#10

I have two favorite memories from my semester in the block.

One is a memory of working with a particular student on part of his 6 weeks project for World History class.  When we started the period, he had nothing done.  By the end of the period he had created a beautiful pamphlet that met the requirements of his project.  When he showed it to his group, they were very impressed, and I could see that this particular student was proud of himself.  That was nice.

My second fondest memory occured during my second video teach.  One student in that class had been asleep every time we visited the entire semester.  It was a constant struggle bewtween him and his teacher to keep him awake.  I am not sure if he slept during my lesson because I have yet to master “with-it-ness,” but I do know that when we played tic-tac-toe at the end of class, he answered the most difficult question I had.  He won the game for his group, and I could tell that he was proud as well.

I guess the main thing that I learned from these two experiences is the importance of providing students with the opportunity to succceed.  Hopefully these two guys were motivated a little by their success to keep trying hard.  I plan to set attainable goals for my students without compromising high expectations.  I also plan to praise their successes as much as possible.

#8

This week we spent much of our time talking about assessment.  One thing I remember from high school is test anxiety.  It was a problem for me that I know affected my grades.  I hope I can make tests that do not create undue stress for my students.  I plan to be sure to leave a lot of white space.  This is not something I have ever thought about before, but it makes sense.  I always pay very close attention to formatting, so keeping the columns in line and the test sheet organized should not be a problem.

Another thing I remember from high school is that a number of teachers thought it was fun to try to trick us with their test questions.  I never understood the point of this.  When I give an objective assessment, I plan to ask straight forward questions with straight forward answers.  No curveballs.

#7

This week I did my 15 minute video teach.  Here are some things I learned as a result:

- Next time I am going to write out a much more detailed script.  This time I just had some very broad notes, and I keep remembering things I forgot to say.  A more detailed script will also cut down on the “uh”s and the long pauses.

- Prompting questions before I ask them helps a lot.  For instance, varying the way I want the questions to be answered sort of turns the questioning into a game (this time raise your hand, this time shout it out, this time sit quietly with the answer in your head, etc..).  Also, it keeps the students engaged and minimizes classroom management problems.

- Every lesson needs some sort of closure.  With such limited time, I did not plan a closure activity.  I should have just done a quick think-pair-share at the end.  That could have taken less than a minute.

I’m looking forward to the next video teach so that I can put some of what I have learned into practice.

#4

Description: In my cooperating teacher’s class this week, the students split into groups of 3 or 4 to do some reading and answer some questions.  The topic was Japanese internment camps during WW2.  I sat with one group for about 20 minutes, throughout the entire activity. I helped them read through the material provided and answer the questions that followed.  A couple of the questions came from specific details in the readings and a couple where more open-ended critical thinking questions.  The teacher lead a discussion afterward.

Analysis: I enjoyed working with the group.  The topic was interesting to them, partly because it was a topic they were not familiar with at all.  The reading was short, which made it not too daunting even though it was pretty dense.  The students in the group I worked with had a lot of trouble with the vocabulary, but their teacher was always nearby to provide assistance.  The discussion at the end of the class seemed to be when most students finally started understanding the topic.  Closure must be an essential part of the lesson.

Reflection: I liked this form of group work and plan to use it when I am a teacher.  It was simple and easy to plan, yet engaging and infomative.  One idea I had would be to provide a vocabulary list to accompany the reading.  A vocabulary list would help my students better understand primary sources and also direct their attention to the key points.  The discussion at the end was simple and straight forward.  I plan to do something similar as a teacher, where the students and I simply go over the answers that they came up with.  In my cooperating teacher’s class, this strategy started lots of extra discussion.

#2

Description: On Wednesday, Mr U’s students were finishing their Imperialism projects.  Presentations were scheduled to begin on Thursday.  Some groups were putting the finishing touches on four weeks of work, while other groups were doing the entire project in one day.  I sat down with two students whose assignment from their group was to create a brochure to serve as one aspect of a “trade show” presentation about their chosen country.  They had not started anything yet, but, by the end of the period, they had a completed brochure that really impressed the other group members.

Analysis: I am not really sure if the students that waited until the last day to start really benefited from this project.  There are obviously a few students who do not belong in this type of class.  It doesn’t seem like anybody in the class really learned much about the Imperialism, but I do believe that the students who worked hard on their projects did benefit.  They learned some things about imperialism in general and, more importantly, had the opportunity to practice skills like problem solving, critical thinking, group work and time-management.  Since this particular class is English and History together, these skills are very important to teach.

Reflection: This week I saw first hand the instructive value of projects, and I look forward this semester to learning more about how to best manage them as a teacher.  For instance, in the future, when I assign an extended project to my students, I will have small due dates along the way so that I can track their progress and direction.

Blog Posting #1

Description:  Mr. R, an AHS ESOL teacher, came to speak to our class this week.  He spoke about the benefits of a relationship-based approach to teaching.  He recommended that we discover the social groups in our class and try to pick out the leaders.  Mr. R says he uses this knowledge to exert influence over his classes.  He also recommends that we share our background with our students and ask them to share their’s with us.  Mr. R respects and treats his students like adults.

Analysis:  According to Mr. R, if I identify the leaders of the social groups in my class, I can use those students to help manage the others.  If one group is acting up, I can go to their leader and, assuming I have built rapport with that student, I can ask for his/her help in controlling that group.  Mr. R’s recommendations to share my background with students and to ask them about their’s will, indirectly, motivate them.  If they like me and feel a connection to me, then they will generally want to do a good job for me.

Reflection:  This semester, one of my main goals will be to get as much practice as possible at building relationships with students.  I will also hold on to all of the fun activities that Dr. B has introduced to us.  These activities will aid me in getting to know my students quickly, while also allowing them to get to know me.  I am not sure how much time I will spend trying to pick out the leaders of the various social groups in my class.  My goal instead will be to try to connect with all of my students and to motivate them myself.