My Background
Hello! My name is Lauren Beasley and I am a Teacher Intern at Woodside High School. I received my Bachelor of Arts in English from Christopher Newport University, and I am currently working toward my Master of Arts in Teaching from CNU as well. I grew up in the Roanoke Valley region of Virginia and love spending time in the beautiful Blue Ridge Mountains. Some of my favorite pastimes include writing poetry, reading a good book, and listening (while singing along) to a variety of music. English has been my passion for such a long time, and I truly love the many facets of grammar, literature, and writing. I look forward sharing the exciting world of English with all of my high school students!
My Teaching Philosophy
I believe in the importance of a student-centered classroom; the students are the most important component of the class and should be at the center of each lesson rather than the teacher. This means that the students will be actively participating in each lesson. When it comes to my method of teaching literature, I use the reader-response approach, which supports the idea that a piece of literature is worthless without a reader to respond to it. This approach puts emphasis on the reader's personal and emotional reaction to the text rather than searching for a single "right" meaning. I believe that any student can learn to love reading; it just takes finding the right piece of literature to which the student can connect and relate. Along with reading, all students can learn to write, not just for academic purposes, but as a means of self expression and as a way to connect with other people.