Monika Theresa McCoy
6th Grade Social Studies
Hi there! Nice to meet you.
I'm a native to Kansas City, specifically the Grandview area. I graduated from Longview with my AAT in 2014, and I graduated from Avila University in 2017. My classes have taught me so many things to help with my classroom management and planning skills! I love teaching and I can't wait to become more involved this spring. In the past, I have been a paraprofessional and a substitute teacher. Having that experience and working with master teachers in the field has inspired me to become a full-time classroom teacher. I love discussing theories of Gamification in curriculum, psych and development, and anything history related.
Middle School Grade Social Studies
I think middle school students are the most fun to teach. They can discuss concepts deeply and are learning to think abstractly. Watching a student engage with the material and get to that "Aha!" moment always makes me smile, and I enjoy teaching students how to like history.
A bit more about me:
My daughter, age 4.
Four-going-on-fifteen! We celebrated her birthday at the beginning of this month. She loved her Mickey Mouse cake made by her great grandmother.
Our Shiba Inu companions.
Cute, but willful!
I love military history.
Besides these, I have quite a few books about conscientious objectors as well.
Theories and Philosophies
My Philosophy of Social Studies
History is, in some ways, a review of mankind's evolution of thought. It involves reading primary documents and secondary sources to form an interpretation of historical events. Though students of history should always strive for objectivity in interpretation, we also must understand that no person is without bias from life experience. The key is understanding what biases influence a person's interpretation and remain open-minded to new archaeological or historical evidence.
And These are a Few of My Favorite Theories...
In my classroom, I want to integrate the constructivist theories, while pulling more often from the work of Lev Vygotsky. I am also going to emphasize Erikson's theories of sociocognitive development in order to help students in the phase of identity versus role confusion, something that middle schoolers experience as discomfort and social awkwardness. I want to implement project based learning as well; my goal is to have at least half of my major assessments be differentiated for stylistic input from the students and reflect authentic activities. Things like writing to senators, having classroom debates, and creating documents about various concepts will help students understand the connection between history class in school and real-life applications.
Email: mccoy107276@avila.edu
Location: 1234 School Rd, Places MO 64999
Phone: 816-316-9999
Twitter: @MsMcCoyOnline