Teaching Philosophy

I believe in multi-sensory and experiential learning, in involving all of the senses on a regular basis and in meaningful contexts.

I want students to not only see and think about the textual appearance of the word, “lemon”, but also to see and touch the thick outside yellow rind of the fruit; squeeze it in their hands and listen as citrus droplets fall into a glass; pucker their cheeks when they taste the uniquely sour flavor; smell the dirt as they plant lemon seeds; and begin to understand the tremendous complexity of a single word.

I believe in the power of play, that kids should be allowed to be kids for as long as possible.

I believe in wonder, joy, and curiosity.

I believe in creativity and thinking creatively, especially when there are boundaries and constraints or limitations in place.

In the classroom, I do not instruct students to simply “be creative”. I give them a problem, provide limited materials, and ask them to come up with a solution within those constraints.

I believe in hard work. I encourage developing the strength and perseverance that comes from working through challenges.

I believe in risk-taking and in the inevitability of failure. Learning how to fail is one of life’s greatest lessons.

I believe in teaching students to be self-directed and lifelong learners.

I believe that language is a beautiful canvas and mosaic with countless layers of meaning; but without context, it becomes a pile of randomly grouped Scrabble letters.

I believe that we can do anything we set our minds to.

Be smart. Be strong. Be kind.
Work hard. Have fun.