Giving students and parents a clear set of expectations and standards from day one is paramount in a successful classroom today. Critical and higher order thinking skills are the backbone to my education and teaching philosophy. I want all students who pass through my classroom to leave with these valuable skills that will stay with them through any endeavor they choose. Thus, becoming a lifelong learner. This will be done through a positive learning environment that harbors diversity in the physical sense and intellectual realm as well. Each student is diverse in their own learning, teachers need to recognize this and vary instruction to aid in each student’s learning ability. This will be done through lecture, visual aids, diagrams, technology, project based learning, and textbook referencing.