Week 1/23-1/27: Movie Day!

This week I had my students watch a film. As was expected they were excited about it and foresaw the movie as a free day. The “yays” and “woos” shortly turned into sighs and grunts when I announced that they would have to take notes throughout the movie. Some, I assume, still viewed that as a free day. After all you can go undetected and get away with not doing much when the classroom is dark.  However, that presumption soon went away when I informed them that I would throughout the film be stopping at specific points. The stopping points allowed me to reiterate key themes of the film, check for understanding and to ensure that students were comprehending the big picture idea. This strategy also helped student who don’t have strong note taking skills. I made it clear that they should focus on highlighted themes, but to pay special attention to the moments in which I would stop the film. By doing so I ensured that students focused and had notes on what was important. Furthermore, I have typed my notes on the film and printed a few copies to offer students who were absent the opportunity to have those notes. I have also allowed students who wish to compare their notes to mine the opportunity to do so as well. This serves as a self-evaluating tool for students who are unsure of their note taking skills.

A goal from last week was to keep in mind the importance of structure and clear instruction. I feel like I have carried that well into this week and have improved from last week. Today a student’s question reminded me of the importance of stating the purpose or objective of an assignment. This is something that I had been forgetting to do or not been clear on because no one had to this day questioned the reasons behind what we were doing. My goal moving forward is to always state the purpose of an assignment. The purpose is essential and allows the student to know that their work is important and useful to them.

Week 1/16-1/20 :Every Day is a Learning Day

This week I had complete control of the classroom Thursday and Friday while my CT was out of town. I used an activity that my CT has done in the past and tweaked it to make it my own. In my lesson plan I had some front loading (something that my CT hasn’t done before) which is what day one consisted of. It was my first time leading a full 37 minute class—early dismissal day—in which I had to provide content and lots of instructions.

There are many things that I learned from being in charge all day. One of them, is that getting the hang of classroom management takes time! There are many many attention getters that can be used and are effective. The substitute teacher in the classroom with me was really helpful in helping me find something that worked for my students and I. He asked the kids to recall the Red Robin slogan to which they all said, “Yummm” from then on we established that whenever he or I said, “Red Robin” they  were to say “Yummm”, stop talking  and pay their full attention to the teacher in charge (me). During lunch hour other teachers also told me about the little things that they do in their classrooms. It is definitely something that I have to practice and find a groove that works with me and my students. --I will continue to use the “Yummm” thing while I am here, they seem to get it, and it worked.

Second, timing is important. I need to get used to checking the time to see when the period is over to figure out how much time I have left and what absolutely needs to get done during the period. --I ran out of time 3rd and 4th hour and didn’t get to make groups so by 5th and 6th hour I decided to ask myself “what do I want them to get from this?” by doing that I was able to make the information more concise and to the point. By making that small change I gained enough minutes to be able to assign groups at the end of the period.

Third, I have to remember to go step by step and structure is important! (I think it is essential especially in younger grades) When I asked my two questions during first period there was confusion as to what they were answering/doing. I realized that it would be more effective and clear if I ask one question at a time and give them time to process. It worked so much better once I did that!

 Furthermore, I knew modeling for students was important, I truly realized that modeling is not only helpful to the student but to me as well. By modeling I avoided confusion, and the million questions that follow. Things flow much smoother.

Overall, I think it went well! The students were responsive and I was able to maintain their attention. My goal for next time is to keep what I experienced in mind and to remember to do those things that we often overlook. I realized that sometimes it those little things that make a difference in the lesson’s flow.

(what my lesson plan looked like by the end of the day)

P.S.

The activity went great! Students remained on task, and I was able to go from station to station to check on their progress and allowed me to bond with them more (one of them said that I was her favorite student teacher!  J). Big thing I have experienced myself is that every class is different. Some class periods the students needed more of my guidance, while other class periods students were moving from point A to B with little assistance from me. We will be debriefing on Monday.  I really enjoyed doing this activity with them!

Professionalism with a side of smiles!

Professionalism as we discussed during our workshops on Monday is composed on many parts. One aspect of professionalism which I believe is essential is self-care which is necessary to perform at the highest of our abilities. That’s because when we feel good emotionally and physically we have a better chance of making important connections necessary for student teacher relationships as well as teacher to teacher relationships. Dressing well, being timely and knowing how to choose our battles are other important aspect of professionalism.

Day 1

I’m going to ruin the end of my first day of my student teaching story by spilling it right now that I had an AMAZING first day! I arrived at Solon Middle School—my morning home for the next 7 weeks—at 7:45 am.  Immediately I was greeted by warm, friendly smiles by the people in the front office. Every teacher and staff member that crossed my path either acknowledged me with a smile or greeted me with a “good morning”. It felt nice to be welcomed.

 In the classroom I got the opportunity to introduce myself to the students. I used a PowerPoint with a couple of pictures to help with my short introduction. I proceeded to ask them about activities they are involved in, interesting facts about themselves or their family. Without a doubt I learned pretty amazing things about them. My second day was no different. I have met and held short conversations with other faculty in the building as well as with the students.

I have been arriving early to the school because that gives me an opportunity to interact with the other teachers. It has also given me the opportunity to allow some students that want extra study time for their geography test into the classroom. Arriving earlier and interacting with other members of the school shows my professionalism in a way that shows that I care. It also tells me much about the professionalism about the faculty and staff of the school. They demonstrate it each day by welcoming me warmly. In addition, so far I have not heard any bashing of students in the teachers’ lounge. It is not that they don’t talk about students, because they do, it’s that they talk about students in a positive way.

This has been beneficial for me because it has shown me how a professional community supports and aid’s each other to succeed. All the positive energy can be felt and it really has an impact on how my day goes. This environment has allowed me to feel comfortable which in turn has allowed me to be confident. The openness of the school has allowed me to feel like I can go up to anyone and start up a conversation which is important in networking. Another amazing thing that has showed that they care is them giving importance to how to pronounce my last name. This not only shows me that they recognize that names are important to people’s identity, but it also shows that they are welcoming through their actions. This has really allowed me to feel part of the school in a short period of time.

My goal is to follow their example where ever I go. I am already a friendly person, but this experience has really shown me how far a warm smile can go. This is important for me to model because it will help create the professional community that I am currently immersed in. I will continue to arrive early to make sure I do not miss out on networking opportunities and bonding with the students because it is essential to establishing relationships.

Inspirations and Legacy

What inspired me to be a teacher?

I ultimately want to be a role model for my students. As an educator I have the potential to make a change. Whether it be big or small I have the potential to show them that learning is not always boring. In particular with history, many student find it tedious to learn—as many say, “about a bunch of old dead people.” I want to be the teacher that shows them that learning is not about memorizing dates and attempting to get the ‘A’. I aim to make material relevant to their lives and present it in a form that allows the student to become curious and want to learn more. Watching student become eager about learning more and applying to their lives is what inspire me to be an educator. The possibility that I can make students become passionate about learning is a rewording feeling.

What do I hope to leave behind?

My goal as an educator is to have my students question information. I want them to look at history and think about the perspective in which it was written or created. In this matter I also aim at including the voices that are often left out of the narrative. This includes reading or analyzing a document and discussing who wrote it, who was left out, and figure out what else the document is depicting aside from the obvious. I hope to show my student to look at their social world through different lenses that would allow them to be able to comprehend their perspective on the world as well as, how and why it differs from someone else’s perspective.