Wednesday, December 18, 2013

So much for blogging

I really thought it would be great to maintain this blog, as the story of my journey. It turns out, however, that I have more than enough writing to do for UVEI assignments and lesson planning, and never enough time for any of it. Certainly no extra time for blogging. Sigh. It's hard to believe but I only have two days left in 5th grade. My fall placement has flown by! I'm eager to move on, learn more, experience a different classroom, teacher, and school. At the same time I'm really sad to be leaving where I am. I'm so comfortable at my school, my mentor is amazing, the class is awesome, and I'm going to miss everyone. Today we were reassigning reading groups for January and discussing room rearrangement, and I kept having to remind myself that I won't be around for any of that. My thoughts went, "Oh, it will be fun to have that kid in class...oh wait, I won't be here for that." I'm sure my spring placement will go by equally fast and I know it's important to get as much exposure and experience as I can. While I'm comfortable where I am, what I need right now is challenge, not comfort. So I will move one to bigger and better things... well, kindergarten. Definitely not "bigger," and "better" is to be determined. The differences are going to be amazing.

Sunday, November 24, 2013

Solo week, coming right up

My solo week is coming up right after Thanksgiving vacation. What this means is that I'll be the primary teacher in the room for the entire week. My mentor teacher won't be around at all. I also have to do all of the lesson planning for the entire week, from morning meeting to end of day grading and everything in between.

I'm feeling pretty mixed about this. I have a fun project for the writing class and I'm excited about that. However, my mentor teacher and adviser keep asking me things like "what are the students going to learn on this day," and "what is your objective for that day," and I just want to have fun. Sigh. I guess fun isn't the primary goal of teaching.

As excited as I am for the writing class, I'm a little less confident in the rest of my lessons. I have them, loosely, but they still need work. Work that will have to be done over Thanksgiving vacation, while travelling.

I'm also mixed because I get excited when I finally firm up lesson plans, but then things never go as planned. A fact of life, I know. Five days is a long time to be "on" full-time. One misstep or off day and I'll have lost that class for the rest of the week. No pressure.

Plus I'll be observed and recorded off an on throughout the week. Then I have a mid-year assessment due the following week, based on the lessons from my solo week. Lessons that aren't yet finalized and apparently don't have any "hooks" or student learning in them.

I have to just keep reminding myself that I knew this would be a tough year. This will be a tough year, but time goes by. Whether you're ready for it or not. Time goes by. I have less than four weeks left in 5th grade!

Thursday, November 21, 2013

Digital Storytelling

I went to a professional development seminar today on technology in the classroom. There were three session choices: blogging, iPad apps, and digital storytelling. I had to think long and hard to decide between the iPad session and the digital storytelling session, but I finally decided on the storytelling.

At the digital storytelling session the instructor introduced us to three products: VoiceThread, Meograph, and PowToon. Each looked interesting in their own ways, and each would be used for very different things. While he was showing us the products I tried to think of a situation where students could use them in the classroom.

VoiceThread:
VoiceThread lets you add voice narration over photographs. You can have just one photo or a slideshow of photos. It also makes it very easy for others with accounts to comment, via text or voice, on your VoiceThread. At first I wasn't sure what to do with this product, but then I thought for young kids it could be fun to take a picture of their artwork and then have them record a voice narration telling the story. Children often have very elaborate stories to accompany their artwork. I could also see VoiceThread being useful in an art class. Students could photograph their artwork and then record a voice narration to go along with it. Their classmates could then view the projects and leave critiques. It could be a way to include technology in art classes, and a way to teach positive critiquing skills.

Meograph: Meograph sounded pretty cool when he described it, but when I looked at the few samples he showed it seemed less cool. I'll have to go play with it myself for awhile and see what I can build. Essentially it is a tool that ties Google Earth with historical time lines. In his example he had students map earthquakes in time (timeline) and space (Google Earth). The final project is a presentation of sorts. I could see Meograph being useful for an ancestry project, or perhaps a historical project that involves different places over time, such as the Lewis and Clark expeditions.

PowToon: PowToon lets you quickly and easily create animated movies or presentations. I think you could use this for little videos about a topic or as a dynamic introduction to a lesson or unit.

After the instructor introduced each of the three products, we were set loose to create something on our own. We were actually instructed to come to class with a story in mind, but sadly I came with none, so when we were turned loose I chose to make a little animation with PowToon. Not too shabby for a first try. :) The meeting also counted as professional development. I wonder if that counts for anything at this point in my life.

Thursday, November 14, 2013

Sometimes it all comes together

I'm doing a solo day tomorrow. It's my third, so you'd think I would be comfortable by now, but nope. Actually, in the classroom I'm perfectly comfortable, but I have been struggling with the lesson planning at home. I was complaining to discussing with my husband a few days ago and he suggested a writing lesson idea I really liked, but my mentor thought it wouldn't be great. :/ Last week my mentor had suggested a lesson on slang because a lot of the students write "gonna" and "cuz" in their work. I liked the idea, but struggled to find support or inspiration for it. All of my Google searches were turning up street slang or SMS shortcuts. I don't think "slang" is really the term I needed, it's more like lazy writing. I watched YouTube videos, read articles, browsed Pinterest (with just a touch of procrastination mixed in!) and just felt stuck.

Last night, while my husband got my son ready for bed, I continued to push through my block. Research, frustration. Then I took a break to lay down with my son and snuggle. Our nightly routine. While we cuddled he was so soft and so still. With my head on his pillow I listened to his breathing and felt his warm head pressed against my face. Now here I would like to say I was zen, at peace, completely present in such a wonderful moment... but that would be a bit of a lie. I was at peace, and calm, and suddenly my lesson solidified in my head. All on it's own. It just came together, a simple, straightforward lesson that my students would learn from and enjoy.

It felt like a weight was lifted. When I was done cuddling my son I came back downstairs and typed it up. I was hesitant to show my mentor, in case he disagreed with me, but I did and he loved it. He also agreed to let me do a bulletin board with the students projects from this lesson. It will be awesome. I can see it in my head already.

I went from tense and stressed about this solo day to feeling completely at ease and ready to rock tomorrow. I am going to have to do some serious reflecting (or something!) on why lesson planning is so challenging and stressful for me, but when it comes together in a moment of peace, it's a wonderful thing.

I'll post details of the lesson and a picture of my awesome (I'm sure!) bulletin board in a few days.

Sunday, November 10, 2013

How to blow a bubble

We started our information text unit in writing this week and my mentor teacher had a great lesson lined up! We discussed the many different ways that exist to get information, including how-to videos. Then he had the kids break into pairs and create a how-to video on "How to blow a bubble." The kids LOVED it! Everyone got a big piece of bubble gum (they were sold on that alone!) and an iPad. They had a graphic organizer to help them create their script, then they went to work creating the videos. It was amazing to see all the different ways they did this simple task. Some had one person video while the other did the explanation and demonstration; others had one video and explain while the person on camera just demonstrated; still others propped the iPad up and had both people in front of the camera, one explaining and one demonstrating; and one lucky group of three created a very silly video with one running the camera, one explaining, and the third one demonstrating all the things NOT to do. I was also impressed with the variations of script, from very basic (put gum in mouth, chew, blow), to very detailed (use your tongue to push the gum out a little, then pull your tongue back in, creating a little crevice in the gum to blow air into), to everything in between. Everyone loved the project, students and teachers alike.

It reminded me of a lesson my sixth grade teacher did so many years ago, long before iPads existed! He had us write instructions on how to open a door, then he took each one and followed it, step-by-step, to the letter. The result was many smacks on the head by the door since almost all of us forgot to include the "step backwards" step before pulling open the door. It was hysterical... for us. He probably had a killer headache by the end of the day!

I hope someday I can create lessons that are as clever, engaging, and memorable as these are.

Saturday, November 09, 2013

So much information

There is an amazing amount of information out there. From Google to blogs to Pinterest and Facebook. In some ways it's just amazing. Anything and everything you've ever wanted to know about is out there, just a quick click away. In other ways... totally overwhelming! You can spend HOURS lost in the Internet. I was recently told I need to incorporate technology more into my lessons, not just using technology, but also having the students create with technology. Ok, can do. My mentor teacher does really cool projects. Unfortunately my mind has been a blank. Actually, not a total blank. I have one cool idea but I'm saving it for my solo week next month, as it will take a few days to complete. For single lessons though, involving cool uses of technology, there's nothing up there. So I spent the evening on the interwebs, trying to find inspiration. I found everything else, it seems, but no inspiration. Then I started to realize that the more I browsed, the less inspired I felt. Instead of being inspired, I'm just overwhelmed. There's so much out there!

Chris Jernstedt, Professor of Psychological and Brain Sciences at Dartmouth College, spoke at UVEI a few weeks ago. When asked about note taking and how that helps or hinders learning, as part of his response he said that the novice takes copious notes because they don't know what to filter out, they don't know what is important and what is not. That has stuck with me and as I browsed the web tonight I realized that as a novice teacher I really don't know what to filter out either. Everything looks interesting, but not exactly what I need, and I can't easily scan things as I imagine a long-time teacher probably can.

Or maybe the fact that it's 11:30pm has something to do with it. Perhaps all this inspiration/overwhelmed-ness will percolate overnight and a great idea will come to me in the shower tomorrow! :)

Wednesday, October 30, 2013

Observations

This week I've been observing other classes and other schools. It's part of an assignment for UVEI, but also just a really interesting activity. When it was first mentioned last month I had no interest whatsoever. There was still so much to learn in my own classroom that the idea of going somewhere else just seemed silly. Now, however, two full months into my placement, I'm finding it fascinating to observe other classes.

So far I've seen three classrooms: a 5th and a 3rd at another school in our district, and a 4th at my school. Later in the week I'll be observing a 5th and a 6th at another school in another district. I love seeing the different ways the classrooms are arranged, what's on the walls, what projects the students are working on, what cues the teacher uses to get the students' attention, and so much more. Each teacher I've visited has been so kind and generous in sharing their room and their knowledge. I really love that about my teaching experience so far. I've heard of less than generous teachers, but I have yet to meet any!

Another thing I'm enjoying about this process is meeting and observing teachers who have come highly regarded. I asked teachers I know and respect for advice on who I should observe, so the teachers I'm visiting now are those who are highly respected by those I respect. I like to see if I can find similar teaching styles or other similarities. Some I've found and some I haven't.

So far I have been taking notes along the way and for my UVEI assignment this week I have to make a written reflection on this experience. I haven't even begun that process yet. The writing part, I suppose, the reflecting part is always going on in my head.

So much to learn. What an fascinating experience this has been so far.

Friday, October 18, 2013

In-service

The kids had the day off today, but the teachers had a district in-service day.  The elementary teachers spent the morning learning about Standard 3 in the new math curriculum.  It's all about how students need to be able to verbalize their responses, justify their answers, and defend the process.  They also need to be able to assess their classmates' thinking and recognize validity or faults.  That sounds very challenging to me, though also quite necessary.  I had a student this week turn in a math challenge with nothing but "36" written on the paper.  When I asked how he got that answer he said a classmate told him.  Try again, my friend!  He was not pleased when I told him to go back and show his work.

I'm currently student teaching in one of three elementary schools in our district.  It's the school where my kids attend and therefore the school I was the most familiar with before I started teaching.  Looking around the room this morning at the elementary teacher from around the district, it occurred to me that in January when I switch placements I will be so lost!  I'll be in the same district, but at a different school.  One where I know nobody and have very little experience with.  That will be quite a change from my fall placement!  I'm sure it will be good for me, of course.

After the math presentation we broke up into grade-level groups and built mini-lessons that we could teach across the schools.  Although everyone is working from the same curriculum, it was interesting to hear the differences between the schools.  Some teachers were further ahead, other had gone in a different direction.  I can see how it's valuable to spend time with grade-level teachers and share ideas. 

We also watched this TEDx talk about fixed mindset and growth mindset.  I think this idea is fascinating and makes so much sense.  It's also not intuitive from a parent or teacher standpoint. 
Going forward I'm going to pay closer attention to my interactions with my own children and my students at school, listening for what words I use and how they impact the children's motivation.

Monday, October 14, 2013

Lesson planning

Much to my surprise, lesson planning has been the hardest part of this new endeavour.  My district does not have a clear ELA curriculum so I feel like we are largely guessing at what to do.  My mentor teacher, of course, has years of experience and therefore has a good grasp of what 5th graders are capable of, what they need to learn, and how to build the lessons and their knowledge (scaffolding?).  I, however, have none of that and am trying hard to create relevant, interesting, appropriate lessons for the students.

So far I've done two solo days, and several individual reading and science lessons.  While that doesn't seem like a lot, especially when you consider that real teachers have to plan for every lesson, every day, it still has taken me hours. Hours for each lesson!

I start with a general idea of what we are working on. Then try to choose a concept that will be relevant and related.  Sometimes I feel like it fits in smoothly, but other times I feel like it ends up being a one-off thing.

Both solo days have left me feeling defeated in the lesson planning department.  I've gone into the days with what I thought were strong lessons, but the students quickly prove me wrong.  The first writing lesson I did, on chronological storytelling, ended up being confusing to the class.  I used the mentor text Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day and we discussed both chronological storytelling and catch-phrases.  There was my mistake.  I based my lesson on one I found online, but I should have dropped the catch-phrase part.  My class was just confused.  By the third class I was seriously downplaying the catch-phrase part and focusing my efforts on the chronological aspect only. 

Today's writing lesson, for my second solo day, was on proper comma usage.  Again I based the lesson on something I found online and again it left my class confused.  Actually, this time they were more bored than confused.  I used a presentation to show the six main rules of comma usage, but as much as I tried to make it engaging it really was just boring.  I was worried about that before I even got to class.  It felt boring on one hand, yet it also felt like we moved through the lesson too quickly.  Once we got the end and the students broke up into pairs and punctuated sample sentences I had given them, their interest picked up.

My reading lessons and science lessons have been equally eye-opening.  No devastating failures, fortunately, but each lesson has left me with so much more to think about.  

I think I have to re-evaluate how I go about my lesson planning.  I wish my district had an overall outline though, a road map per se, so I could better place my lessons within the overall context of 5th grade learning.  However, since that is not the case, I will continue to work hard and practice.  It's wonderful that UVEI, my awesome placement school, and my amazing mentor teacher provide so much opportunity for me to practice these skills and learn from the pros!

So much to learn!

Tuesday, October 08, 2013

NECAPs

We have been doing NECAPS testing these past few weeks.  Some schools bunch the tests all up into a few days, but at our school we spread them out over a few weeks, taking just one or two a day a couple of days a week.  I like it this way because it's less intense for the students, however it is much more disruptive to the overall schedule.  We end up with nearly three weeks of unusual schedules.  NECAPs are pretty low-key at our schools. I've heard of other districts that make a really big deal of them, holding big assemblies and giving treats and prizes, at our school it's just a morning announcement to encourage those taking the tests and remind those who aren't to be extra quiet in the halls.  

We've been taking the 5th grade out for an extra recess at break and not doing our usual subject rotation, but otherwise no real big deal.  I've been administering the test to a 1-on-1 student who needs a scribe.  It's given me lots of time to study for my upcoming Praxis II exam!  My student feels pretty special about getting his own room and his own space.  He's so chatty and does a lot of pacing, so I'm glad he gets his own space as well. I think it would be very challenging for him to sit still and quiet in the main classroom.  

I like the low-key aspect of testing in our school.  This is the first year my son is taking the standardized tests as well and he is totally calm about it.  No pressure, no stress.  I wish I felt as calm about my Praxis!

Thursday, October 03, 2013

Time

Wow, I really thought I'd have more time and energy to maintain a teaching blog.  I love blogging.  Writing is such a great way to process, document, and archive.  Yet, it also takes time.  I find I rarely have my computer on these days (relying instead on my phone and iPad) and when I do I have lesson plans to plan or UVEI homework to write.  I guess that about takes care of my writing time, none left for the blog. Sigh.

Here's a quick update on what's been going on:
  • We did a cool project with iMotion in which the kids made little videos using paper characters to teach writing rules.  
  • We started NECAP testing this week.  I remember it well (standardized testing anyway, not sure if it was the same one) when I was child.  Now I get to do it as a teacher.  Equally boring.  The kids handled it well though.  
  • We are now a month into school and I'm starting to lose track of everything going on.  I need to get myself organized, physically and mentally.  It's amazing how much teachers have to know!  In terms of their subject matter, of course, but also in terms of keeping track of schedules and who has 504/IEPs, who is where, who is doing what at grade level and what needs to be done about it, etc.  There are meetings and observations and just so much to know.  Teachers work hard!
  • I've done one solo day of teaching.  I've also taught a few lessons with my mentor teacher around and I've done some subbing for him.  All are excellent opportunities.  It has been interesting to see how the students respond to him teaching his lessons, versus me teaching his lessons, versus me teaching my lessons.  I clearly have some work to do on my lesson planning skills.  :)  
Overall it's going very well.  I would like to post more, and more often, if only for my own reference in the future.  For now I'll leave you with this interesting article: How Adults are Stealing Ambition from Kids

Sunday, September 22, 2013

What did people do before the Internet?!?

Obviously they didn't do much blogging, of course! 

I finished my lesson plan for my solo day this week.  I was feeling a bit apprehensive about the whole thing, but now that the lesson plan is done (off to my mentor teacher for review), I'm feeling much more confident.  I have no doubt I can get through the day, a year of subbing has shown me that, but I want to be sure the students have fun and learn something as well.

I was feeling a bit lost as to where to begin, so I turned to the the trusty Google machine and did some exploring.  Did you know there are TONS of great resources out there?!  Of course you knew.  The Internet is a wonderful place.  I discovered WritingFix and Responsive Classroom and ReadWriteThink and so many other invaluable resources.

I decided to do a writing lesson on chronological narration and a reading lesson on using paraphrasing to better understand what you've read.  I think both should be fun.  I also found a few other activities for throughout the day, including Human Bingo (get to know your classmates!) and an experiment on left/right side dominance.

I have the lesson plan written and the necessary supporting materials created, and now I feel more eager than anxious.  A little preparation goes a long way!

Friday, September 20, 2013

Tour the states

We watched a really cool video today to kick off a fun "tour the states" project.  The whole classroom was abuzz!


Before the video the kids were given blank US maps and asked to fill in as many state names as possible.  Then we discussed who knows people in various states.  Then the fun part!  Each week a student is going to write a letter to someone we know in another state.  Either someone they know (aunt, uncle, family friend, etc.) or someone one of the teachers knows.  We'll write the letter in a journal and send it.  The recipient will write a little letter back, telling us about their state.  We are also asking them to send a blank post card to help us decorate the bulletin board. 

I love the idea of pen pals and have often thought that when I have a classroom of my own I'd love to do a pen pal project.  These days maybe it would be less "pen" and more email and Skype.  When my mentor teacher mentioned this project I was thrilled.  I think it will be an exciting and different way to learn a little more about the United States.

The other thing I love about this is the spontaneity.  This was not part of the long-term plan, or part of the Common Core Curriculum, just something my teacher thought of and decided to do.  That kind of creative flexibility is so exciting to me and I can't wait to share a variety of fun ideas with my own classroom someday.     

Thursday, September 19, 2013

Planning for a solo day

Next week will be my first solo day.  I'm not only in charge of the class for the day (something I've done many times as a sub), but now I'm also in charge of actually educating them!

I've been working hard on lesson plans.  Due to the nature of our class rotations I only have to plan a morning meeting time, one writing lesson (to be repeated with several different classes), a science experiment, and a reading group lesson.  When I write it all out somehow my "only" from above seems less appropriate!  That is four separate blocks of time to plan well to ensure a quality education for my students.

I found a cool site called Writing Fix with a wide variety of writing lesson ideas.  They have fully developed lessons based around picture books, called "mentor texts."  I love picture books.  They make me feel at home.  I think my writing lesson will involve Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day.  A cute story (that I happen to have in my own personal collection) and a good lesson on chronological story telling.  The lesson on the website is long and involved and could easily span several days, so I'll be tailoring it to just one lesson period.  We will read the book, discuss chronological storytelling and why an author might chose to write that way.  Then maybe I'll use a graphic organizer to have them write a brief chronological narrative.  I think the students will enjoy it.

I'm trying to find a balance of teaching fun, interesting, grade level (something I'm learning fast!) activities that will engage them and hopefully they might learn something along the way.  My mentor teacher is really fun and the kids all like him, so I want to make sure my plan for the day isn't too dull.    Fun, and interesting, and educational, of course.

Sunday, September 15, 2013

On lesson planning

I've been thinking a lot about lesson planning lately.  I planned my first lesson last week.  I've taught several before, as a student teacher and as a substitute, but this is the first time I've planned a lesson.  The lesson went well enough, but I don't feel like I planned it properly.  I'm not sure if that's because I didn't (probably) or because I felt like it should have been something "more" or "more complex" than what it was.

My mentor sent me his lesson plan template, but it didn't work properly on my computer.  He has a template that has all of the Common Core elements listed in a drop-down box and many essential questions to choose from.  It looked easy-peasy on his computer, but didn't work on my Linux machine.   So instead I turned to the UVEI lesson template, but that didn't make a lot of sense to me either.

I ended up using my mentor's outline, without linking Common Core and just taking a guess at other elements.  My focus was on the step-by-step outline of the lesson because that is the part that made the most sense to me.  That was what I could wrap my head around and felt confident moving forward.

I drafted two versions, each going in slightly different directions, and sent them to my mentor.  He wrote back suggesting version A with a select few elements from version B as well.  We discussed and I moved forward to a "final draft."  I say that with quotes because I don't know if you ever have a truly final draft.  Does it count as final if the lesson changes a bit in progress?

My lesson was on a maps and was to be taught to one of the reading groups.  The lesson, as I had written it and as I had it in my head, was an introduction to maps and a discussion of the common elements found on a map.  When I discussed it with my mentor one final time, on the morning of the lesson, he made a comment about how the EQ should be along the lines of "How do maps help you to better understand what you're reading?"  That made sense, of course, since this is a reading group.  However, the EQ I had settled on, after working through my step-by-step lesson plan, was "What are the four key elements on a map?"  Not quite the same thing!

I taught the lesson, including the topics and activities I had planned, but modifying it on the fly to address how maps help you understand what you're reading, and then forgot the EQ at the end of the lesson anyway!  Oops!  My mentor jumped in at the end to wrap it up and bring it back to the essential question, "How to maps help you better understand what you're reading."

Overall I think the lesson was ok.  My mentor did a brief check-in at the next day's lesson, tying a map into his plan and asking the students how it helped them understand the text.  They seemed to get it.

However, a big lesson learned here is that it's important to start with that essential question!  It's important to keep in mind who you are teaching to and what you are teaching.  This was a reading lesson, after all, not a social studies lesson. 

Despite the hard work I put into this lesson plan, I still very much feel like I stumbled through it.  I'm looking forward to our upcoming UVEI session on lesson planning.  I have a few solo teaching days coming up and I'll need to do the lesson planning for them.  I hope to be a little more comfortable and confident in my planning abilities before then!

Wednesday, September 04, 2013

Adjectives

The word of the day is adjectives!  Or, I should say, the words of the day were adjectives.  Adjectives everywhere!   We did a great (not a 5th grade word!) activity today to help the students think of creative and clever adjectives to add more appeal to their writing.

Each table had a large sheet of paper in the middle and the students were asked to discuss with one another and write down as many adjectives as they could find.  The only rule being no duplicates on the paper, and school appropriate, of course.  They had energized discussions about what words were adjectives and every group filled their papers.  One of the very last groups discovered a list of adjectives hanging on the wall in the classroom and thought they had scored big!

Once the papers were full, students were told to quietly (no discussion) circle their favorite adjective on the paper and put a star next to a word they questioned being an adjective.  They then had the opportunity to quietly rotate around the room, reading the words on each sheet of paper, circling their favorite and staring questionable words.

An abundance of adjectives!


It was fascinating to see what they came up with and what they questioned.  It was a peek into their minds and an opportunity to gauge their current vocabulary level.  I also thought it was a bit telling of their personalities, as many kids put "awesome," "great," etc. but several others put "fat," "slow," "dumb," etc.  I know you can't read too much into it, but I think the words that come to mind first can be a reflection of words often in your head.  

Once everyone returned to their seats we had a discussion about what were the favorite adjectives, did everyone agree that they were adjectives, and what were some of the questioned words.  Many, many students put stars next to the color words.  We discussed that some words, like "orange" and "lavender" can be adjectives or nouns, depending on the context.  Some words, like "chocolately" caused great debate and the students defended their sides (adjective/not adjective) with gusto!  We also came across words that were slang and had to consider where they fit into the writing lesson.  Hint: they did not! 

My favorite?  "Swagalishious!"  Said with enthusiasm and defended with passion.   Not a real word, of course, adjective or otherwise, but maybe it should be! 

Tuesday, September 03, 2013

What makes a good teacher?

One of my first projects for UVEI was to have a discussion with my class on "What makes a good teacher?"  Fifth graders sure do have a lot to say on that!

I asked the students to think for a minute about what is their idea of a good teacher. What does a good teacher do? How does a good teacher behave? I suggested they think of their past four years in school and what they liked or didn’t like about their teachers, though reminded them we were not discussing specific teachers. Then I asked them to discuss with their table mates and jot down a few ideas. I had them think about what makes a good teacher and what makes a so-so teacher. They went right to work and filled the pages with ideas, even requesting a few extra minutes to brainstorm.

 When everyone was ready I called their attention to the Smartboard in the front of the room for a group discussion and the ideas flowed. Some were quite specific, such as “Punish single people not the whole group,” others were more general, such as “no grouchiness,” and others were just downright silly, such as “let students use a British accent.” One girl in my class does an excellent British accent! My two favorite ideas that came up in the discussion were, “an honest teacher,” and “encourages you to try your hardest.”

A good teacher probably has good Smartboard handwriting as well.  
Clearly I'll have to work on that!
I really liked the think/pair/share process. It gives students a few minutes to gather their thoughts, to discuss in small groups and build confidence, then bring their refined ideas to the larger group. I'll definitely be using that process often.

Monday, August 26, 2013

On teams

I started my first day as a student teacher today.  It went very well.  I enjoyed meeting the students and was happy to find I knew most of their names.  Of course my studying (matching the class list to last year's yearbook) helped too!

We have a great class this year, with two new kids who fit right in immediately.  The returning students were courteous and kind to the new students, to myself, and to their teacher.  I left feeling tired, but happy and confident in the year.  Day one, at least!

I'm fortunate to be working with a really great team of teachers.  There are three 5th grades at my school and the teachers collaborate very closely on their lesson plans, activities, and expectations.  This year they are having "homerooms" and the students will be rotating between the three classrooms for different subjects.  The room I'm in is the writing room, the other two are math and social studies.  This will be one step towards transitioning the fifth graders from elementary to middle school.  I think the idea is a neat one.  It allows the teachers to focus more on teaching their strengths (math, science, writing) and it allows them each more time to develop comprehensive lessons plans.  The students get an introduction to schedules and different teachers per subject, all within the comfortable confines of their elementary school.  I'm excited to see how it plays out through the year. 

Friday, August 23, 2013

Friday! Week one done.

Clearly daily postings are not going to happen around here.  UVEI orientation ended yesterday, Thursday.  It was a really great week of meeting new friends and learning new things. 

We had a week long project to teach a 10 minute lesson with a partner.  My partner and I decided to teach a poem called "Dreams" by Langston Hughes to the group.  It's a nice little poem and she knew the ASL to accompany it.  We taught the group the poem and had them practice the sign language.  The lesson planning was interesting and challenging as they gave us loose guidelines but we hadn't had any real lesson planning lessons.  We spent a lot of time discussing how best to co-teach, how to position ourselves to be most beneficial to the class, how to position the class, and, most importantly, what are we really trying to teach!?  We had a chance to do a dry-run with another pair the day before our lesson, and we gained valuable feedback from that.  On Thursday afternoon we taught our "class" the poem and the sign language.  It was really fun and it was interesting to see how we adjusted our lesson plan on the fly to account for the previously unknown environment and students.  It went very well. 

Dreams, by Langston Hughes
Hold fast to dreams
for if dreams die
life is a broken-winged bird
that cannot fly.

Hold fast to dreams
for when dreams go
life is a barren field
frozen with snow.

We were in groups of ten people, five sets of partners, and everyone got to teach a lesson.  In addition to our poem, we learned about how to construct a healthy compost pile, how to tie a strong knot (I forgot the name of it though!), more about healthy eating and exercise, and how to make a paper airplane.  Which leads me to my next thought...

I spent today at school for the final in-service day.  I asked a ton of questions, collated papers, stuffed folders, and attended a staff meeting and a district-wide employee recognition ice cream social!  It was a busy day.  The district IT was fighting a DOS (denial of service attack, which pretty much takes down their network) so the teachers were all stressed about last minute emails, printing, and presentations saved online.  All was resolved by lunch time though.

At our staff meeting I sat quietly in the corner, feeling like an intruder.  I made a quiet joke about it to my mentor and our awesome school counselor.  I said I feel like a parent wearing teacher clothing and sneaking in to the meeting.  They laughed.  She patted my knee and said, "You're one of us now!  You get to hear all the secrets."  It felt good to be there.  :) 

The first activity we did at the staff meeting was a communications game.  Half the room (my side) made paper airplanes.  The teachers at my table were saying they don't know how to make airplanes, so I stepped right up and demonstrated the process I'd learned just yesterday at UVEI.  They all followed along.  Then we had to partner up with the other half of the room, stand back-to-back, and verbally instruct our partner on how to make the same airplane.  My partner did an awesome job, but the partners of my tablemates did not.  Apparently I did not teach my neighbors well enough, as they were unable to reteach the skill!  They said the lesson learned is that cheating is bad. :)  For those of us who created matching planes (original and replicate) we got to fly the replicates for a distance challenge.  My partner's plane won!  Yay for my first staff meeting and yay for my UVEI colleagues who taught an excellent paper airplane lesson!!

I am now very tired and still need to learn many names before Monday.  I'd like to know most, if not all, of the students as they come in on Monday. 

Tuesday, August 20, 2013

Day Two

Day two at UVEI.  Another great one!

This morning we watched an awesome video on Changing Education Paradigms by Sir Ken Robinson


I've seen this a few times and it's just amazing.  The illustrations, the ideas, the execution.  Just perfect.  I love his point that you can't meet the future by doing what you did in the past.  I think too many times we try to do just that.  It worked before, why isn't it working now?  When our current education system was created, during the Industrial Revolution, it meet the needs of the time just fine.  Students needed to know basic reading and math skills.  The Three R's.  In today's environment though, students need to know so much more, but more importantly, students need to know how to process the complex information available to them (to us all!) and how to find accurate, reliable information.   

This is a great video.  I'd highly recommend you watch it, a few times.

Did you know the rate of ADHD increases as you head east?  Why is that?  One of my classmates said it's because it's colder on the East coast and people tend to stay indoors more.  I disagree.  I don't have an answer, but I don't like that one.  If the map is correct it's primarily the south east.  I wonder if it has to do with economics and education levels? 

Monday, August 19, 2013

First day at UVEI

Today was the first day of UVEI orientation!  It was great!  I'm so jazzed to be surrounded by people, all with varied life histories, all pursuing the same path I am.  It is so motivating!

We did a compass point activity to discuss personality types.  It was interesting to see how many people were in the "Just do it!" crowd. I fell into the South "caring" crowd.  I was torn between that and the West "details" group, but we had to chose just one so I went with South.  We discussed strengths and weaknesses of our own personality type and how it might play into our interactions with others and our teaching styles.  I can see how it takes all types of personalities to successfully run an organization.  You need the go-getters, but you also need the big picture people, and the details people, and the "caring" group which we decided could also be called "moderators" or "peacekeepers."  It takes all kinds. 


I'm not going into a full play-by-play, because really, who needs that?  I'm just going to say that I am so happy to feel so confident on this path.  Towards the end of the afternoon I caught myself spacing out a bit (I tend to do that!) but for the first time in my educational career I caught myself and thought, "Wait, this is important!  I need to know this information!"  I want to know this information!   

On the down side, this week over-laps with my school's in-service week, so I'm bummed to be missing all the classroom setup and staff meetings.  I'll be in school on Friday though, for the final push and a few remaining meetings.  I wish I could be there for everything!  At school and at UVEI and home reading a ton of books... and, of course, paying attention to soon-to-be neglected my family.  /)   

Saturday, August 10, 2013

Time

I am eager to begin the UVEI program in two weeks.  Eager to get started learning to teach.  I have just one nagging hesitation.  Time.  Where will I find the time to do everything I do now, PLUS work full time and have homework!?  UVEI estimates 2-3hrs of work each evening.  As it is I'm exhausted at the end of each day.  I think the obvious answer is that I won't find the time to do everything.  Not even close.  It will be a matter of delegating to a very kind husband and two helpful (hopefully!) children.  It will be a matter of stepping back, letting go, ignoring what doesn't get done, and trying to focus on the important things.  At times it sounds scary to me!

Then I read the welcome emails from others attending UVEI this fall.  People with more kids than me, people with younger kids, people who are moving, people who are divorcing, people who are marrying (one week into the UVEI program!), people with their own lives and their own busy schedules.  All coming together to face this challenge and step onto a new path in life.  I read their emails and I feel motivated!  If they can do it, I can do it, and likely we will all struggle with similar things.

Learning together...

http://files.sharenator.com/06_education-s750x600-35448.jpg

... and keeping each other awake!

Something to keep in mind...

"The mind is not a vessel to be filled, but a fire to be kindled."
- Plutarch

Thursday, August 08, 2013

Back to school shopping

The kids and I did a little back to school shopping today.  It made me sad to think that I won't be walking them into their classrooms this year on the first day.  I've always enjoyed that part of school.  Saying hi to their teachers and classmates, checking out the room, etc.  I'll miss that this year. 

However, as I was looking at the school supplies I couldn't help feeling excited about the idea of having my own classroom some day!  Fresh school supplies, fresh faces, daily good mornings. 

Changes are coming!

Tuesday, August 06, 2013

Blog reboot!

I read an article today about student teacher as researcher ("Student Teacher as Researcher: Accepting Greater Responsibility for Learning About Teaching" by J. John Loughran, Australian Journal of Eduction, 2004) that talked about the use of anecdotes.  He says the use of anecdotes helps you take ownership and understanding of a situation, and allows you to frame and reframe your practice.  Sure.  Anyway, that got me thinking about blogging, which reminded me of this old blog that's been kicking around.  I'm a stream of conscienceness kinda gal! 

I like to blog.  It's a great way to capture my thoughts and review them later.  It is tidier than scattered notebooks around the house.  I think I'll dust this thing off, rename it (the nursing career never took off :/ ) and give it another go.

This time I begin my journey in education. 

A quick update since my last post in 2006.  Just a few years have gone by.  I've had another baby.  Had a few jobs.  Have a new house.  A new state.

My youngest started kindergarten last year.  I'm always thinking ahead and had started considering the idea of teaching as a possible career choice.  My wise mother suggested substitute teaching as a first step, so I considered that and discussed with friends and dillied and dallied.  One day last fall the principal at school stopped me on the way out and said he'd heard I was interested in subbing.  I said, "Wellll...." He said, "Please?!"  That was about all it took.  I filled out the paperwork, got myself fingerprinted and background checked, and before I knew it I was subbing.  In PE.  Day one.  Welcome to school!

As the year went on I subbed in every grade, every special, many aide positions, and nearly every single classroom.  I was also working a part-time office job at the time and trying to decide which I preferred.  One chilly morning as I was sitting alone in the office I found myself really wishing I was at school.  Really.  I realized that the days fly by at school and the people make me happy.  Even the challenging ones.  Mostly.  There were a few that made me less than happy, but that's bound to be the case in any career.

So I decided teaching would be my path.  After much consideration and consensus (I like to ask around!) I decided to apply at the Upper Valley Educators Institute.  They offer a one year program that results in a certificate and 24 continuing education credits that can be applied towards a Masters degree if I so decide to take that path in the future.  Their program is fairly unique in that it's like an immersion program with most of your time spent in an actual classroom, not taking classes.

This fall I will be a teacher intern in 5th grade, four days a week there and one day a week at the UVEI for special sessions.  During that time I'll have solo teaching days and one solo teaching week where I will be responsible for designing the lesson plans and running the show.

Next spring I'll be a teacher intern in kindergarten at a different school.  Same schedule except this time I'll have more solo days and two weeks of solo teaching.

I'm feeling really confident about the whole thing so far.  I really appreciate my mom's advice to substitute teach first because I feel like I got a lot of the classroom unknowns out of the way already.  I understand how the days go.  Where things are.  What is expected of students at different grade levels and in different classrooms.  I've stood up in front of a class and "taught" (ie: followed the plan left by the teacher).  I've sent kids to the principal's office, I've dealt with fights, I've shared in the excitement over accomplishments, etc.  This upcoming year I can really focus on learning to teach, instead of just being overwhelmed by the new environment.  I will be great.

My one small point of anxiety is just the unknowns of our family routine.  I'm lining up the logistics and hoping all goes well.  I'm also hoping I won't have the 2-3 hours of homework that the UVEI mentions!  That would be a challenge on top of working all day and parenting all night.

Here's to another mid-life (can't quite call it quarter-life like I did before) career shift.  Hi-tech professional. At-home mom, with many little side jobs. Teacher. Bring it on!

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