Why Teach?
I grew up with parents who placed great importance on education. While neither of my parents ever attended college they still always dreamed that their children would. Ever since I was a little kid my dad in particular spent all the time he had helping me with homework and reading to me. I grew up loving school because it was always such a big part of my life. My younger sister by contrast struggled in school. She was diagnosed around 7 or 8 years old with ADHD and because of that not only did she feel like she did not fit-in in school but she also kept telling herself she could not do the things her teachers asked of her. Both of my parents had children a little later in life and since they did not receive higher education much of the homework we were given by 8th grade was beyond their help. This meant that I spent a great deal of time working with my sister and trying to give her tips on ways to make school easier for her or tools to use to understand what she read.
Along with helping my sister with homework, a lot of my first experience with working with kids came from babysitting. I started babysitting for family and friends when I was 12 years old and always really enjoyed spending time with kids. For some reason kids are so much easier to connect with than adults. Children are so open and friendly—if they like something, they come out and tell you, if they do not like something, they will tell you that too. That is one of the things I love about children, there is no beating around the bush, no stifling what they have to say. You never know what is going to come out of their mouths and that is something special.
When I was in high school I got my first real job. I was already leaning toward teaching as a possible career path because I was also tutoring individual classmates in math, history and Spanish but since I thought I would prefer working with elementary students I decided that I should look for a job that worked with this age of children to see if that is something I could really do and enjoy. I ended up getting a job with a local daycare at which I am still working. I have been working with many of the same children for over 4 years now and every day I spend with them I learn something new. Kids have such a great outlook on the world. If you sit down with a 3-year-old for 5 minutes you will know what I am talking about. Children have such creative minds and they have a way of thinking about things that adults just do not have. Their minds are filled with questions and they look to the world to find answers. If a child asks me a question that I do have an answer to the next question is always, “Why?” and if I do not have an answer as to why something is the way it is, you can bet that they do not drop the issue. Children want answers; if someone cannot give it to them they will go out and find it. That is one of the main reasons that I want to be a teacher. I want to be a part of that exploration and education because of course teachers teach students, but people rarely acknowledge how much students teach teachers.
The main reason I want to be an elementary teacher, particularly at the lower levels of second or third grade, is because I believe in building a solid foundation. I think that one of the reasons that I have always loved school, and am dedicating my life to staying in school, is that I had a nurturing home that focused on education and a series of great teachers who helped me develop a strong foundation. I think that if we engage students at an early age and give them the tools they need to problem solve that this can lead to a passion and love of education that will help them to succeed throughout their entire lives. I think that by giving children a step in the right direction with a strong education that, regardless of their personal backgrounds and home lives, they can become something great. I want a part in making a difference for today’s youth. I want children who grow up believing that they cannot do something to show the world that they can.
Along with helping my sister with homework, a lot of my first experience with working with kids came from babysitting. I started babysitting for family and friends when I was 12 years old and always really enjoyed spending time with kids. For some reason kids are so much easier to connect with than adults. Children are so open and friendly—if they like something, they come out and tell you, if they do not like something, they will tell you that too. That is one of the things I love about children, there is no beating around the bush, no stifling what they have to say. You never know what is going to come out of their mouths and that is something special.
When I was in high school I got my first real job. I was already leaning toward teaching as a possible career path because I was also tutoring individual classmates in math, history and Spanish but since I thought I would prefer working with elementary students I decided that I should look for a job that worked with this age of children to see if that is something I could really do and enjoy. I ended up getting a job with a local daycare at which I am still working. I have been working with many of the same children for over 4 years now and every day I spend with them I learn something new. Kids have such a great outlook on the world. If you sit down with a 3-year-old for 5 minutes you will know what I am talking about. Children have such creative minds and they have a way of thinking about things that adults just do not have. Their minds are filled with questions and they look to the world to find answers. If a child asks me a question that I do have an answer to the next question is always, “Why?” and if I do not have an answer as to why something is the way it is, you can bet that they do not drop the issue. Children want answers; if someone cannot give it to them they will go out and find it. That is one of the main reasons that I want to be a teacher. I want to be a part of that exploration and education because of course teachers teach students, but people rarely acknowledge how much students teach teachers.
The main reason I want to be an elementary teacher, particularly at the lower levels of second or third grade, is because I believe in building a solid foundation. I think that one of the reasons that I have always loved school, and am dedicating my life to staying in school, is that I had a nurturing home that focused on education and a series of great teachers who helped me develop a strong foundation. I think that if we engage students at an early age and give them the tools they need to problem solve that this can lead to a passion and love of education that will help them to succeed throughout their entire lives. I think that by giving children a step in the right direction with a strong education that, regardless of their personal backgrounds and home lives, they can become something great. I want a part in making a difference for today’s youth. I want children who grow up believing that they cannot do something to show the world that they can.