Time Flies When You're Having Fun

I can't believe that it's already mid-term.  It seems like only yesterday it was the beginning of the school year and we had a whole semester ahead of us.  Things have been going really well in the Kindergarten wing at Mason-Dixon.  The students are finally getting used to the routine and are starting to act the way they should.  We had a wonderful week this past week and it made the days so much better and they went so much faster.  I think I have finally found my niche in the teaching world.  I absolutely love kindergarten and everything that comes with it.  The students are wonderful and they are so eager to learn. Their eyes are always so bright and they are always happy to see me.  The amount of hugs I receive on a daily basis are phenomenal.  My students make me happy.
I have started to integrate my action research.  When I did my baseline, most of my students did really well which worried me, but I do have a few that hopefully will benefit from the nursery rhymes and getting the extra help they need with rhyme recognition.  The students seem to really enjoy doing the nursery rhymes and the hands on activities that I have been trying to incorporate with them as well.  So far I have only covered one nursery rhyme, but the kids seems to be responded well and I'm hoping for good results.

Just Another Week

This week was a short week but a very educational one for me.  The student that I have that has oppositional defiance issues was really out of sorts this week and it was rough for the students and all the teachers.  Today was the worst day.  From the start of the day he didn't listen and was just all over the place.  He didn't finish his work during stations and due to that, my mentor told him he had to go to study hall to finish it.  He refused, layed down on the floor and started kicking and screaming.  When the aid came in, my mentor teacher took the rest of the class to recess and we tried to get him up.  I went and got the guidance counselor and the student wouldn't get up for her either so the counselor and the aid preceded to pick him up and try to escort him to study hall.  When they started having trouble I had to go get a teacher that is qualified to work with this kind of issue to help but by the time we got back another teacher had him calmed down and was talking to him.  He finally walked himself down to study hall and continued to finish his work.  I had never witnessed anything like this before.  It was very eye opening for me and I'm glad I got the chance to see something like this happen so that in the future if I have similar experience, I will know what to do and how to conduct myself.  My internship is not only giving me the opportunity to grow as a teacher, but it is also giving a chance to broaden my educational horizon.

Kindergarten Tales

Last week was the first full week with students.  It was interesting to say the least.  I have a very rambunctious group of students:12 boy and 8 girls.  They are all good kids they just need some guidance and aren't used to the schedule of kindergarten life yet.  I have experienced my first exposure to oppositional defiance disorder.  Before this semester I had never even heard about it, but it really does exist and in my classroom as well.  The student has done very well though and we've been working with him so things are getting better.  The first few days were questionable.  Now he only has a few moments where he shows some defiance, but it's no where near what it used to be like and I think he's learning to like school better and get more used to having a routine everyday.  My mentor teacher has given me some of the best feedback I could every ask for.  She told me that she thinks I'm cut out for kindergarten and that I'm doing a wonderful job.  My mothering personality and the care I show for the students is something that she is very fond of and she urges me to continue with the way I am going.  So far I am loving kindergarten and enjoy going back every day!

First Week of Internship

I was able to start my internship on the 13 of August along with teachers.  I really liked being able to experience exactly what the teachers do.  Some of the meetings were a bit monotonousness, but others were very informative and got me excited for the new year to begin.  The best part of starting early was being able to attend home visits with my mentor teacher and aid.  It was really eye opening to see how the children responded and what basic skills they had tucked under their belts already.  Once I observed my mentor teacher administer the surveys with some of the children, she allowed me to step in and conduct some myself.  I enjoyed having my first exposure to the students.  It taught me a lot and I know that I have even more to learn.
Once the students arrived, it was even more eye-opening.  I have 20 students, 12 of which are boys.  Some of our boys are quite a handful but I'm loving every minute of it.  The days go by so quickly and I can see the students growing each day.  I can tell that's it going to be a very educational semester not only for me but my mentor as well.  I'm ready to really begin my full time teaching so I can see what it's really like.

Inquiry Celebration Reflection

After going to the inquiry celebration, I got some really neat ideas about different strategies and games to use in math with my kindergartners next year.  Both session I went to were intern sessions and they were very beneficial to me.  Most of them focused on touch point math and different strategies to assist students when teaching math.  Math has never been my strong suit, and when I began teaching, it really terrified me.  I am very grateful that I was able to visit both sessions because I learned so much and took so much away with me that I think will be very helpful in my teaching.

Practicum Plan Reflection #2

When I look at my practicum plan I get so excited!! I can't believe how fast this semester is winding down. I have just a few more things to get done and I am currently working on them now. My goals have also been very well planned out. I am much more comfortable with teaching math and I have been able to gather data and analyze it very quickly. At the beginning of the semester, it seemed like there was so much to do, but now I can't believe that it has all gotten done and I have lived through another semester!

Characteristics of the Novice Teacher #2

For my first artifact, I chose characteristic #3: We believe that the novice teacher should recognize that teaching is a professional, moral, and ethical enterprise, should understand moral issues and ethical practices in educational environments, and should have developed ethical frameworks which facilitate effective teaching. I think that my literacy workstation project from EDUC 461 is a good example of this. I say this because throughout the project there are many modifications for students with different cultural beliefs as well as a number of resources used to teach students about different moral and ethics. Even though this project was done in a group setting, the other members and myself made sure that we incorporated a number of different ideas and activities to make sure that students were not just leaning school material, but life lessons as well.

My second artifact relates to characteristic #4: We believe the novice teacher should be a facilitator of learning for all students. My technology toolkit from SPED 360 is a good reflection of this. While doing this project, I made sure I picked activities that would give all students a chance to learn. they were all technology activities that could be modified in any way for any student with a disability. I tried to think of the project as being something that a student could do mostly on themselves with very little assistance. That way they were getting learning skills as well as acquiring technology skills. The skills that I picked would be easy for a teacher to take a group of students to a lab and be able to circulate throughout the computer lab as the students worked their way through their assignments.

Practium Plan Reflection

It is absolutely crazy how fast this semester has gone! I honestly don't even think January and February has even existed. I was looking over my practicum plan today and realized that almost half of my assignments are highlighted in green. Seeing green highlighter makes me happy because that mean those things are done. It just doesn't feel like that much time has passed and that it's almost time for spring break. I was talking with my mentor teacher today and we both realized that I don't really have that much left to do in the classroom. I just have to teach for two weeks from my plans, which I'm doing in April, and then I need to teach my learning cycle, which I'm also doing in April. I get really excited when I think about the semester being over. It's been a rough one but if I'm made it this far, I'm pretty sure I can make it through!

Characteristics of the Novice Teacher

The seminar on Friday really cleared up my questions on the characteristics of the novice teacher. All I really knew was that they were in the rubric and that during my intern year, I was going to have to do something with them.

The first artifact I have chosen to represent a characteristic is my literacy workstation project from last semester. I think it connects to characteristic four: facilitator of learning for all students and characteristic 9: diverse students. I think it connects to these two because it was made so that all students can learn from it and so diverse students can connect with what they are learning to their culture. I included several different books and materials for the diverse student so that they can feel like are part of the group and not different.

The second artifact I have chosen is a lesson that I just taught last week. It was a lesson on the Emancipation Proclamation that I used many different types of learning styles to teach and that the students absolutely loved. I had so much feedback and participation from the students! I think it connects to characteristic 6: in depth knowledge of content because my students were so engaged because I was so knowledgeable about the content and was able to inform them a great deal of the concept. I also connect it to diverse students as well because I was able to adapt the lesson for many different learning styles. I used the Elmo, an audio file, I had pictures, and I also provided a copy of what was on the audio file so that students could follow along. My fifth graders are usually pretty silent, but with this lesson they were engaged and so excited to learn more and continue on.

Looking at the ten characteristics, I see that there is still so much for me to learn about myself as a teacher. So far, I think that I'm doing a good job of becoming the best teacher that I can be, but there's still a lot to learn. Teaching is a profession that is not just learned or taught overnight. It takes tons of practice and the willingness to open yourself as a learner and become aware of yourself and your students.

Practicum Plan Reflection #2

All the assignments on my practicum plan are finished! I taught my last lesson yesterday and the kids loved it. As a class the read "Red Writing Hood" and everyone got their own part. I had them make hand puppets to go along with their character. I was really surprised how into it a lot of the students got. They did a wonderful job. I look at my practicum plan and can't believe how fast this semester is going. Personally, I think I did a wonderful job keeping up with the assignments and all my learning goals on my practicum plan. I got a lot more comfortable this semester with whole group lessons. My mentor teacher had a lot to do with it. She was so wonderful and she made me feel comfortable and not nervous at all. This semester has been absolutely fabulous, and I'm sad to see it end. I wish I could stay in this classroom for the rest of my experience in the Benedum Program.

Practicum Plan Reflection

I had originally reflected on my practicum plan in my researcher notebook, but since this will be easier for everyone to see, I figured I'd just go ahead and do it on here. I have been doing very well with the assignments on my practicum plan. I only have a few things left and everything will be done. I dropped C&I 444 because I switched my specialization from science to early childhood, so the things on my plan for that class I don't have to worry about. My mentor teacher has been very flexible and has allowed me to do pretty much all my assignmetns while adjusting her schedule so that I can get things done. I have attended several extra curricular activities and I am getting very comfortable teaching the whole class. Classroom management has also become a little easier. If the kids get out of hand, I don't have trouble raising my voice above their to clam them down. I think my mentor teacher has a lot to do with how comfortable I am getting. With almost every lesson I teache she does an evaluation for me, and we always sit down and reflect after each lesson as well. I check my practicum plan weekly and things are moving along very smoothly. The only things I have left to do in the classroom is another lesson incorporating the arts and we have that scheduled for the week after Thanksgiving. I also have a whole class math lesson to teach which I am doing next week as well as collecting some more data and a few interviews for my inquiry of students project.

Wiki Progress

Our wiki has turned out absolutely wonderful! Sonya and I sat down the other day and put together the front page. That was one of the pages that the group decided I would do, but Sonya helped me figure out what kind of graphic to put on the page and how to make it exciting and eye-catching. Sonya and I also discussed what she would include in the history page. When she had it finished, she called me and had me read it over to see what I thought. I think she did a very good job and I told her what I thought of it. While we were at our PDS, we all sat down with our coordinator and spoke with her about when the school was built and how they did the ground blending for it. The girls and I worked very well together. We gave advice and criticism when needed, and we also received it when we asked for it. This project was a very good way to get all of us to learn how to work together and to learn how to give and get advice. I'm very proud of the work we have done together and I hope that everyone else that sees our wiki is impressed with it as well.

Wiki Process

The wiki is coming along quite nicely. We sat down the other day and figured out what we want to include on our wiki and we split it up so everyone got a page to make. I was given the intro page and the Pre-Service Teacher page. I have all the picture of the pre-service teachers on the wiki with their names, specialization, and mentor teachers. I have asked everyone to send me a quote about their favorite part of Mason-Dixon. I am waiting to hear back from everyone to include them on the page as well. I pretty much have the intro page done, but I'm trying to find another picture of the front of the school because the one that I have uploaded, I'm not very fond of. I think that once all of us have our parts done and we can look at it, our wiki is going to look pretty good.

Wiki Reflection

The girls and I have discussed several options and things to use on our wiki. We have talked about using one our digital stories from last year on the front page or doing voice overs introducing each one of us. We're also going to interview our coordinator and see what her thoughts on a wiki should look like. We have our definition of what a PDS is. It's not very long, but I think we covered all our thoughts and opinions. Two of us have gotten a Blacksville history book so that we will be able to include some history in our wiki as well.

Blogging Over the Year

I have enjoyed using this blog over the course of the year. I have been able to reflect on what I have been doing in the classroom to share with others and it's also been helpful for me to look back on what I have done in the classroom and what has went well and what hasn't. Being able to communicate with a partner that is in the boat that I am has been very helpful. I can get ideas from her and advice on what I should or shouldn't do in the classroom. My partner has also given me some good ideas on some lessons and activities to do in the classroom. I like being able to read what my seminar facilitator thinks of what I have accomplished in the classroom. She was in my shoes once and it's great to be able to see what she has done and what she thinks I should do. Getting advice from a mentor is always something I will take. I still think that the use of a blog in the classroom is a great idea. It gets students involved in a different way and it is very interactive. I'm not big on the use of technology in my classroom, but I can see myself using a blog someday in the future. My question for you Lauren is --How has using this blog helped you through your time in the program? Have your thoughts and ideas on using a blog in the classroom changed over the course of the year?

Learning Goals

The learning goal that I have been most concerned about this semster is being comfortable teaching large groups. At the beginning of last semester, I was so intimidated by the thought of standing in front of 25 little faces staring up at me, that I didn't know what to do with myself. As the semester progressed, I got more comfortable, but not comfortable enough. This semester however, I can feel myself getting more comfortable with each week I visit my PDS. I know how my classroom works and I can maneuver myself around it more easily now. I think that I am progressing well. I know this is something that takes time, but if I'm going to be a teacher, I need to be really comfortable in front of those shining faces.
I haven't added or changed anything to my practicum plan this semester. I set it up in a way that I knew I would be able to follow it without overwhelming myself and I gave myself enough time between each activity so that I would have ample time to prepare for it and discuss it with my mentor teacher.
In relation to completeing the activities listed on my plan, I am right on track. I have already done my read aloud and next week I will be teaching my small group lesson. I check my plan regualry so that I can keep myself updated on what needs done and when it is due. Compared to not having one of these last semster, this semester is so much better. I don't feel as confused about what needs done and I don't feel like I have to rush to get things done either. And that's a big plus!

Storytelling

Some ideas from my PDS experience that I have could include in my digital stories are how I watch the students interact with another and how much they enjoy the different activities that they do during the day. Every morning my first graders have little activities to do during their reading block and they really enjoy putting together different little books about different subjects. Since Groundhog Day was this past week, they focused several activities on just that day. They learned all about Punxsatawney Phil and what he did and what it means if he sees his shadow or not. They also colored and put together a little booklet about what a groundhog does when he hibernates. After that, I read them a story about Groundhog Day. I have so many ideas running through my head for things to include in my digital story, that I'm not sure if i'll be able to pick.

Some stories from my PDS that will be interesting to listen to is the books that the different first grade classes wrote and are currently in the process of having them published. My class wrote a book about the ABC's of job. They included different jobs for each letter. I think it will be interesting to listen to because they wrote it and will be very proud to read their story to someone else. Several things make a story a good story. The most important thing is grabbing and keeping the listener's attention. Also, a good plot is key because if the story is boring, the listener probably won't want to keep listening. Stories need to be fun as well, they can be educational but fun at the same time. If a child can learn something from a story but have fun with it as well, then I think that's when a story is most beneficial.

Using different media in a story enhances telling a story because it's not the standard just having someone read the words from a page. Using audio or video keeps the listener on their toes and keeps them interested into what's going to come next in the story.

Prompt #2

I have worked a lot with the children in my class and I really hate that I'm going to have to leave them at the end of the semester. Two children that I have got to work the most with are the two student in the reading group that I take. They are the slower readers, but they are so much fun and full of life that I love it! They are very easy to work with and are very eager to show me how much they can read. They use a really neat reading program that has a one minute time limit and they count the number of words they read per minute. Both the teacher and I are very fond of this program because it is both very educational and helpful and quite fun for the kids. I only had a problem with one of the students on one occassion, but I think he may have been having an off day because he is not usually like that. I am very glad that I got a chance to work with students who are shlower readers because I got to see how they work.

Do you think working with students in smaller groups helps you build a better realationship with them?

Blogging Possibilites

I think that blogging will be very useful in my future classroom. I think that students will really like it because they will be able to talk about anything they want and respond to their classmates ideas. I could also use this and post different and fun websites on the blog for the students to explore and see how well they like them. Blogs can also be used for students to learn about creative writing. If they have a chance to pick a topic and blog about it, they might be more excited about writing and use their imaginations more. Blogging is a great way to teach grammar, creative writing, and also to incorporate technology into the classroom.