Andrea McCarthy
Middle School ELA Teacher
Philosophy of Teaching
“Take off your shoes,” I said immediately after the first bell rang, “and place them on top of your desk. Welcome to 7th grade ELA and The Leaning Tower of Feetza.” Looking around to see how their peers were reacting to this odd demand, the students began to understand my expectations as they cautiously removed their brand new, first day kicks. Knowing young teenagers, a lot of attention went into their sneaker selection earlier that morning. Each year I giggle seeing the gears in their minds turn with eager anticipation. This is the middle school beast.
The Leaning Tower of Feetza is a timed, competitive game which allows groups of four students to collaborate and use their sneakers to build the tallest tower of shoes in three quick minutes. In this short time, I’m able to pinpoint my quiet ones, my leaders, my too-cool-for-schools, my competitive kids and even the ones who are going to need my constant love, redirection, and attention all year long. The activity demonstrates to my students that they will have fun here, they will be competitive here, they will be engaged here, and most importantly, they will be safe, cared for, and loved here.
You see, without relationships, teachers have nothing. Students can smell whether you genuinely care or not, and with young adulthood being such a mysterious time in their lives, we really need them to know early and often that we care. Each day, their friendships are changing and their personalities are changing. Teachers have to be engaging and must form bonds or else we will lose these young minds in the craze of transition. I truly believe that by incorporating highly engaging, hands-on lessons and by bringing high-energy and passion, I can teach standards while also constantly maintaining a classroom rooted in rapport and respect.
My hormonal middle school students, who have no idea what is going on inside their bodies, need to find someone to relate to. I strive to be that teacher for them. Are you a dynamite, distinguished learner? Earn the right to The Great Eraser Race. We each race down the hall, not dropping the eraser balancing atop our heads. Prefer a less kinesthetic option? Mirror Mrs. McCarthy, wear the EPIC lanyard, and Educate Peers in Class. You’ll be hard pressed to find bigger smiles than those who earn this credibility. Even “Get to Know You” games at the beginning of the year matter. We use a beach ball with loads of would you rather questions. My kids need to learn early that their opinions are important. Let’s have a dance party. Using my song request form, students have the opportunity to choose the song I blast at 100% volume in between class change. For Rock-Paper-Scissors Friday, to enter the classroom, students have to beat yours truly.
Every child has a gift. We need to provide them with an expressive format and creative outlet. Working on citations? Welcome to News Channel Eight where we deliver the most breaking news after going live in 3, 2, 1. Need to write a thesis statement? Introducing Frank the Rubber Chicken. Anyone who creates a successful chicken foot graphic organizer gets to squeeze him loud and proud. Students walk into the classroom with a rubber chicken version of “Despacito” for this lesson. Need to identify context clues? Enter my class to see “bloody,” footprints and caution tape as you approach the crime scene including the outline of a body, a rope, a bloody water bottle, and a leg of lamb. I recall when Mia physically could not contain her excitement, red in the face, telling the class how pumped she was to become a detective one day. This is why I teach.
I cannot tell you how many times my adult friends look at me like I’ve absolutely lost my mind when they find out that I am a teacher…of middle schoolers. Middle schoolers have such a bad reputation, and working with them daily, I understand why. They are moody. They are unpredictable. No one wants to be a middle school teacher, but I do. Most want to work with the adorable little elementary kiddos, but that’s not me. Many want to work with the blooming young adult minds of high schoolers, but that’s not me. I want to work with the sponges, the impressionable ones, and the uncertain ones at the biggest turning point of their lives.
With developing relationships at the forefront of what I do, small conversations take seconds out of my day, but have a timeless impact. Pair that with experiential learning and you have a recipe to make a big, lifelong impression. Sometimes we do not know which students we are reaching that day, that week, or that year. What the students may not realize, but often come back years later and thank me for, are that they also learned how to be a self-directed learner, a community contributor, how to be a complex thinker, and produce quality work. These are the deeper implications of my teaching philosophy. By combining life-lessons with relationship development, high-energy, and engagement, and of course, a creative, activist outlet, our influence is lifelong, beyond our time in the classroom together. Every moment matters when molding the minds of the middle school beast.
Data Utilization
Gallant intentions motivate, so imagine walking in during the first week only to see the word “GOALS” outside the classroom door in four feet tall capital letters. When it comes to data, student buy-in is the absolute most important thing, otherwise numbers are just numbers. Convincing students that numbers don’t lie is key. The fact that students get to write their goals, anonymously yet for everyone to see, on these enormous letters demonstrates to them the importance of setting enormous goals. To engage young adults, do something gigantic. Teachers using data is one way to be effective educationally, but when students know how to use it, and see that their peers are vested in it too, everyone wins. It is this combination of a deliberate teacher scheme and student buy-in that allows me to be effective and constantly adapt lessons based on various checks for understanding.
Objective data allows me to improve instruction concretely. I first focus on the use of strategic student seating with purposeful interaction and decision support. The blue A, pink B, green C, and orange D hung in my four corners and found on desk tags, appear to students as seating arrangement markers, but to me, they are my purposeful standards-based groupings. They are very strategic. I have eight groups of four, each labeled by a specified color, shape, and number. For example, table one includes my red octagons through table eight, my purple diamonds. By using a triangulation of data: STAR screeners, three strands in Lexia (word study, grammar, and composition), and classroom assessment data, all supported by the informal observations (class discussions, exit tickets, short responses), I create my groups in one of two ways dependent on the depth of student need. The first type of grouping I like to use can be found in the shoulder partners of advanced with below-grade-level learners. This is helpful with my most frequent checks for understanding when on average every nine minutes of instruction, I am asking my kids, “turn and talk to your shoulder partner,” or “A’s explain to B’s in your own words.” With this scenario, peer help occurs naturally. On the other hand, I will sometimes cluster all the below-grade-level students together at one table and this allows me and/or my co-teacher to either provide extra support in a small group setting to really target any gaps, or to offer an alternative, scaffolded activity.
Appreciation counts. When using data to improve my own instruction, student recognition is emphasized. To ensure that students remain driven and engaged with the targets I provide them, I need them to know early and often that data matters. One of the best decisions I ever made was to create the Data Wars Board and Dynamite Distinguished Learners Board. For every assessment, after looking at “glows and grows,” I pull the average for each class and write it on the Data Wars Board. The top three classes are labeled as first, second, and third place and each of the three earn a reward, respectively. I connect the reward to our school’s PBIS (positive behavior intervention system) since one of our three “Reppin’ Richards” goals is to strive for excellence. Students love this type of competition. As students are constantly seeking belonging, their journey for approval is supported by this form of peer and teacher recognition. This acknowledgment also happens with the Dynamite Distinguished Learners Board. After every assessment, the few, the proud, who score above a 95% on their quiz or test, will find their name on this elite board. These individual students not only earn a round of applause from their peers, but they, too, earn PBIS points for their excellence. This scenario allows all of us to think about what worked and what did not work, and adapt accordingly for the next time. Students at this age are on the brink of their adulthood. They are working to evolve their study skills and educational habits. We are molding who they will become. They have to know their goals matter, their scores matter, and that their growth matters.
Leaps and bounds will be made. I primarily use data for groupings, decision support, and recognition. In Harloew’s case, data can ignite a passion for learning. I remember watching from the doorway as Harloew entered the classroom with this new strut of confidence and told all her friends in the class that she was “actually” smart. She pointed right at her name at the top of the Distinguished Learner Board when her friends joked in disbelief. I recall a conversation with Harloew’s mom later that week. Mom noted how Harloew was never one to like school, let alone perform well in school, and that she had never seen her child prouder than to share that she was “distinguished.”
Spark learning every day. Harloew’s passion for improving her grades was ignited by this simple recognition. We teachers must be the reason every child knows they can succeed. In fact, while their “grows and glows” are what drive my instruction, acknowledging their gains is what allows their impressionable minds to expand. That’s what data is all about – using numbers to incite such change. After all, in a conversation about data, it’s important to note the numbers reveal, time and time again, that the impact of a high-quality teacher is lifelong and far greater than any test can measure alone.
