

The learning theory that I have studied the most is Howard Gardner's Theory of

Multiple Intelligence. I am a kinesthetic, visual, interpersonal learner. Others can learn many

different ways including linguistically, naturalistically, mathematically, especially, musically,

and intrapersonally on top of the ways I learn. To understand these learning styles and how

they are used by students we have to allow them the opportunity to try them all on.

Understanding how to use each of these styles in a classroom is important to determine the

kinds of activities your students will most enjoy. In elementary classrooms, some subjects offer

learning stations. These are 4-5 different places around the room that allow students to make

choices on what they want to do. Each of these stations can be set up to accommodate a

different learning style. Students will more than likely navigate their way to the one they are

most comfortable with. However, to challenge them you ask the students to explore all the
stations by simply stating “I want you to make a different choice today.” They get to use their

preferred learning style and then try on new ones. We are promoting self-discovery and new

ways to express our creativity.

I want my classroom to mirror a small community. Everyone plays a different part but

each is important to keep the wheels turning. I want students to feel safe and appreciated for

who they are and explore all the wonders learning has to offer. I approach teaching lessons

with the idea of multiple learning styles in mind but also staying true to my kinesthetic roots. I

need to be me so I can encourage my students to do the same. Depending on the class I have

will determine what learning styles I use more often. They will all be different so that will

mean I have to create flexible lesson plans that work with a variety of learning styles. I learned

a lot when it came to teaching in small episodes and will also incorporate those techniques

into my classrooms. I, of course, plan to include lots of movement. Creative movement, yoga,

improv, and choreographed dances to fit the needs of my lessons. I think movement is

powerful and should be used daily, not just in PE class! I expect that I am open to new ideas

and that those ideas will come with great challenges. I expect that being a teacher who wants

to create an authentic environment will worry about how effective her lessons are. I expect

students will be resistant at first. I also expect to grow and change in the most amazing ways.

One of the biggest reasons I love being a teacher is not what I teach students, but what they

teach me. I can expect to be amazed by their creativity, awed by their confidence in their

individuality, and moved by their ability to open themselves up to learning in new ways.
My goal is and has always been, to create a safe and authentic learning environment

that allows teachers and students to share creativity and learn communally. My goal for my

students is to try. Try everything and open yourself to new ideas. I want my students to feel

listened to, respected, understood, and loved in our classroom home.

In conclusion, I can only expect to be the best teacher I can be. I have learned so much

this semester about what I want, and what I desire my students to learn. I have also dipped

into how I want them to learn and some new ways to foster their creativity. I know that our

ideas and values can change, but I hope to come back to this moment. I want to remember the

pedagogy I have put together here. I want to stay true to these ideas and not let the modern

chug of school pull me in. I also want to grow but to grow you have to have roots and I feel I

have planted those here today. I have always known I wanted to be a teacher and now I feel like

I am truly ready to be one.