Mrs. Sally Smith

ESL Resource Teacher

• B.A in Elementary Education ( K-6)

• MED in Special Education ( Learning Disabilities)

ESL CERTIFIED

Teaching Philosophy

This is my first year at Edgewood Highland as a full time ESL resource teacher. I work with beginner students – those children that have little or no knowledge of the English language.

The students seem motivated and enthusiastic and I feel the same way when I am working with them. A student’s desire to learn is inborn. I try to nurture this desire by making learning fun and exciting. I do this by using humor, bodily actions and by changing my facial expressions and voice. It is fun for me because I can act like a child again!

I work with small groups which I feel has many advantages. It is important that the children are focused on me and the small group setting makes that easy. They learn vocabulary and skills by using picture cards, puppets, books, music, and “acting out”. Repetition is always the key to learning.

I try to work with a positive reinforcement: smiles, praise, stickers, candy, and the prize box. The students get to choose a toy from the prize box after 15 days of working hard and trying his/her best.

The best reward for me is how I feel when I leave Edgewood at the end of the day, because I know I have done my best in shaping young lives.