Knowledge+or+Content

=Teachers Know the Subjects They Teach and How to Teach Those Subjects to Students.=

If you give a quick glance to the Pennsylvania Standards for the Language Arts classroom, you will see that many standards center around speaking and listening skills. That is why it is very important for me, as an English teacher to be sure my students respect themselves and others in order to create an environment where they feel safe to speak out and share their thoughts and work with others.

On the first day of school, I explain my expectations clearly as it is important for my students to know what I expect of them as students and what they can expect from me, as their teacher. The classroom rules are posted in the classroom, listed along with the rule is a positive consequence if they follow the rule and a negative consequence if they do not follow the rule.

**Whale Done**
Somethi ng I came across a couple of years ago, is a theory called Whale Done- The Power of Positive Relationships. The concept is that of the way they train the whales at SeaWorld. They don't ever give negative feedback, the trainers Accentuate the Positive, Build Trust and when mistakes occur they Redirect the Energy. By praising my students immediately, being specific, sharing positive feelings and encouraging students to keep up the good work, I try hard to make the English classroom somewhere that my students feel comfortable and gain a boost in their self-esteem and confidence. At the beginning of the year, each student colors a cut out whale and puts their name on it. They then taped them onto the wall in the back of the classroom. Every Friday, students receive praise from me and receive and give praise or “Whale Done’s” to other classmates. Students may receive Whale Done's for a variety of different things. (Those that help around the classroom, do well/improve on writing prompts and class discussion pieces, vocabulary quizzes, etc.)

Included below are two documents. The first one is my Philosophy on Student Discipline and the second is my Classroom Policies.