My philosophy of teaching drives everything I do from daily lesson plans and interactions with students to unit plans and curriculum development. Taking the time to reflect on my teaching practice is something I’ve been doing from the very beginning, and seeing both places I glow and places I need to grow (and having others help me see them!) has helped me become a better teacher.

If you don’t have a written philosophy of teaching, I encourage you to put pen to paper or your fingers to the keyboard and parse it out for yourself. It’ll feel good plus you’ll be better able to hold yourself accountable and you’ll actually get to see your growth and results. Your teaching philosophy should include your core values and teaching approaches. For example, my core values are empathy, active citizenship, and inclusivity. What are your three words that define your teaching?

You can find resources for writing your teaching philosophy by clicking here. There is a slideshow from my 2023 NCSS Presentation “History is for Everyone: Writing a Teaching Philosophy” as well as templates to help walk you through your reflection and writing. You can find a link to my teaching philosophy in this doc, as well, or you can click here.

Contact me any time if you want to talk this through!