Heidi McJunkin's Professional Portfolio
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 !  Teaching Strategies

Following provides a general overview of some of my teaching strategies for different subjects.

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1. Math

2. Language Arts

3. Science

4. Social Studies


 

Math

My teaching strategies for math include using manipulatives, games and other hands-on activities. My goal is to teach not only the procedures and algorithms for solving problems but to also teach why these procedures work. My lessons allow the students to discover how the algorithms work for themselves rather than telling them the step by step procedures. Students will learn the basics of mathematics if they have a sound understanding as to why the mathematics works the way it does.

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Language Arts

My strategies for teaching reading are to combine phonic instruction with classic literature. This is one of the many areas where having more than one strategy to teach students to read and comprehend is extremely important. Not all students are going to learn to read through a strickly phonics approach while others won't benefit from a complete whole language program. The best approach is to use a combination of the two. Another facet of my reading program is to have read aloud sessions and a time for students to read on their own during class time. It is vital that students have the opportunity to read what interests them and to see reading for pleasure modeled by the teacher

The best way to teach writing is to write! Using the "writing process", my students will have the opportunity to write daily in a variety of styles. It is also important to connect writing assignments to what interests the students. There is no surer way to bore a student than to continuously have her write about something she doesn't care about.

Reading and writing will also be emphased throughout the curriculum by teaching students how to read content textbooks and to write for a variety of purposes incuding describing their thought processes in math and science.

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Science

Science activities should focus around real life problems. Through in-depth study of such social issues as the environment, space exploration and health, students learn about science in a manner that is meaningful to them. Using these strategies also promotes a desire for life long study.

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Social Studies

Social sciences lends well to integration. Social studies topics can be explored throughout the day by reading books about specific periods such as the book,Across Four Aprils, by discussing the impact of scientific discoveries throughout history and by learning about the ancient number systems of cultures across the globe.

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