Rooted in Curiosity, Growing Through Connection
Hello and welcome to my first blog post of the term! My name is Haley, and I am from Kitchener, Ontario. I have just finished my first year as a teacher. One thing that has defined my personal and professional journey so far is my deep love of learning and connection, which is why I decided to enroll in the PME program, as I wanted to continue my education. Where I work with young learners, collaborate with other educators, or reflect on my practices, I have always been driven by curiosity and a desire to connect ideas, people, and experiences.
Growing up, I was the kind of person who always asked my parents "why" more times than anyone could count on one hand. I wanted to understand the process behind how things worked, so I could better comprehend the activities we were going to do. That same spirit is still within me today, which has led me into education, and most recently into the Professional Master's of Education program at Queens. What excites me most about this course is its emphasis on connected learning, which links the classroom to students' lives, communities, and the larger world, allowing them to explore and learn. As educators, we strive to demonstrate to students that learning is an exciting endeavour, a means to discover new things, and a way to connect with the world around them, thereby fostering a lifelong love of learning.
This term, I am eager to explore what innovation means in practice. I look forward to building a personal glossary of terms, such as innovation, learning, and teaching, and understanding them not just as abstract concepts, but also how I can personally apply them in my everyday teaching. I am also curious about how to incorporate more community services into the classroom to make the students' experience more meaningful and connected to the community.
I am excited to grow alongside all of you who are passionate about making learning more meaningful and connected!
I have linked a great article that I used this year to help build connections with my students, if you are looking to learn some new ideas for September: https://osse.dc.gov/sites/default/files/dc/sites/osse/page_content/attachments/Relationhip_Building_Toolkit.pdf
Haley
Dear Haley,
ReplyDeleteI resonate with your desire for strong community connections within your school community and with your students. This is something that is also extremely important to me- thank you so much for sharing the relationship building toolkit resource.
I especially love the Relationship Mapping activity. I usually find myself reflecting at the end of each year on which students I feel I have formed a strong connection with and which students I feel I possibly missed the mark with when it came to nurturing/forming a connection to. The idea of doing this reflection at the beginning of the year and it being an activity that all teachers take part of for the entire student body is also an intriguing perspective. Here I was putting the pressure entirely on myself (as a specialist I do teach all the students at the school during the year), but I realize the goal is not necessarily to reflect on which students I "bonded" with (which now seems a bit egotistical), rather who the student has in the school as that positive connection (not necessarily having to be me) because what matters is that each student feels they have at least one positive teacher relationship they can count on to support them personally or academically which is something every student deserves.
Thank you for sharing!
Hi Haley, thank you for sharing such an inspiring introduction! Your passion for learning and connection shines through every line of your post. It’s heartwarming to hear how your natural curiosity as a child has grown into a meaningful and reflective professional journey. As someone who also works with young learners, I can deeply relate to your desire to make learning more connected and purposeful. Your decision to enroll in the PME program at Queen’s is a wonderful step that reflects your dedication to growth and innovation in education.
ReplyDeleteYour excitement about exploring innovation and developing a personal glossary of teaching concepts is such a thoughtful approach—it shows your intention to not just absorb knowledge but also make it personally relevant and applicable. I particularly loved your focus on connected learning, and your interest in involving community services in the classroom. That’s a powerful way to make education real, relevant, and rooted in students’ lives.
It’s clear you’re the kind of educator who brings heart, intention, and vision into your practice. I’m excited for the journey ahead and look forward to learning alongside you. I’m sure your insights will add depth and inspiration to our shared learning experience this term!
Hi Haley, thanks for sharing the recourse - it is always great to hear about them from other educators. If you want to look more into the morning circle, Responsive Classroom has a routine for it that my school uses that mimics the development of human relationships (greeting, sharing, activity). I haven't done Relationship Mapping but think I could try it this year. I have done Sociograms before which map the children's relationships with each other in the classroom.
ReplyDeleteYour goal of connecting more with your local community makes me think that you may have been drawn to teaching for the service and citizenship element of the profession. Service-learning is such a great part of a holistic education. It gives students the opportunity to develop transferable skills, built connections with others and develop perspective taking. Connecting to the community develops civic mindedness which is something we need more of these days!
It is lovely to meet you and I look forward to learning alongside you this term.
Heather
Hi Haley,
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed reading your first blog post!
In your blog post you wrote: "As educators, we strive to demonstrate to students that learning is an exciting endeavour, a means to discover new things, and a way to connect with the world around them, thereby fostering a lifelong love of learning". This truly resonated with me! As an experienced lifelong learner myself, I can tell you most of my experience as a student did not include teaching and learning in this way. My teachers were not focused on engaging or motivating us to learn. Through no fault of their own, they were there to teach us the way they knew how or told to do so. I feel as educators we must be innovative and creative in the classroom and provide meaningful experiences to ensure student success.
Thank you,
Michelle
Hi Haley,
ReplyDeleteThank you for sharing such a heartfelt introduction! I love the asking “why” as a child. My kids ask it all the time, and I hope they never stop. It’s lovely to see that childhood spirit of yours seems to have continued in your approach to education. What really resonated with me was not only your curiosity but your love for connection. These are both important things to me, and I feel people who have those desires do well in education. I am also really excited to learn about what innovation means in practice. How can we better understand it and use it appropriately.
Your interest in making learning more community-connected is inspiring! I feel there is so much power in helping students see the relevance of what they are learning beyond what’s in front of them. It is very motivating to learn in this way and helps students engage and retain so much more!
Looking forward to learning alongside you!
Courtney
Hi Haley
ReplyDeleteCongratulations on finishing your first year as a teacher! It’s a wonderful feeling. On my first year, something I learned very quickly is that networking and collaboration is SUPER important. You can’t do this job alone. Its definitely a team effort! I like that you mentioned “connected learning” and how students connect to their real world and life experiences. That was something that is also vital for students to be able to recognize and understand their learning. I remember one time a professor of mine used an example of teaching ice hockey to kids from a country who had no idea what ice hockey was. They would not be able to connect to that. I look forward to reading your blog in the future!
Hello Haley,
ReplyDeleteWow first year as a teacher and already doing a master program, ambitious! I remember my first year I was far too busy staying till 9-10 at night trying to get the shops in order and the art of teaching under my belt so bravo to you. I was a similar kind of question kid and often got "because I said so" type answers, so as a teacher I never want to do that to students and always tell them why they shouldn't do something, or why we are doing things the way we are doing them. Great article you linked to as well and thank you for sharing with us. Late to reply to this blog but good luck with the rest of the course!