Section 1
Section 1
The journey of being a Masters of Elementary Education student has been filled with
diverse, and rich learning opportunities. As I prepare to enter the work force and begin my
career, I have acquired a collection of work that I feel pride in sharing to show my
accomplishments thus far. Being a teacher is more than instructing a group of young people. An
effective teacher knows their students and knows how to engage them in a way that supports
their learning needs and provides them an opportunity to succeed. In addition, an effective
teacher can motivate their students to learn and engage them in what’s being studied. Teachers
require an intensive skill set to really reach their student’s full capabilities and support them in
their educational journey. I believe that the work I have included in my portfolio speaks
There are six sections in my portfolio to be explored following this introduction. The first
section is the Teacher Candidate Introduction to the Elementary Portfolio Project Introduction,
which you are currently reading. The second section is Teacher Candidate Background
Experience. Within this section you will read about my philosophy as a teacher and the
experiences that have prepared me for this career. Next, you will read through my Teacher
Candidate Artifacts. Here you will read through the various works I have created to demonstrate
to you my ability to instruct, engage, and explore new opportunities with my students. Following
my artifacts, you will read through the Alignment to Curriculum & Professional Standards
section where I will draw parallels between my artifacts and the curriculum and professional
standards. Next, you will find my Teacher Candidate Reflection. Finally, you will have the
opportunity to hear my Teacher Candidate Interview Video where you will have the opportunity
been put into my future career. To ensure my preparedness to be the best teacher I can be in the
field of education, I have focused my time and energy into each piece of work attached. I believe
that in addition to the time and effort I have put into the pieces of work attached, the help and
support I have sought out from my mentors in times of need speaks to my character as a future
teacher. I consider myself a constant work in progress, as I believe there is always room for
growth. With that, I understand that as I enter the field of teaching seeking out guidance and
support will accentuate the skill set I have acquired from my time at Medaille College. I am
excited for you to explore my portfolio, and even more so I am excited to begin my transition
Portfolio Development
As briefly outlined above, this portfolio has six major sections that you will explore
beginning with this introduction, Section One, Teacher Candidate Introduction to the
Elementary Portfolio Project. Section Two of my portfolio project is the Teacher Candidate
Background Experience portion. Within this section, I will share with you my educational
background, and the work experience I have acquired that has brought me to this point in my
education. My school observations and experiences, philosophy of education and result will also
be shared here. This section will provide a deeper look into the personal and professional
Section three will provide the Teacher Candidate Artifacts, which are pieces of academic
work created over my time as a teacher candidate. The pieces of work I have included in my
portfolio represent my best work, and the work I am most proud to share with you. Some of the
artifacts showcased in my portfolio include lesson plans, assessment samples, and a mock
classroom website I created which demonstrates my ability to not only utilize technology in my
classroom, but also my ability to actively communicate with those in my classroom community.
Something important to take away from every piece included is my enthusiasm when engaging
students. I have enjoyed being creative and finding new and exciting ways to indulge them in
learning. All of my artifacts include a different method/activity that is used to entice students and
Section four, Alignment to the Curriculum and Professional Standards, will draw
parallels between the artifacts I have provided in my portfolio with the New York State and
Ontario curriculum and professional standards. Within this section I will demonstrate how I, a
teacher candidate and future professional, adhere to the requirements of a teacher in the field.
The standards and curriculum are put in place and mandated to ensure students are provided the
best opportunity possible to succeed in their education. As a professional embarking into a career
as a teacher, I feel as though these standards hold me accountable to my students, and their right
to be provided an education.
Within this section I will explain how the artifacts I have included are in alignment with
the following standards and curriculum: INTASC Standards, NYS Code of Ethics for Educators,
Ontario Teacher Ethical Standards, P-12 NYS Common Core Learning Standards (ELA, Math
and Social Studies), NYS Learning Standards, Ontario Ministry of Education Curriculum
Expectation, DOE Claims & CAEP Standards, International Society for Technology Education
for Teachers and Students (ISTE), International Literacy Association (ILA) Professional
Section five, Teacher Candidate Reflection, will provide an opportunity for the reader to
understand the Portfolio Project/Teacher Education Learning Experiences I have had and my
Reediness to Become a Teacher. My experiences leading up to Medaille College and the
experiences I have been privileged enough to have throughout finishing my graduate degree have
all shaped me into the eager teacher I am ready to become. This reflection will emphasize that I
take my role as a future teacher seriously, and that I have worked incredibly hard to ensure I
have acquired the necessary skills required to be the best teacher I can be.
Finally, section six, Teacher Candidate Interview Video, provides you with the
opportunity to pair a face to all of the work accumulated in this portfolio. I have picked my best
work to be showcased in this portfolio, but I believe that equally important to my written skills is
my ability to present myself in a professional manner. I have worked in retail, the service
industry, and in an educational setting as a therapist. Although all of my work experiences differ
greatly, what they all have in common is the requirement to interact with a variety of people. As
a result, I believe that my communication skills and ability to present myself professionally will
be extremely apparent in my video, and I look forward to you having the opportunity to see me
“live in person”!
The field of education as a whole has been greatly shaped by many highly influential
theorists and experts. I feel extremely lucky to be pursuing a career that has so many different
theorists to reference and look to for guidance. For me, there are four theorists I feel have
influenced, and will continue to influence my practice. The four theorists are as follows: Lev
To begin, Lev Vygotsky is most well-known for his work with the concept of “Zone of
distance between the actual development level as determined by the independent problem
solving and the level of potential development as determined through problem solving under
guidance or collaboration with more capable others” (Eun, 2017). When discussing Vygotsky in
my graduate classes, we discuss how the zone of proximal development is what our students
know versus what they can achieve when supported by a more knowledgeable other. With
scaffolding and the support of teachers and support staff, students are given the opportunity to
reach deeper levels of thinking and attain more knowledge. In my strong opinion, learning is not
a linear process. Students with often require guidance in the classroom and I believe it is
The second theorist that I find highly influential in the field of education is Jean Piaget.
Piaget’s work was centered around constructivism, and he theorized that children’s cognitive
development happens in four stages. The first stage is the sensorimotor stage, where infants
explore their world using physical touch and movements (DeWolf, 2018). Next is the
preoperational stage, where preschool aged children begin having some symbolic play and
possess the ability to make mental representations, however their memory, attention, and mental
flexibility is still lacking (DeWolf, 2018). The third stage is the concrete operational stage, where
school-aged children are able manipulate several concrete objects (DeWolf, 2018). Finally, the
last stage is the formal operational stage. In this stage, those entering adolescence possess the
ability to think more logically and have the capacity to consider more abstract, hypothetical
concepts (DeWolf, 2018). When working with elementary students, I think it is important to
understand what a child’s cognitive capabilities typically are at that age. Students learn in
different ways as they age and grow cognitively, which is something I believe teachers should
Bloom. Bloom is best known developing Blooms Taxonomy. It is inevitable that when learning,
some tasks will challenge us more than others. Within Blooms Taxonomy there are levels of
learning, with key words/concepts to reference, that require learners to think more deeply and
critically about the topic at hand (Adams, 2015). Bloom’s levels begin with knowledge, and
providing students with learning opportunities that build upon what they know, to challenge
them to go one step further. Blooms Taxonomy is something I have used in every lesson plan I
Finally, Howard Gardner is the last theorist I find extremely influential in the field of
education. Gardner theorized that humans possess a vast range of capabilities and intelligences,
With this Gardner is saying that humans naturally possess different intelligences and we learn in
different ways. Personally, I am a bodily-kinesthetic learner, but I recognize that I will have an
intelligences sitting in one room, that means there cannot be a “one-size fits all” approach to
teaching. It is extremely important to adjust your teaching style to help support different kinds of
Conclusion
I have dedicated the time and effort necessary to be the best possible teacher candidate I
can be. This portfolio is a collection of my most outstanding work, and the work I feel the
upmost pride in sharing with you. Throughout my time as a working professional and Master of
Education student, I have acquired skills that I will take with me moving forward in my career as
a teacher. After reviewing my project, I believe you will see that I am eager and ready to enter
the workforce as a qualified teacher. In addition, I also hope you will see the thought and care I
put into my work, ensuring my teaching matches the standards and curriculum outlined by both
New York State and Ontario. I will continue to dedicate myself learning and will continue to
grow my pedagogical teaching methods, referencing the theories developed by experts in the
field such as Howard Gardner and Lev Vygotsky. I look forward to continuing this journey and