TPE D

More than being excited about teaching, I am excited about learning from my students.  Oakland is so rich in culture and history.  It will be a wonderful opportunity to serve the students who live here and learn about how their families came here.  I want to take advantage of this teachable moment and create lessons that will be relevant to my students' lives.  Home visits are also a way to connect to the students and learn about who they are.

After reading this article, I came up with some writing topics that I want to further develop to use with my ELD students.  I think this would be a way to get to know them and it would relate to their lives.  Topics include their reaction/opinions to I.C.E. (Immigration and Customs Enforcement Raids), no documents = no college, impact of ethnic enclaves or write about family history and why they are here.

This article also reminded me of a cultural sensitivity training I went to years ago.  I think when you work in a place that includes families from so many different cultures, it is important to practice humility and understanding.  Although you want to treat everyone equally and respectfully, I learned that how you talk to one parent may differ from how you talk to another set of parents.