Stop and Think: How does your individual culture affect your teaching?

     My beliefs from my own cultural background about working with children include that children should always feel comfortable in a classroom setting, children should always be heard and payed attention to by an adult or other children around them, and that children should be able to respect their elders and learn to follow the guidelines that are set.  I think the principles that I just stated are very important to me in terms of early childhood education.  I also believe that children should be able to discover things on their own and be very involved in the learning process by doing things independently as much as they are able to (within their zone of proximal development). 
     Some practices that are "bottom line" for me are making sure the children have respect for adults that are working with them as well as their fellow classmates and friends.  I think it is very important for children to understand that they have to have a level of respect and learn to behave and listen when they are asked.  It is extremely important that a child is willing to behave and be polite in an environment such as a classroom, not just for the teacher, but also for the other students.  I would especially reinforce the habits of being kind to others, helping each other out, and learning and accepting each others differences.  I am pretty flexible when it comes to adapting practices or beliefs that I am accustomed to, or listening to other's opinions,  but I think the practices and beliefs that I have mentioned are very important to instill in a child at an early age, no matter what.