Today was my unofficial last day of midtier. I didn't get my attendance record signed on my last day, so I showed up today ready to teach of course. Mrs. Roed's class was meeting in the computer lab so I assisted her by making some copies.
Mrs. Roed needed the copies delivered to the High School, so after making the copies I was ready to head out. Mrs. Roed announced that I was leaving and all of the students were upset :( A few of the students gave me hugs, high fives or a wave. I was sad to leave, but will be in touch with Mrs. Roed and the class. I truly enjoyed this experience and cannot wait to see where my adventures take me next!
Tuesday, November 1, 2011
10/27 Visitations and Last Day of Book Club
Today was my last day of Book club, and my last Thursday at West. It was a normal day, with the students working on their Hero essays and myself wandering around the classroom assisting them. I did a lot of one on one work with both 7th and 8th hours. Some students as usual were almost done with their outlines, while others were still struggling to decide who their heroes are. I remember specifically a boy named Colton who's hero is his Dog. I slightly chuckled when he said who is hero is, but I held back my laughter and attempted to assist him with his paper. I gave him some awesome ideas and he took off with his outline. His paper will be wonderful because he is truly passionate about his topic.
Another student was struggling to find her hero and it saddened me that she saw herself with no hero in her life. I struggled to help her choose a hero and we ultimately decided on her mother. She was still struggling with her outline at the end of the day, but at least we found her a hero and she felt comfortable with it. I personally could write a million papers about my heroes, but for her it was a painful process. Her family was split apart, and she seemed to have no positive role models to look up to. I tried to find the positives in her life and she tried to also look at the positives. I think this was a good practice for her. I was happy with my experience today as I felt like a teacher because I was able to help the students toward a finished product.
On a different note:
As I stated earlier in this blog two of my students from West passed away this past week. This was a difficult experience because I am a new teacher and I dont like to think that this could possibly happen to any of my future students. Mrs. Roed and Mr. Meier invited me to attend the viewings for both Riley and Chris and I gladly accepted the invitation. I didn't know if it was appropriate for me to attend the viewings, but i'm glad I decided to go. The details of the visitation I will leave out, but I will say I am glad I attended and I felt it helped both Mrs. Roed and Mr. Meier that I was there. I was a strong person to lean on, and I appreciate them inviting me.
Another student was struggling to find her hero and it saddened me that she saw herself with no hero in her life. I struggled to help her choose a hero and we ultimately decided on her mother. She was still struggling with her outline at the end of the day, but at least we found her a hero and she felt comfortable with it. I personally could write a million papers about my heroes, but for her it was a painful process. Her family was split apart, and she seemed to have no positive role models to look up to. I tried to find the positives in her life and she tried to also look at the positives. I think this was a good practice for her. I was happy with my experience today as I felt like a teacher because I was able to help the students toward a finished product.
On a different note:
As I stated earlier in this blog two of my students from West passed away this past week. This was a difficult experience because I am a new teacher and I dont like to think that this could possibly happen to any of my future students. Mrs. Roed and Mr. Meier invited me to attend the viewings for both Riley and Chris and I gladly accepted the invitation. I didn't know if it was appropriate for me to attend the viewings, but i'm glad I decided to go. The details of the visitation I will leave out, but I will say I am glad I attended and I felt it helped both Mrs. Roed and Mr. Meier that I was there. I was a strong person to lean on, and I appreciate them inviting me.
10/11 Foreshadowing (2nd Lesson)
This weekend I was informed I would be teaching my second lesson to the students in Mrs. Roed's classroom. I work all weekend, so I didn't get the email until Monday morning...awesome! I had to prepare my lesson in one day and have my lesson plan in to Mrs. Roed by the night before. I was extremely nervous about this lesson because of the lack of time I had to become comfortable with the topic. I arrived at West Intermediate with butterflies for the first time, and my nerves didn't calm down until Mrs. Roed assured me that everything would be fine. She is always good at calming nerves and letting me know that I am not expected to be perfect!
My lesson was about foreshadowing and I began by reading aloud to them. I was excited to read to the students because I got to read in a "scary" voice and they all followed along and used good listening practices. Before reading to them I gave them a handout and a definition of foreshadowing. They had a lot of questions and were initially confused, but over the course of the week they seemed to grasp the idea and wanted to put it to use in their own works.
After my reading the students were turned loose and got into groups and read the play aloud to each other. I have a few alterations I would make to this part of the lesson, but overall it went well. One of the things I would change is the group sizes. The class was split in half and the groups were just too big. Students also struggled to hear because they had to read over the other groups reading.
Overall the lesson welt well and I enjoyed sharing it with the students.
My lesson was about foreshadowing and I began by reading aloud to them. I was excited to read to the students because I got to read in a "scary" voice and they all followed along and used good listening practices. Before reading to them I gave them a handout and a definition of foreshadowing. They had a lot of questions and were initially confused, but over the course of the week they seemed to grasp the idea and wanted to put it to use in their own works.
After my reading the students were turned loose and got into groups and read the play aloud to each other. I have a few alterations I would make to this part of the lesson, but overall it went well. One of the things I would change is the group sizes. The class was split in half and the groups were just too big. Students also struggled to hear because they had to read over the other groups reading.
Overall the lesson welt well and I enjoyed sharing it with the students.
10/6 Hourglass
For book club we are reading a book called Hourglass. I was immediately interested in this book, and couldn't wait for the girls to read it. This week we all brought quotes from the book that we enjoyed and enjoyed some wonderful snacks. The girls LOVE this book, and many have already finished. I am glad they are so enthusiastic about reading and hope they bring even more girls to join book club. This entry is a bit short because most of the classes right now involve either observing or randomly assisting where i'm needed. A high school pre-student teaching student is also involved with helping out in the classroom so my job duties have drastically decreased. I enjoy having the high school student there with me, but at the same time she often times takes over and I am left to just watch. I am working on stepping in more so I can get the most out of this experience! I will keep you posted on this issue!
First Lesson 10/4
Today was the first time I taught in front of my classes. On any normal day in Mrs. Roed's class I would observe and assist where I am needed. Today I got to present a lesson plan I arranged and the kids really seemed to enjoy it. My lesson was about the ABCD's of writing and I presented it using a powerpoint presentation. I borrowed the powerpoint from one of Mrs. Roed's colleagues and it seemed to be very helpful to the students.
I was nervous about teaching in front of the class, but the students have always been respectful and paid attention and asked questions when I looked to them for answers. I presented the powerpoint about effectively reading and understanding a writing prompt. I taught the students how to breakdown a prompt so that they could get past the "fluff" and into the real question. I was very happy with my lesson, and while the students had lots of questions and confusion (this is normal for them) they worked together to make senes of the task in front of them.
I am proud of my first lesson and Mrs. Roed's evaluation expressed that I was successful :-D
I was nervous about teaching in front of the class, but the students have always been respectful and paid attention and asked questions when I looked to them for answers. I presented the powerpoint about effectively reading and understanding a writing prompt. I taught the students how to breakdown a prompt so that they could get past the "fluff" and into the real question. I was very happy with my lesson, and while the students had lots of questions and confusion (this is normal for them) they worked together to make senes of the task in front of them.
I am proud of my first lesson and Mrs. Roed's evaluation expressed that I was successful :-D
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