Discipline: An important part of the classroom.

In order to have a successful classroom, a teacher cannot ignore the task of discipline. My definition of discipline is to constructively correct someone for actions that are not appropriate behavior. If a teacher did not have discipline in a classroom, the students would not be able to learn and achieve a successful education because the classroom would be nothing but a chaotic mess. No matter what age the students are, whether in 1st grade or in 12th grade, they all need guidance and help in making sure they are doing what they are supposed to be doing. As they get older, of course the guidelines can be a little more lenient, but they still need them just like they did before.

This week’s discussion has impacted my personal philosophy regarding student management because I realize and understand how important it is to have discipline in the classroom. It is a very important aspect of having a successful learning environment for the children. A teacher can enforce rules and guidelines without always having to be a Nazi about them. However, no matter how good the students’ behavior is or how bad it is, there must be rules to follow. Without rules, there would be no order or control in the classroom.
I have a very outgoing personality and I love playing and being around kids. I like to make kids happy and see them have fun at the same time. I love their smiles and giggles as they play and use their imagination to go in a world beyond this one. It will be a challenge to decide at what point I will draw the line in a situation where it is border line of needing correction. Some kids are very quiet and sensitive and can sometimes do things that are not appropriate, without realizing it. Times like this, a teacher will feel that they should say something to help the child understand what it is they are doing and why they shouldn’t do it. However, one must be careful how they approach the child and go about talking to them.

One example I have in my own life, I experienced the other day. I was baby-sitting 3 kids and I we had just come inside the house from playing outside. The little girl, who was 3 years old, had to go the bathroom. However, she didn’t make it to the bathroom in enough time apparently. Next thing I know, she comes out telling me that there is pee on the floor and that she went the bathroom on the floor right in front of the toilet. In a time like this, I didn’t want to get on to her and tell her how she should have not gone the bathroom on the floor. However, one has to decide in situations like this, whether or not the child did it on purpose or if it was merely just an accident. I think with practice and if you really know the child, one will know how to handle the situation and if discipline is necessary in that moment or not. This will be one challenge that I will have to learn to discern how to handle in the classroom. However with my outgoing personality, I think it will help me to get to know the children quickly and build relationships with them easily.

I love being around children and playing with them. I do not feel that just because I am in college that I have to always act grown up. There is a time to be silly and other times to be serious. When I am around kids, sometimes even my own peers, I do not have a problem with being goofy or acting silly or childlike. I know how to have fun and use my imagination and am not afraid of “being too old” to be acting that way. There is a difference between acting immature and knowing how to have fun and act like a child would act. As I begin to teach children, I think my “fun” personality will be very beneficial to me as a teacher, in my future classroom.

Walking Down Memory Lane:

I grew up as a homeschooler until the 3rd grade. I didn't go to a school in a building; I went to school in my own house. I woke up in the morning, and walked downstairs to my school, Jones Academy I guess I could call it. The living room was my classroom. My mother taught me how to count, add, write, and read. She was had a very important role in my life. She was not just my mom, but she was also my teacher. She taught me many things a teacher in a classroom could have never taught me, because of the fact that she was also my mother. I learned how to be disciplined, responsible, compassionate, friendly, loving, caring and many other things.

My mother was an influential teacher in my life. I've had teachers like my mom, who were organized, fun, and energetic, and I've also had teachers who were tired, negative, and boring. Teachers who became angry or upset easily, and were not very patient, and teachers who were encouraging and understanding. The situation could have been much more positive if the teacher had been passionate and loved her job. Instead of viewing it as just a job they had been doing for the past 20 years. It was as if we were just another class, another year, the same old thing as before. Then there was my favorite year, when I went to 3rd grade.

I remember the first day of 3rd grade, when I went to school in a classroom outside of my house. My teacher Mrs. Wells was very organized, energetic and passionate about her job. She loved us, the kids in her classroom. She knew how to manage her classroom. Mrs. Wells was patient, caring, loving and encouraging. She made me want to go to school. School was something I looked forward to attending everyday. It was something I actually enjoyed....so much that I want to become a teacher like my mother and like Mrs. Wells. A teacher who can make children look forward to going to school, who can make a difference in the life of a child.