Mission, Vision, and Values...oh my!

I've served on the SIP (school improvement plan) committee for two different schools.  They were two very different experiences but that is a whole separate issue (it amazes me how things that should be standard, or even at the very least similar, within an organization, can be so very different).  The thing that I struggled with the most though was writing the mission, vision, and values.  It always seemed so repetitive and I never had a good grasp of what those things were supposed to be.

As I plan for the upcoming school year however I've been thinking a lot about the type of classroom I want to create.  There are already so many things that I want to do in terms of instructional methods that I believe will rely on a certain classroom culture being created.  Towards that end I've decided to write vision, mission, and values statements for my classroom.

I've jotted down a few rough notes of what I might want to include.

Vision (it makes more sense to me to start with this):
A collaborative classroom environment where authentic, relevant, and engaging learning occurs that focuses on 21st century skills needed to be ____ (college and career ready?) (globally competitive?-seems a little arrogant of myself)

Mission:
Help students think critically and analytically (are those the same thing?), develop real world problem solving skills through scientific inquiry, and develop an appreciation for the sciences through engaging content material.

Values:
Teaching needs to fundamentally change in order to reach every child.  (I'm not in love with how this is phrased.)

Authentic (real life?) activities and choice create the most student engagement and motivation.

Learning happens when students feel safe to take risks and work together to solve problems. 

Science is awesome!  (As silly as this may be, I think it's an important value.  If I don't have passion for my subject, how can the kids?)

So there it is.  I'd love any feedback!  PLN's rock!

Intro to my world

I don't have a ton of experience blogging, but I definitely have a lot to say!  My main goal for this blog is to share my experiences teaching middle school science and expand my personal learning network.  I hope at some point that I can use this blog as a forum for discussion on various topics or get feedback on things that I am thinking about.   It seems the hardest part about trying to innovate is finding people to collaborate with, especially if those people are not at your school.

Currently I am a 5th grade teacher.  I have been teaching 5th grade for 7 years.  Next year I am moving up and will be teaching middle school science.  I am so excited!  I am so ready for a change.  I have learned and accomplished a lot in 5th grade, but I feel like I have plateaued in my ability.  I am so energized for next year in ways I haven't been in a long time.  I'm excited about planning new things and learning new curriculum and having a new challenge!

One of the things I am most excited about is completely changing the way I will be teaching.  This year I have experimented with flipping my math class.  For a first time try, I think it went really well!  There are definitely some elements that I want to tweak and improve, but more than that I want to know that I am doing everything I can to engage my kids and prepare them for the future.  Up until very recently I had no idea how many light years behind I was in even being aware of the current ideas and teaching methods.  I really do owe a lot to the EdCampNC "unconference".  I met some truly amazing people who opened a door for me and showed me a whole new world. *cue music*

Like I said before, I'm energized and excited in ways I haven't been in a long time.  This is the right thing for me at definitely the right time.