John Dobbins

Classroom Vision
MTLD: Kayla Johnson

Classroom Vision 2014-15
Seventh Grade Science, KIPP West Philadelphia Preparatory Charter School

My classroom vision in my science class will revolve around two main focuses
and a class theme. Since KWPP also has its own vision and school-wide goals, these will
also be a part of my classroom. Through the following points I will elaborate on all of
these goals and plans.
Class Theme: Fear the wolvesdont go into the forest Russian proverb excerpted
from Leo Tolstoys fairytale, The Two Brothers.
The theme is represented by a wolf visual anchor, which I have in several
different places throughout the classroom. The proverb can be difficult to understand in
its English translation. However, I explained it to my kids as a metaphor for life. If we
allow the wolves, or dangers and challenges, of life to scare us from taking action for
ourselves, then we will never mature and grow as individuals. We have to acknowledge
that there are wolves all around us but that we can overcome them and get past them. A
wolf might be a tough subject or test at school; an ongoing problem lurking at home; a
individual struggle. The point is that we never let fear paralyze us from going into the
forest or going on to do what we need to do in order to learn and be successful.
I would like to incorporate the visual anchor into my worksheets and other class
materials to point toward a challenge problem or to something that might look more
intimidating than it actually is. We can overcome the wolves in class and I can help
them overcome any personal wolves they may come across outside of school.

Vision Point 1: Students will become intellectually curious about all things science.
This is the first real science class that my students will have. Unlike other
subjects, such as math or ELA, the amount of curiosity can be limited by the content.
Most kids are not asking deep questions about mathematical theory and they can only get
so many answers about characters and plots from books. However, in science there are so
many questions that students can think of that go beyond what they are learning that have
actual answers. I want my students to ask question about the content and then start asking
questions that build off of and expand on what they are learning. This would look like
kids asking me a question about a topic that I just dont have the answer to at the
moment; but I can certainly research the question and find out for them. Intellectual
curiosity is a great way to allow kids to invest themselves in what they are learning and to
explore their own interests as they pertain to what they are learning. Id encourage
students to bring their questions with them to lunch or to write them down so that I can be
held accountable to answering them the best I can since I cant field questions all day in
class.

Vision Point 2: Students will become highly self-motivated and driven students.
This part of the vision will be the most difficult because it requires so much
student agency to take hold. Soon these kids will be in high school and the further they go
in their education, the less supervision they will have on their efforts toward their
education. Now is an important time for students to want to do well for themselves
because they want tonot because their parents want them to. I want them to be forward
thinking; I want them to see how motivation day in and day out will benefit them in the
long run. This vision could look like students trying there best to complete homework
and behave in class because they know its good for their education; they arent doing
these things to receive merits and to have praise from others. This would also look
students taking time out of their own day to call me to ask about an assignment or to seek
extra help before a major issue arises. These are all mature actions but I know that these
students can begin to set themselves up to be highly self-motivated learners.


KWPPs Vision in My Classroom
The mission of KIPP West Philadelphia Preparatory Charter School is to develop the
character, knowledge, and skills of our students so they will succeed in top-quality high
schools, college, and the competitive world beyond.
The seventh grade class of 2020 is coming into this year ranked #1 in reading
growth and #12 in math growth in the entire KIPP network. Whenever possible, I
want my science class to help contribute to both reinforcing literacy and math
skills for them. This can happen through correcting grammar and spelling in
writing on all assignments in science. I can also relate math to science to help
them solidify their math skills.
At KWPP, all students are climbing the mountain to college. I use these words
often in my classroom and connected it to my themewolves (challenges)
dwell in the forests that are on the mountain climb to college. The best way to
ascend to the top of the mountain is to stay focused and work together toward
learning as much as possible day-in and day-out.
All teachers are literacy teachers. We believe in this statement and work hard to
ensure that our students are engaging in literacy concepts in all classes. Science
has the power to introduce students to a wide array of new vocabulary and ways
of writing and reading. I have assignments that encourage reading and annotating
texts. I will have vocabulary lessons and a vocabulary bank on a wall in my room.
This is part of our goal to have KIPPsters at a 75% reading level on their MAP
scores. This is what we call PennState Preped.