Julia
Walsh Abu Shamma
An educator inspiring young minds
ABOUT
Me
Greetings! My name is Julia.
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I am an educator serving public schools across the Los Angeles and Orange County area.
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I hold a Multiple Subject Teaching Credential and have a Master's Degree in Curriculum Design and Instruction.
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I specialize in classroom settings from Preschool and transitional kindergarten (TK) to 6th grade.
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I have served in over 7 school districts.
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Tutoring
NEW:
CORVID-19 DISTANCE LEARNING SUPPORT
Bring school into your home with my online tutoring services. Don't let school closures stand in the way of your child's education.
Schedule your free complimentary session today. Whether you're interested in distance learning help or want more instruction, I will make it happen. I specialize in K-6 instruction so I can create a lesson about a subject of your choice. Book now..
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My Gallery
*Photos have been edited to protect the identity of students.
What can you expect to see in my classroom?
Morning Meetings
I like to start each day off with a Morning Meeting as a way to 'check in' with how students are doing. Throughout these daily conversations and interactions, students begin to learn more about one other on a personal level. This fosters relationship and empathy building as students resonate with their classmates' perspective during discussion of topics and current events.
Inquisitive minds
I adopt an inquiry-based teaching style because I believe that curiosity is what drives the learning process. In this approch, students generate the questions that drive their investigations into the concepts we explore across content areas at school.
Flexible Seating
Students should have the privilege to choose where in the classroom that they will feel successful. When provided with the flexibility to choose their own seat, students are given control over their working environment.
Individualized Learning Centers
Centers provide individualized support for students while engaging in curriculum content through their preferred learning modality. This allows student to practice skills, share ideas, and receive student feedback that ultimately enhances learning. These small group settings are also self-directed and encourage independent learning as they collaboratively test their ideas, discover varying perspectives through peer interaction, and develop a sense of academic rigor while simultaneously developing life - long skills desirable to future employers.
Cognitively Guided Instruction (CGI)
In this student-centered approach to teaching math, students tackle complex problems using any math strategy of their choice. This provides students an opportunity to build on what they already know to strengthen their number sense and intuitive ability to problem solve. Students develop mathematical understanding by listening to their peers, ask questions, and engage with all their thinking.
Goal Setting
Setting goals allows students to visualize possible futures. Aspirations help fuel the motivation needed to attempt new things and acquire new knowledge. The classroom provides a safe place to practice goal setting, big or small, so that students become accountable for their own learning and build the self-efficacy needed to become successful.
Student Choice
I believe that students should have a voice when it comes their education. Students, who are given the power to make choices over their learning environment, take responsibility to become the boss of their own learning.
Thematic Units
Students get the most out of their learning when it is applicable in to their everyday lives. That is why I prefer to center curricula around a central topic or theme and integrate concepts accordingly so that they can apply their acquired knowledge across the curriculum.
Restorative Practices
Children cannot learn when there is an emotional disturbance in their life. Whether it is a simple misunderstanding with a friend or a more extreme hardship, I strive to ascertain the antecedent that causes any student to respond in a negative way. Once adults begin to listen and understand students, we can help guide their approach to resolve conflicts, repair relationships, prevent future harm.
Project-Based Learning (PBL)
Project- based learning is a teaching method in which students learn by actively engaging in investigation to respond to authentic, real-world, and complex challenges. This powerful learning experience can be implemented in every subject, in every grade level, and in every part of curricula.. "When thoughtfully designed, PBL experiences immerse students in inquiry, maximize student voice and choice, and meet students where they are," (Cooper & Ross, 2018).
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Reading with your child
Take a picture walk
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Discuss what is happening in the pictures of a story by asking:
"How do you think they feel?"
"What makes you say that?"
"What do you think might happen next?"
These simple questions will elicit empathy and promote comprehension.
Periodically ask questions while reading.
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Taking time to discuss what is happening throughout the story will help your child to engage with the text, look for answers, and think critically. Ask:
"Who are the characters in the story?
"Why do you think the character did ____?
"How do you think a character will respond after ____ happened? What makes you say that?
Read aloud
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Practice taking turns reading aloud. This allows your child to hear what a fluid reader sounds like. Over time, your child will develop intonation as they read with fluency to read as if they were speaking casually.
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Another tip is to change the sound of your voice according to which character is speaking. This makes reading authentic and allows story time to come to life!
Conduct a word study.
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Take notice of difficult words as you read. Have them guess what it could mean based on what's been read. This will strengthen vocabulary and help your child to develop their own investigative strategies.
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Another way to word study is to categorize words by spelling, meaning, or usage. Word studies help students identify phonics patterns, manipulate, and fully examine words.
Strategies
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My Educational Philosophy
I believe that all students should have the right to a safe, just, equitable, and inclusive education that empowers the whole child. Educators have a fundamental responsibility to equip students with valuable tools, resources and information needed to succeed in college and beyond.
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A teacher’s role in the classroom goes beyond that of just a mere facilitator. Rather, it encompasses all of the roles that can go into supporting a student and their needs. Whether that means taking on the role of an instructor, counselor, nurse, mentor, advisor, learner, advocate or other, that is my job as a teacher: to do everything in my power to prepare students foundationally. In order for students to be receptive to learning, all of their fundamental needs must be met. This is why educators, like me, choose to wear many hats so that we can meet students where they are and bridge the gap to get them where they need to be. I believe that in order for students to become the best version of themselves, they need to get an education. For, it is with an education that they gain the knowledge and skills needed to meet their potential. Ultimately, our goal should be to educate youth to become positive and productive members of society that make responsible and educated decisions that affect politics, economics, and environmental issues impacting our everyday lives.
Where does all this grandeur start? The classroom. It starts with teachers. Teachers stand on the frontline with students by fostering relationships and acting as an essential role model in their lives. It is up to us, as educators, to create safe and inclusive spaces. When students learn to value and respect others, they can begin to form cooperative and collaborative relationships that nurture individual and intrapersonal growth. Yet, all that is not possible unless we educate and care for the whole child: cognitively, physically, and socio-emotionally. Students, who lack the necessary resources to flourish in all of these areas, need educators to advocate for them. They are our future.
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That is why I vow to provide my students with an education that aims towards the development of the whole child. In order to do that, I need to make sure that I, myself, am being the best that I can be. I promise to leave my problems at the door and be the individual that puts my students first, with the intent in mind, to push them forward in all aspects of their daily lives. And if I don’t have the knowledge, skill set, or resources to do so, I will go and seek out what is necessary to help my students progress. We all live in this world together and we all touch each others' lives in different ways. I want to have a positive impact on my students. No matter what trials or tribulations may stand in the way.
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