Lorena Falasco Mission Statement

When an Individuals is invested in the well-being and success of a school and the students who are attending the school, they are considered a key stakeholder. Parents and family expect their child to receive a challenging and successful education. They want the education system to benefit their child's academic needs. As a future teacher, It will be my job to create a strong and positive communication with the student's parents and family. Our positive relationship will allow me to encourage them to integrate an at home learning environment. It will encourage them to speak to me about any issues. Allowing me to address them and help provides a fun and engaging learning environment inside and outside of school. Creating this bond will affect

In all my life, I’ve never had a commitment that required so much of me as track and field, both physically and mentally. Towards the end of my high school career, track and field for me meant having to push through a difficult physical condition known as tarsal coalition, a condition that causes inflammation in my feet. With help from my coaches, I had to learn to endure past physical limitation and strengthen my faith in my abilities. By doing so, I became more confident in myself and I was able to help lead other team members to do the same. Not only did track and field teach me to lead, but it also taught me how to be a part of a team. I learned the value of teamwork through building relay race teams. In all relay races, I was either the

An aspect of my teaching that I am interested in making more effective is my ability to engage and involve parents in their children’s learning and development.

First of all, most are aware that there is a very large absence of sports that Kihei Charter School offers to its students. Although there is a lack of a variety of sports to be involved in, cross country is one of the many quality teams we have at our school. Among the many perks of this sport, becoming a more socially active with other athletes is a very important one. There are a few hundred students at Kihei Charter School who barely even know their peers. Since the cross country team is open to all grades at any skill level, there is a wide variety of people who run with

Parent involvement is key to a child’s academic success; this can be accomplished through the parent’s participation in an advisory council. A parent-teacher organization meets regularly to discuss the workings of the school and the parents that take part in the meeting are rewarded with a voice to make suggestions and give active feedback to the school. This enables parents and teachers to discuss matters dealing with the education of their child. Another council that advocates the voice of parents is the Mississippi Read

For 2 years I was a member of the Central Toronto Athletic Club. CTAC is a competitive middle distance running club that trains its athletes to compete in track and field and cross country events. It is a year round athletic club that is a platform for talented people of almost all ages to train and to focus on their self-progress as an athlete. At CTAC I was encouraged to push myself to test the limits of my speed, endurance and strength and to discover what my body is truly capable of. Running was a very satisfying sport because my achievements were directly proportional to the amount of work that I put in. At CTAC, I learned discipline, dedication and perseverance. I had to balance my schoolwork with daily practices or workouts, I ran six

In sixth grade I quit the school band in the middle of my third year to join Running Club. The goal of Running Club was to run a 5k after weeks of practice and I accepted the challenge. Throughout the duration of training, I would find the long runs consistently demanding and a test to my motivation to persevere in the club. One of the coaches, Miss. Ames, was my teacher from the previous year and she ran with me during practice. She constantly encouraged me to push myself a little more every run and to keep practicing. I was frustrated with my performance, but Miss. Ames continued to encourage me. Nevertheless, preparing for that 5k was an eye-opening and an overall amazing experience.

Recently, I read an article by Jen Orr called “Raising Our Teacher Voices: A Call for A New Generation of Leadership”. Ms. Orr is a teacher in nearby Fairfax County who was chosen as a 2013 ASCD Emerging Leader. Consequently, she was asked to serve as a panelist at ASCD’s 2014 Whole Child Symposium.

Competing in high school athletics was the highlight of my time at Sterling High School, If I could I’d go back and do it all over agin. It allowed me to learn basic life skills, such as time management, self-accountability, leadership, and teamwork. But the most important thing it brought me was a strong support system built up of teammates, coaches, competitors, and officials. My sophomore English teacher once joked that “the girl’s swim team is like a cult” which is pretty close to the truth. From early August to late November twenty girls, a diver or two, and a pair of coaches were inseparable. Together we suffered together through every practice and worked to improve not only ourselves but each other. It was these long hours that shaped

Paul Richman, California State PTA Executive Director opened the conversation by saying “districts need to focus on three T’s: Trust, Transparency, and Tenacity”. He emphasized the importance of parent involvement by stating “parent engagement is not a check-off item, it is a long term investment of time, resources, dedication, and capacity”.

By informing parents of the ways in which they may be able to assist (Fellowes, 2010), paired with flexible commitment offers, teachers are setting a comfortable and casual scene for parents to become involved in their child’s learning.

My running has been a big part of my life ever since I was younger and saw my dad lace up his running shoes to go out for his daily run. I ran cross country and track for La Crescent every year since seventh-grade and have been fortunate enough, through dedicating myself to thousands of miles of training, to see great success during my time here. Last fall, I ran my final season of high school cross country. Ending the season, I was able to achieve my first state championship which brought me a sense of accomplishment no words could ever describe. I was overjoyed to see all my hard work pay off. The most interesting aspect of that whole experience was how the La Crescent community received the news. The night of the state meet, and the days that followed, allowed me to talk with friends, teachers, and community members alike. Through these interactions I noticed that winning state brought a great sense of pride not only to me but to the La Crescent community as a whole. Everyone felt a part of the accomplishment and it seemed that we accomplished something together. I’ve often heard criticism about La Crescent athletics, but I’ve come to understand, and others have to, that we aren’t as bad off as it might seem. In three years, we’ve had three people win state: myself, Zack Emery, and Clair Shepardson. A vast majority of schools can’t say that. I’ve noticed

In the beginning of the interview I had believed that the Hernandez family was a middle-class family who had no great monetary issues, I also believed that the family needed more persuasion to be involved in school programs since in the past Janeth Hernandez the mother to the child Jenny Hernandez shared she had never participated in her child’s school as a volunteer, and I also believed that one involvement plan fit all families. However, after completing the interview on the Hernandez family my beliefs on this specific family where greatly influenced I realized that not all families will fit the same involvement plan because every family has different day to day activities, so it is important as a teacher to communicate with not only the children but the parents too. I also learned to be understanding that although a family might look like a family ignoring their child’s academic development what really might be happening is that they can’t afford or are having difficulties completing school requirement with no help. Finally, I learned through the interview that it is important as a future teacher that

According to Michael Seville, a writer for Eutopia Magazine, “… parental involvement is a key ingredient in how well a student learns.” The idea of parental involvement in their school is not a concept exclusive to charter schools. There are many traditional public schools that are launching programs to do just that. In Saratoga, California, an elementary school has made it mandatory for parents to volunteer and attend a seven-session STEP (Systemic Training for Effective Parenting) class. This class is designed to help improve the parent’s usefulness when they appear in class. According to the principal of the McAuliffe Elementary, Michael Kalb, even single working parents are able to find a few hours a month to help out, even if it is in the evening. Since the inception of this program, teachers have noticed more cooperative behavior of their students and a willingness that was not present before. These types of programs could be and should be incorporated into any traditional public school in any part of the country and would create a synergy within the school of parents, teachers, and students.

Three new ideas from the book that I am interesting are in chapter 2. My job is working with families and building a positive relationship with the whole family. Connecting with the families is very important. Curtis and Carter suggest that “Providers and teachers with relationship at the center of their thinking create an embracing social emotional climate where people are seen, heard, and acknowledged for whom they are”, (Curtis & Carter, 2008, p. 24). Instead of busy with paperwork, staffs should welcome families and connect with the families at their first encounter. This is an opportunity for parents get to meet staffs and learn about the program. Parents want to know if they will be welcome and if staffs will value their difference.