Why Should We Hire You?

Inevitably every job interviewer will ask this questions and every interviewee should be prepared with an answer. What can I bring to a job I am truly passionate about? What skills do I possess that will enhance my students lives, my life, and enhance the school's culture ?

I have been answering this question for years now and to be truly honest with you it is one question I enjoy answering because I only apply for jobs I truly want, and when I truly want something I have no problem in verbalizing my value. To be a teacher there are certain requirements one must have, and every person that the administrators talk to will have those base requirements. My value to a school is not in only my education, experience and expertise, but it is (I believe) in my excitement and interest in my subject areas. My enthusiasm for what I teach is evident in my assignments and my lessons. By crafting assignments that I believe to be both educationally sound, and interesting I believe I can bring something into the classroom that other teachers cannot.

Enthusiasm is the key for me in any great interview because it plays such an important role in teaching. Every student has had a teacher that is smart and knows the subject better than anything, but if that teacher cannot translate that knowledge into contagious enthusiasm for her class then the students will struggle to find the value in what they are doing. As school and classrooms begin to shift to a greater online focus I believe it is truly more important than ever to have enthusiastic teachers in the classroom reminding students why an online education can never replace that of a traditional in-class, teacher led experience.

Blog Assignment #8 - Professional Product / Service Review

One of my favorite units to teach in senior English is classic Greek Mythology. Having background information in this subject allows students a greater understanding of classic and modern texts alike. Our society is permeated with classical allusions to gods and myths of all sorts. While my enthusiasm for the subject often helps students get interested in the stories and heroes, I have found very few resources that are accessible to a modern teen audience. For my classes I have been creating most of my own curriculum and activities pieced together from my own training in humanities, the ever helpful Internet, and information in older textbooks. That has all changed now that I have found this book!

Mythology For Teens is an excellent teacher resource for the secondary teacher interested in bringing Greek myth into the classroom. By presenting the information in an easy to understand format, students are quick to get interested and involved with the myths. My students have really enjoyed reading the plays aloud because they are funny, relatable and action packed. Classroom theatre is an excellent way to meet learning outcomes and get students invested in the characters. Tales of heroes like that of Perseus, are the cornerstone of learning heroic archetypes and continue to be a feature in modern film, television and story. One needs to look no further than the recent production of Clash of the Titans to see that mythology can still be presented in a fresh manner. With modern audiences having their interest peaked in mythology, I think that now more than ever teachers that have not previously used Greek myth in the class should consider doing so, and a great way to do that is by using this book.

Blog # 7 Why Professional Writing will be Important to my Job

Writing professionally is an important part of being teacher because a lot of communication with students' parents is done via email, or letter home. A teacher is also responsible for producing her own assignments and in doing such she will model the type of writing she expects to see from her students. Every day teachers need to write on the board, on student assignments and interact professionally with writing. Writing is a reflection of who the teacher is and the time and effort spent into crafting words shows in every written word. Imagine a teacher sending a letter home to parents that is filled with spelling errors and grammatical oversights. It would not be long before the parents would lose faith in that teacher's ability to impart the knowledge of the written word onto their children.

In a world full of text messaging, instant messaging and email the written word has become more important than ever to professionals. More frequently parents are unavailable by phone, but available via email, so teachers must be aware of how the written word reflects upon their professional image. A simple memo could be the difference between a positive or a negative relationship with parents and peers.

Blog Assignment #6 Writing to a professional program

To be posted later