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What are one or two practices you’d like to implement that would allow you to demonstrate your care for and commitment to your students? If you already have practices in place, what are they?
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I have a gifting for building relationship. Listening and praying with a student is helpful, and so is making time to talk about a fishing trip, a story, a project or family stuff is interesting and helps build trust and tells me what they need sometimes as well. When I mark their work, I include comments to improve their work moving forward and also spend time at lunch or whenever necessary if a student needs help. Sometimes we also triangulate schedules with parents and make it a team project.
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I have many students that come to me with prayer requests. I always make sure to pray with them right away and then I follow up in the weeks and months to come, letting them know that I’m still praying for them. I also have some that would find it too awkward to talk about their requests so I have a box and paper that they can drop their requests in. I make sure to follow up with those students privately as well.
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I need to be more open to field trips. I need to spend more time researching places that would be fun and beneficial for my students.
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I think field trips are a great idea. As a Bible teacher teaching world religions, I would like to take kids to various temples, mosques, and houses of worship as we study Christianity and engage other beliefs critically.
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I allow students to come and sit in my room for lunch. Their other option is to find someplace outside. The students have the opportunity to sit down and relax in the classroom environment when they are not expected to learn. On the side of my classroom, there is a couch with blankets and chairs. The students have the opportunity to have a safe space to go. They also know that I am there and willing to talk. They see that I open up my classroom and become more relaxed and begin to talk to me and fellow students.
I also have a snack closet in my classroom. The students are free to grab snacks in between courses. They can grab something if they didn’t eat earlier or if they want a snack.