Angela Holmes
I am an AACPS: Kindergarten Teacher, Oak Hill Elementary School | 2017 Teacher of the Year Nominee
My teaching philosophy has been consistent since I started my teaching career because I feel strongly about my values and I work to build on them continuously. It is just as important to have children thrive emotionally as it is for them to achieve academically. I aim for this by creating a bond with a kindergarten family before the children begin school with a Welcome to Kindergarten postcard greeting families in August. I continue to stay in weekly contact with parents by sending an e-mail on Fridays with reminders, upcoming events, and exactly what skills we will focus on the following week. Parents also value their child’s education and this allows them to work on similar skills at home. Likewise, I encourage volunteers on a daily basis. I think my strongest ability as a teacher is building positive, warm relationships with children. Greeting the children with a smile and “good morning” each day starts the children off on a positive note. I take five minutes of out each morning to let the children express something that they want our class to know. This allows relationships to form within the classroom. I also strive to make all interactions with the students to be positive. Finding a positive in a behavior or academic issue can make a huge impact on the outcome. Kindergarten is a milestone year academically. Many children begin Kindergarten identifying some letters and numbers, but by the time they leave, they are reading books, writing stories, counting to 100, adding, subtracting, and so much more. This is all made possible by continuously evaluating the students on the skills that have been taught and then forming groups to pre-teach, re-teach, and extend on the skills. These principles have enabled me to have extreme success in my classroom each year. I look forward to building on these same values as well as picking up more along my teaching path.
