Week 16

One more week to go! Scary thought. This was my student's last week of working at their job sites for the school year (unless they are competitively employed). We finished up the start to their career portfolios and my cooperating teacher went out and got the students these neat file folders with tables and extra pockets in them to organize their portfolios. We labeled the tabs for their resume, skills, and work samples. I was happy to hear a few students share how they would bring this and use it in an interview.

On Friday, I took 2 students to Walmart to pick up six $50 gift cards to send to the victims of the tornado in Fairdale, IL. We also had a movie day and spent a lot of time outdoors. During this time, I had a student approach me with anxieties about his track meet on Saturday. It was awesome to know that my students trust me, and value my advice and counsel. Helping students one-on-one is one of the most rewarding parts of student teaching to me.

Next week we are going on 2 field trips, cooking nachos for Cinco de Mayo, and making an order of 50 chocolate star suckers. It will be a busy and fun week! I hope to visit a few other pod levels in the building as well, to get a feel of how some other classes are ran.

Schmidt Chapter 12

Being a lifelong learner is not only one of my personal goals, but an aspiration I have for each of my future students. It is my goal to see my students fall in love with learning. Personally, being a lifelong learner means participating in professional development, collaboration, reading teacher blogs, educational research & children's literature, using new technologies, and possibly furthering my education formally. One thing I have heard from my cooperating teachers is that I should take a student teacher as soon as I am able and willing because you will learn as much from them as they learn from you. This was also a suggestion that Schmidt mentioned as well.

Week 15

This week I taught full-time (with the exception of my cooperating teacher's cartooning club on Friday afternoon). We are working diligently on making career portfolios for each student so that when they leave the transition program, they have a record of all their accomplishments, skills, resumes, work samples, references, etc. so that when they go to get a job, they already have a portfolio set up for interviews. Having a portfolio is something I think that is very important for my students and something I can relate to them with since I, too, am in the process of creating a portfolio. Next week I hope to at least show a few interested students how to make their portfolios digital.

This week I had two students receive in-school lunch detentions in my class. One student seemed to have a bad case of the "Monday's" and not only would not participate but exclaimed his hatred for the class etc. Another student not only did not participate and call me a "worthless pretend teacher" but also walked out of the classroom! I was feeling a bit discouraged but tried to not take it to heart. On Thursday, the first student ended up telling me that I was a wonderful teacher and he was beaming all class, and on Friday, I was able to connect with the second student in the lunchroom to check-in and say hi. It seems to me that they both have quick rebound rates because on Monday and Tuesday I was the WORST! Yet, later in the week, I am a WONDERFUL teacher. This was a good lesson for me to learn. I will not always be my student's favorite person. Sometimes I will push them out of their comfort zones and they won't like it! But that doesn't mean I am a terrible teacher. Maybe it's just not their day. Maybe it's just not mine! I will always continue to grow and I am thankful for my students and the learning opportunities they provide me with.

On Wednesday, the student's had a half-day in which they either went to the Sportsplex to play basketball or they stayed on campus to Zumba! I stayed and did Zumba with a bunch of students and staff. It was such a fun time! The students didn't want it to stop. They actually requested songs after the instructor had finished and she gave them an encore. It was a blast! After the students left, the teachers had meetings. I was in a meeting of the certified staff for pod 4. The meeting was filled with opportunities to collaborate about staff meetings, case reviews, and the student handbook. I volunteered as the note-taker during the meeting. Standard 8B says that the competent teacher, “understands the collaborative process and the skills necessary to initiate and carry out that process”.  I definitely put this standard to use during this SIP day.

Schmidt Chapter 7

 

Chapter 7 talks about community in the classroom. The idea of community-based learning is something I enjoy and I plan on using some of Schmidt’s ideas in my classroom. Allowing the students to have more choice in their learning leads to them having more ownership of what they have learned. It gives them more responsibility and let's them participate in more self-discovery. When my students are in the "real-world" a lot of the problem solving activities they will encounter will involve active, community-based learning experiences so it is good to expose them to this often and early on.

I have been planning a community-based field trip. This field trip is to the Chicago Pedway. When we are there we will be completing a Scavenger Hunt. This way I am guiding the students towards what I want them to learn about and notice in the Pedway, but it is still up to them to discover it on their own and to use their problem solving and team work skills. They will have to navigate a map, document their progress, and stick together as a team. My vocational classroom is very project/community based. We do many field trips and many projects with our business Savory & Sweet. I am excited for the next two weeks and all the fun trips and activities we have planned. I love getting the students out in the community as much as possible.

Week 14

My spring break went by very quickly but then I got food poisoning and missed my first 2 days back! It was terrible but I was able to plan for the week even though I was unable to be there the first 2 days to actually teach. On Wednesday I learned all about the "red bin" activities. The "red bins" are filled with norm referenced tasks that the students are timed on. The two activities we worked on were screwing in nuts and bolts and packing dice into boxes. These were both tedious tasks that required a lot of attention to detail and fine motor skills. The students are timed and try to beat their own times to show progress. We had 3 students beat the norm times so we are having pizza for them as a reward (the school is a PBIS school). When the students finish doing the tasks at least 2 times, we chart their progress on excel to show their progress. These charts will be put in their portfolios as a work sample.

The student portfolios are something that I am taking over as my teaching project for my 2 full time teaching weeks. I have adapted a career exploration and transferable skills packet into a "developing your portfolio packet." I am really excited to help these students develop portfolios that they can take to future job interviews to "show off" their skills and accomplishments. On Thursday I introduced this project to the students and we discussed everything that goes into a portfolio including the differences between references and recommendations (and why our family members cannot be one or write one for us).

On Friday, we had "Float Away Friday" to raise money to send to the victims of the tornado in Fairdale, IL.  We made coca cola, orange soda, and root beer floats all during lunch. We also sold a few cookies we made that morning. We made over $234 to send in Walmart gift cards to help the victims. I was really proud of how generous the students were. We sold over 100 floats! It was a success. The students were able to practice many skills like cooking, money management, making change, setting up displays, customer service, etc.

I am looking forward to this next week. We have a fitness day coming up on Wednesday and clubs again on Friday- which I always look forward to. My cooperating teacher runs the cartooning club and one of our students who is in the club has cerebral palsy and I am so impressed by his determination and his ability to preserve and draw! He is doing an awesome job! All of our students are. My time here really is flying by and I am sure these next three weeks will as well. We are also looking forward to a field trip to the Chicago Pedway which I was able to plan this week and write a request for! I am hoping to hear by this week whether or not we will have transportation provided. I hope to continue to grow in the area of 3I in the Illinois Professional Teaching Standards. Creating short-term and long-term plans to achieve the expectations for student learning.
 

Week 13

Week 13 flew by. We prepped candy on Monday, I was sick on Tuesday, had the candy sale on Wednesday, I was observed on Thursday, and we were off on Friday. So, it really was a short week, packed full with activities. The candy sale went better than expected. I wasn't sure we would sell everything we made in the 3 hours allotted. Instead, we SOLD OUT in about an hour and a half. I was so proud of my students! They did a great job setting up shop, running the cash register, and packing up people's treats.

Thursday we balanced all the spreadsheets, "paid our bills," and talked about profit and if the sale was worth it! They decided it was worth it and that we should do it again next year. Between the potato lunch and the candy sale, the students have raised close to $400 for a new basketball hoop for the Transition program.

On Thursday before break, I was pleasantly surprised to receive a few hugs from students as well as a few "miss you's". I am eager to get back into the swing of things next week and to finish up my 4 weeks there!! I will be very sad to leave such wonderful people and a wonderful place.

Schmidt Chapter Ten

Social Justice is important because every person should have a right to an education. Not just any education either, but a fair education by highly qualified teachers. I also think it is important to educate students about social justice. Social justice applies to all areas of life and students need to learn how to discern what is unjust in the world and be motivated to make a change. One way to create global citizens that was mentioned in the text was to read books about kids making a difference. This motivates students to also make a difference.

At the transition program, each morning we read the newspaper. I think this is a great way to show and discuss social justice going on in our town and the greater world. As a Christian, I know that I am called to be Jesus' hands and feet and to be just.

 

Week 12

This week in transition was dedicated to getting ready for the Bunny Hop Shoppe! The transition program, Pod 4, vocational class runs a business called Savory & Sweet. Pod 4's goal is to raise enough money to purchase the transition program a new basketball hoop. The Bunny Hop Shoppe is an Easter candy fundraiser for the basketball hoop! We spent all week making chocolate candies including:

• marshmallow peeps dipped in chocolate
• pretzels dipped in chocolate and sprinkles
• bunny sucker molds with candy eyes
• miscellaneous chocolate molds
• lemon, white chocolate candy deviled eggs
• citrus bark and peanut butter toffee bark

The students made a spreadsheet for inventory as well as for costs and profit. The students learned all about gross and net income, profit margins, etc. They also gained so many cooking and job skills through working in the kitchen. In all, I think we are estimated to make around $100!

We also watched a video and discussed how to have a positive attitude at work, show self-discipline, and give good customer service. The students had many great connection. For example, one student works at a nursing home and was able to share how important a positive attitude is at his jobsite. This lesson was also important as we just had a student fired from a job and we were able to come up with ways that we can show self discipline on the job and what future employers are looking for. We also discussed the importance of being professional on social media. Once something is posted on the internet, it never really disappears. I think that this is something really important for the students to know. I hope to teach a lesson on social media and the work place in the future.

I have noticed a few students that don't really respect me because I am young. One in particular always compares me to his other transition teachers. I keep reminding him that I am not those other teachers and that I am still learning, but sometimes it can be discouraging. My cooperating teacher has complimented the way many students are responding positively to my calm nature in the classroom but there are 2 or 3 who I think do not. Next week I hope to see how our interactions progress and that they hopefully will improve!

I have seen myself grow in the area of justice in diversity. The transition program is filled with students of all different ability levels, as well as cultural backgrounds. Being there has opened my eyes to a world of diversity I have never experienced in such a saturated amount. It is making me more passionate about helping my students understand what makes them who they are and making them aware of their abilities. It is also making me more passionate about informing others and spreading awareness.

Week 11

This may be week 11 of student teaching, but it is week 1 of my special ed placement at a transition program! I am now working with 18-22 year old individuals with disabilities. It has been quite the transition....get it? Although I truly miss all my 5th graders, I have really loved my first week in the transition program. I am in pod 4 which is the highest functioning pod and I am in the vocational room teaching job skills. I will be teaching 3 classes each day. The students in pod 4 are grouped by ability level into 3 groups- A,B, and C. The day consists of:

30 mins of homeroom
1 hour of class
1 hour of class
30 mins for lunch
1 hour of class
1 hour of class
30 mins of homeroom

The three classes rotate so that each teacher gets one full hour of plan time each day. There are four class times but only three groups of students so that fourth class is used as the plan time.  Friday is used for adaptive PE and electives. My cooperating teacher teaches a cartoon elective. Many students are in and out throughout the day because of employment or classes at community college. Sometimes I have 9 students, sometimes 2.

My second day at the program, I was thrown in head first! Tuesday was baked potato lunch day, a fundraiser to help the class buy a basketball hoop. The vocational class runs an in-house business named Savory & Sweet. This business makes lots of food goods and sells them for profit. It not only teaches business skills, but also cooking skills and creativity. My cooperating teacher was scheduled for a meeting at 10:00 and the lunch started at 11:00 so I had to basically run the set up of the lunch! My cooperating teacher was very impressed with my ability to jump right in, but when you are with such awesome students, it is really no big deal at all.

I am sometimes intimidated by the fact that most of my students are my age, if not older than me. I try to turn it into an advantage by being able to related to my students on a more personal level, while still maintaining an authority. I do think they all respect me but I definitely see that some recognize how young I am and view me more as a student or friend. It is a tough balance that I am hoping to master.

Another thing I want to work on and grow in is my intuitiveness with students when they are struggling. For example, in one of my classes, I have a student who has Tourette's syndrome and what seems to be a short temper. Together, these things can result in some fiery situations with explicit gestures and language. I tried to calm the situation by talking the student through what was upsetting him, but it did not seem to be working. Eventually the cooperating teacher was very firm with him and basically told him to "knock it off- or else." This worked much better. I am eager to continue learning more about each of my students and what makes them tick as well as what calms them down and gets a hold of the situation at hand.

Week 10

I am horrible at goodbyes. Most of the time I just ignore the fact that they are happening. This was no exception. My whole student teaching placement seemed to have flown by and I completely ignored the fact that I would have to leave until week 10. Once week 10 arrived, I got extremely sentimental and very sad to be leaving. I have loved every second of my 5th grade student teaching experience and I had a great time getting to know each of my students. As my last day approached, I wrote each of my students a note. I wrote the same thing for each student but made sure to add one special sentence that pointed out something I enjoyed about them in class...for example, their love of reading or excellence in writing or passion for sports. It was a great way to reflect on my time there and on each of my students.

Most of the week we spent a lot of time in preparation for the PARCC test. I was sad to see the students getting burnt out and anxious from the tutorials and practice tests but my cooperating teacher and I gave lots of pep talks about doing their best and were able to share some tips and opinions of the fourth graders who were currently testing.

On Monday, my principal observed me teach a social studies lesson on slavery. It was the third of a three lesson unit on slavery. The first lesson was about West Africa and the dilemmas West Africans faced and how they were stolen and traded into slavery. Next, was a lesson about the Middle Passage and the terrible treatment of the West Africans as they were taken to America. Finally, was a lesson about arriving in North America and becoming a slave. We talked about slave auctions and "scrambles" as well as plantations, overseers, and how the slaves responded. Many slaves tried to do their best in hopes of winning the overseer's favor and becoming a house salve, but some protested by faking sickness or breaking tool, and some brave slaves ran away- risking what would happen to them if they were caught. We had a very involved discussion about the dilemma the slaves faced and they had to decide with a group what they thought they would do. I was able to show the students some pictures of my trip to Zanzibar where I saw a slave auction building, now renovated into a church. The students loved seeing pictures of what they were learning about and I think it really affected a lot of them to see what it was actually like for the Africans when they were being sold into slavery.

On Friday, I met with my principal to discuss the lesson and also to have a mock interview. I was encouraged to hear that he enjoyed the lesson and I appreciated the advice he had for me. He suggested always having the students summarize back to me what the main ideas of the lesson were in their own words. What a quick and simple way to assess their learning. I will definitely be using an exit slip at the end of lessons to see if my students can summarize what they learned in their own words instead of just repeating the purpose of the lesson for them at the end of a lesson. The mock interview went very well. I was very appreciative that he took the time to do this with me because it gave me practice for future interviews and he responded after each of my answers with advice on how to make them even better. He is very knowledgeable on research based practices and explained to me why my answers were researched based or what other research based practices I could refer to. Overall, this conversation was a great experience for me!

After my interview with the principal, I return to my class to find a SURPRISE PARTY!!! (Not to mention my cooperating teacher had already surprised me with a "Good Luck" cake at lunch!) Some of my students had chipped in to purchase me gifts off of my wedding registry including a beautiful frame and wall art. My cooperating teacher also purchased me some beautiful pillows and a storage bin. As well as a ton of awesome teacher supplies from Lakeshore!!! It was so unexpected and so incredibly kind of them. Other students got me some very nice gifts and wrote me some heartfelt cards. Best of all was an advice book from the class. Each student and my cooperating teacher took the time to write me a letter with kind words and advice. It also had each of the student's yearbook pictures and some whole-class pictures we had taken the day before! I LOVED IT! I felt so loved and I will truly miss each of them.

My next placement is at a transition program with 18-22 year olds. It is definitely going to be an adjustment, but I am excited! Student teaching is truly flying by!

Classroom Confidential Chapter 16

 

Throughout my last 10 weeks teaching 5th grade, I have taught a literacy block each morning in which writing is the focus. During the block I would typically give a mini-lesson on things like determining importance or effective endings or figurative language. Then, the students would work on their writing assignments and I would conference with them. One of the major projects this quarter was writing a research paper. I definitely saw some students find their niche in writing as well as others who struggled along and had a hard time ever starting their writing. I enjoyed reading the strategies that Schmidt talked about to help students become better writers. In particular, I really liked the brainstorming ideas strategy called "Empty Your Head." I think my 5th graders would have gotten a kick out of this activities name and I think it would have helped a lot of them kick start the writing process and starting their writing. This activity has student jot down every word or phrase that comes to mind when thinking about a certain topic. I think this would have worked nicely with the research paper as well because it would've helped the students organize and see everything they already knew about their topic. My next placement is at a transition program in a vocational room so I am not sure how much writing we will be doing but I would love to try and incorporate this brainstorming activity into my next placement as well as a few other of Schmidt's ideas. I think that being able to write and enjoy writing is something so important to making life-long learners and I hope to foster a classroom of writing lovers!

Week 9

WEEK 9?!? Student teaching has flown by! I cannot believe that next week is my last at my placement, especially since I was there all last semester as well. I have gotten choked up more than once thinking about leaving my students there and the community in which I have come to feel so comfortable and seen myself grow in so much. Although I am sad, I am also excited to enter into my special education student teaching placement. This past week was exaushting. It was edTPA "boot camp" week so I spent 15 hours working on the edTPA in addition to teaching, being observed by the principal, and acting as 'sub' for Friday. Although I feel like I got a lot accomplished this week, I know that I have a lot more to do before I am finished.

On Wednesday this week, all of the fifth grade students went on a field trip to Robert Crown. While at Robert Crown, the students are educated on the ways in which their bodies will change during puberty, as well as some sex education and the birthing process. I was completely impressed with how maturely my students handled these delicate and somewhat awkward subjects and words they may have never heard of before. I really enjoyed this day because I remember going to Robert Crown as a fifth grader and it neat to see how far I have come from that day and to be in the teacher position after all those years.

On Friday, my principal observed me teach a Social Studies lesson on slavery. This was one of my favorite lessons! We talked a lot about dilemmas and making tough choices and how finding out the outcome could make us want to go back and choose a different option. This day, we were learning about what life was like for enslaved Africans living on plantations. We had already gone over how West Africans were captured and sold into slavery as trade for guns and other goods, the Middle Passage, and slave auctions. After learning about plantations they students were faced with the dilemma of how they would respond to the unfair treatment. Would they protest by breaking tools, faking sick, and passing secret messages through song? Would they run away even though they may get caught and severely punished? Or would they try their best to earn favor with the overseer in hopes of becoming a house servant?

As they were discussing the dilemma with their groups, I had them stand and pretend to be plowing a field and whisper quietly to their group so that the overseer wouldn't hear their plan. I think that this helped them sympathize with the slaves and imagine what it would be like to stand in that position for 16 hours a day. I also was able to show them pictures of my trip to Tanzania in which I was able to see a slave auction building and where they kept Africans before the auctions. The students were deeply moved by these pictures and I think that it helped them visualize what it was really like for these people. Overall, I thought the lesson fostered deep discussions and I was proud of the students for making connections to other things we have discussed like the Civil War and the Civil Rights Movement.

Friday was also interesting because my cooperating teacher was not their. She will also be absent on Monday. This was an awesome opportunity for me to see what it would be like to be completely on my own with the students. (The substitute was in the back of the room for any emergencies and to help me when needed). I am looking forward to Monday as well as the rest of this last week!!

Week 8

Week 8 was exhausting but rewarding! This was the first week in which I was extremely exhausted. By Thursday, it really felt like Friday to me. I think that it felt this way because my 5th graders were really keeping me on my toes this week! In Math, we continued learning about decimals and I continued to alter my lessons based on their need for more review. I also taped every day this week for the edTPA during math, and I had my final observation (also during math). Overall, it was quite a busy week! My observations are always so encouraging and I was so thrilled to hear I am ready for my own classroom. I think that the year-long placement has prepared me so well for teaching and I am getting really excited!

My favorite math lesson this week was on Friday. On Friday, the students were completely exhausted as well. I could tell as I started the lesson that they were wiped out and basically staring into space. I decided to stop the lesson and do a brain break. I had three students come up to the ELMO and choose a brain break activity that I was projecting. We shook, and bowed, and yelled Yes! Yes! Yes! These things seem simple and goofy, but it energized them and got them to focus again. Next, I decided that the students needed more review of place value. Towards the end of the lesson I could see the students finally starting to "get it." I asked them if 0.4 is the same as 0.400 and at first they were all going to say 0.400 is bigger, but then one by one they all seemed to get it and exclaimed, "Ohhhhhh!!!"

This week my students finished their colony iMovies. They turned out fabulous! We spent time on Friday to watch them and I was very impressed. They will all be posted on the S.S. colonial mission website so that they can watch not only their classmates videos but the videos from the other classes as well. I am in the process of grading them and I think that it was a great authentic assessment. I am also working on grading my student's research papers. I have been doing a lot more grading lately and have seen myself growing in the areas of the professional teaching standard 7M "maintains useful and accurate records of student work and performance."

I am looking forward to this upcoming week for a few reasons. We are practicing PARCC more and I really enjoy doing that because I like making sure that my students will be as prepared as possible for this test that is going to be very challenging for them. On Wednesday, we will be going to Robert Crown on a field trip! I remember going to Robert Crown when I was in 5th grade so it will be interesting to go again as a teacher. On Friday, my cooperating teacher will not be at school, so I will be the "head-honcho." I am pretty excited to see how that will go and if they students will still respect me and be as well behaved if she is not in the room. I am almost done with my 20 consecutive days so finishing them by basically being the "substitute" will be a fun ending. I am getting quite sentimental about leaving, but I will leave that for another post.


 

Week 7

This was was....well, Short! We did not have school on Monday for President's Day, and then Tuesday was a SIP day which I really enjoyed because I learned a lot more about PARCC and was able to get familiar with the test layout, the accessibility features available in it as well as take some practice test. I do not feel like my students will do well on the PARCC test because I do not think that the curriculum has prepared them for a lot of things they are being required to do. Even though it is based on the CCSS, I do not think that the students have been prepared enough with what they are expected to do. I am disappointed because I know my students are smart and will work hard, but their scores may not best reflect their intelligence or intentions.

Wednesday we did have school and it went well. Thursday we did not have school because of the extremely cold weather, and then Friday we had school once more for the week. I have learned to become very flexible in my planning as well as learning to pick out the essentials and what my students really must master to succeed in 6th grade vs. everything I WANT to get through.

This week we spent a lot of time trying to wrap up their informational writings as well as their SS iMovies. I am so excited to read and grade their papers and to watch their trailers. The students were working together a lot these 2 days and I was able to praise them for their group work and for pushing themselves to finish up some lengthy projects. We all applauded one another as they turned in their assignments because it was a BIG accomplishment. I had the students print 2 copies of their papers so that I could hang one copy in the hall on display and the other set I took home to grade. I can tell the students feel proud when they see their work displayed outside of the classroom.

In math, we started learning about decimals. I was told that the students should have a lot of background in this subject because they did decimals in 4th graded in relation to money, but surprisingly, the students did not remember much. I spent these first 2 days doing a lot of review and a lot of small group instruction going over the basics of decimals- i.e. place value, how to read decimals, that .1 is the same as .10, etc. I am excited to push them further and to record my edTPA lessons this upcoming week. Introducing decimals has really pushed me to grow in the professional teaching standard of 2G in which the competent teacher understands the theory behind providing support to promote learning when concepts and skills are first being introduced.
 
Classroom Confidential:

Chapters 8 and 9 of “Classroom Confidential” focus on teaching Social Studies and the Arts. Most of my students LOVE art and HATE history. "History is so boring." is something I frequently hear. I had hoped that the movie project in SS was something that would bring history alive for my students so I am eager to see how they turn out and hear their responses. Schmidt gives many more ideas for how to engage students more in history. Immersion is the approach to teaching history that I have experienced as being the most effective and the way in which I hope to teach SS in the future. The immersion method that Schmidt talks about means bringing history to life by actually having the students experience it for themselves. This could include but is not limited to going on field trips, bringing outside experts, cooking the cultural or time period's food and studying and making their clothing or other real-life products used by who you are studying.

I recently took an entire class on integrating the arts into the classroom. I specifically studied how to integrate drama into the classroom and I think that Schmidt is onto something big when he suggests the use of movement into the classroom. As I have mentioned in other blog posts, my students LOVE stations and they always express their love of moving around the classroom. They abhor being stationary for too long and I am constantly trying to get them up and moving in the classroom to continue their engagement in lessons. Another art that is fun to incorporate into the classroom is music. During a POV lesson, I played a point of view rap and the students loved it! Not only that, but they were able to memorize the lyrics to the song which also in turn helped them to memorize the points of view.
 

Week 6

This week went by so quickly! In fact, all of student teaching seems to be flying by. This week we finally wrapped up fractions. I think my students were as ready for that as I was. We did lots of review in preparation for their fraction test on Friday. On Monday we just did a general review of multiplying, dividing, adding, and subtracting fractions and then finished up some word problems I had had them paste into their word problem spirals. Then, on Tuesday we played the fly swatter game. The math specialist brought in giant fly swatters and I posted possible answers on the board. I split the class into two teams, posed division problems to them and their team representative had to hit the correct answer on the board once they saw everyone on their team had the correct answer. If they got it correct, the representative had to teach the class how their group got their answer. It was a fun game and the beset part was seeing each student be able to defend how they got their answers at the end of the game. On Wednesday and Thursday we played a Jeopardy game that I made on a website. The game included multiplication and division problems as well as one simplifying final question. Their test was on Friday and I was for the most part pleasantly surprised by their grades. I gave many meets for the standards included.

A link to the jeopardy game I made: https://www.superteachertools.net/jeopardyx/jeopardy-review-game.php?gamefile=1423449463#.VNgjP2M5BMs

This week I started teaching Science. I started the pulley system unit. It was not as difficult as I thought it might be. I follow a set curriculum for this so it is not too hard to figure out what to say for my explanations and I follow the investigation packet guide to instruct them in their investigations. This week they learned how to set up a single fixed and a single moveable pulley. I think they are really loving how hands on science is. We started to really get far in the Social Studies projects. I cannot wait to see their final trailers for their colonies. They are really getting into making catchy slogans to convince me to time travel to their colony. My favorite so far is "Stop, Drop, Plant Crops!"

For Literacy, they are finishing up their research/informational papers. I cannot wait to read these! I think the best part about that assignment is that they wrote about things they love so I am learning a lot about them through my conferences with them about their writing. We also read William Joyce's Autobiography in their Harcourt text and I have been reading supplemental texts by William Joyce that my cooperating teacher rented from her library. I think that the students really enjoy him as an author and are inspired by him for their young author writings. One thing that really excited them about William Joyce is that he wrote Rolie Polie Olie- which was on the Disney Chanel- so they were already familiar with his work.

We also had a fire drill this week, yearbook pictures, and a Valentine's Day party (which included a blow up obstacle course in the gym) so this week was a little crazy, but a whole lot of fun! I do have 2 students who are really annoying each other and starting to bully one another and then tattling immediately after so I did have to have some stern conversations with them. These two boys give me a run for my money sometimes. One of them lies to me constantly and I have to balance giving him trust and pushing him to tell me things honestly. The other cries easily so I have to balance being stern and yet comforting all at once. They both use inappropriate language quite frequently and I have a hard time disciplining for that when I know the sort of environments they grow up in and how they have that modeled to them on a regular basis. A lot of times I struggle with discipline because I don't always feel like it is my place. Yet, I know they are not getting it at home and I must be that loving disciplinary figure in their lives. It is a battle for me, but I am getting lots of practice!

Next week is a short week because of President's Day and a SIP day, so I do not have a lot to plan, but I am excited to start the decimals unit in math (although nervous because it is a tough area of math for me). I plan on making standard 2I my goal. I don't have a text to follow for decimals and they can be confusing to me so I need to really take time in evaluating teaching resources and materials for appropriateness as related to curricular content and the student's needs. I cannot be comfortable teaching something until I am comfortable with the material. I am fortunate to have an awesome cooperating teacher who took extra time on Friday to help me with some of my explanations of decimals. It is a tricky concept to explain and I am glad I have her years of experience in explaining them to support me as I try it out for the first time!
 

Week 5

This 5th week of student teaching was my first week being the full-time teacher in the classroom. I think it went well! There was one student who had some argumentative behaviors with me on Wednesday but he was fine the rest of the week. I had this big speech prepared for him on Thursday but I could tell he was in a much better mood and I realized that he really just had one bad day so I did not want to bring it up until it happens again. If it does happen again though, I will address it immediately because he needs to respect me the way he would any other full time teacher in the classroom. One other issue was a particular student who was not focusing during instructions. He would immediately raise his hand confused about what was going on and was talking a lot when I was giving directions. I had a talk with him about it and how he needs to listen for directions because he is taking away from his classmates work time when I have to repeat everything multiple times for him. Also, this is a newish behavior I've noticed so I am not sure what is causing it. He decided to make it his goal for next week to pay attention to directions and try to ask a neighbor before disrupting the class and asking me. I am really hopeful that these two students will have an awesome week this upcoming week.

Other than those two behavior problems, I thought that the week went smoothly. We had Monday off due to the snow so I did need to adjust a lot of my lessons and the schedule so that I could fit everything I needed to in and I ended up moving some things to next week. This was good practice for me in adjusting schedules and determining the important materials that need to be covered verses the things that can be put off. Speaking of determining importance, we worked on this a lot during literacy and will be throughout the month. I did a few fun activities with the students in which I read passages from trade books and they had to determine the important parts of what they read. I also brought in a "magic bag" which had about 6 or 7 items in it and the students had to decide which were most important to bring if I were going to the gym after work. For example, I would need the water bottle but not the nail polish. They also had to support their decisions by explaining why or why not it was important to bring. My students are writing research papers and this idea of determining the important things has been helpful in their research and deciding what they need to include in their papers.

In Math we have been continuing our work with fractions. The final standard dealing with fractions is being able to divide a unit fraction and a whole number. It has been going really well. My RtI students have been excelling with multiplying and dividing fractions and I can tell their attitudes about math are up this week based on their performance. I plan on testing them next week on multiplying and dividing fractions before moving onto decimals. In Social Studies we are doing a "Top Secret Mission" in which an agency has discovered time travel and the students have been put into research groups in which they must make a trailer on IMovie to convince the agency to time travel back to their colony. The students are really into it and I think they really enjoy using technology- it makes Social Studies less "boring" to them. In Science we are about to begin a unit on pulleys. I have never taught Science to them yet, so I am eager to see how it goes! The curriculum really spells out everything I need to do and the students love the investigations so I am excited.

The highlight of my week was when the students voted on their top three moments of 5th grade in room 127 to put into the year book and "Miss Bordenaro coming to our class" was one of the winning moments. I was so touched. I can't believe I have only 5 weeks left! I am half way done!

Schmidt Chapter 11

Chapter 11 of Schmidt is all about communication. Cross cultural communication is something that can potentially play a huge role in communicating with parents if they are from an unfamiliar culture than you. Even paraprofessionals or other coworkers that you work with may be of a different culture than you. Communication is an area that I feel teachers can always be improving in.

Thankfully, at Trinity I have had a lot of instruction on communication. We have had many discussions and role play opportunities for how to communicate best with those of other cultures than our own. What I have learned about this is that getting a good background knowledge and doing your research is key to cross cultural communication. Another experience I had at Trinity was being able to design a communication plan for communicating with parents and paraprofessionals. What I have learned concerning that is that being proactive is key. Always try to start off on a positive note and do so early on.

The reason that Schmidt talks about for communication being so important is that it is key to getting everyone on the same page and if everyone is on the same page, the child will be benefitted. It is also good to have a positive and comfortable relationship with those connections so that if any problems ever arise, you have already made contact and have built an open line for communication. One tip that I really enjoyed was offering visuals to parents for communication and having the visuals be brief and concise. Bullets, Summaries, Examples, etc.

Week 4

My fourth week of student teaching went wonderfully. I really enjoyed it. I was really proud of the progress I saw my students making this week. I gave assessments in Math and Literacy this week and I was so pleased with the scores. My three lowest performing students received meets with minimal accommodations. There was only one approaching for each test and they were both because of a lot of simple mistakes. We did a lot of work with multiplying fractions and I was happy to see some of my students choosing methods that I taught that worked best for them. I think they are really starting to understand their learning styles and that you can do something in more than one way and still get a correct answer.

This week I was able to sit down with the 2 5th grade teachers and the math specialist to start planning out the next unit- dividing fractions. I really like the way that this school schedules a time each week for math planning with the specialist. I think that she is a wonderful resource and that it is great that everyone is on the same page. I am really looking forward to starting a new project with my students that the other 5th grade teacher planned as part of her masters class. She made a webquest in which the students become experts on a colony in one of the three regions of the 13 original colonies. I worked really hard this week to set up their groups and organize them so that I have fairly mixed ability groups. I also planned so that the people in the groups will mesh well as well as assigning the individuals a role that suits them best. I am really looking forward to seeing how this webquest plays out and how using game based learning effects their retention of the materials.

This week was filled with 5th grade drama. From rumors, to cheating on assignments, to anxiety, to inappropriate language, and name calling...it is easy to say we had a student in tears every day this week. I really learned a lot about how to handle certain situations and how to respond to parents as well as students and administration when sticky and uncomfortable situations arise. Even though it was a stressful week, it was a great one. I learned a lot about standard 4L which states: the competent classroom teacher analyzes the classroom environment and makes decision to enhance mutual respect and positive social relationships.
 
The highlight of my week was intervention time on Thursday during afternoon literacy. I take two tier 2 and one special education student aside and do some extra minutes with them. In these minutes, I monitor the rest of the class to make sure they are working on their reading contracts and then I read an additional story, review vocab, and prompt the students with comprehension questions. During this particular intervention time, I realized that the 3 students could not remember any of their vocabulary words for the test on Friday. I decided to spend most of the intervention time on a study strategy for vocab. I had them each make a flip chart with notebook paper and they wrote the word on one side and drew a picture, wrote a short definition, and a "memory" word on the other to help them study. Each of those students aced their vocab test the next day! WOOHOO! They also were able to draw many connections between the stories we read in class this week. I see these students making leaps and bounds of progress.

Next week, I start teaching the full load!

Schmidt Chapter 2

1. From Schmidt chapter 2 I have learned that eptness means combining capacities and meaningful activity (pg. 24). A classroom with a community of eptness would involve students and teachers working together by learning together. Everyone in the classroom has value and it is important to share ideas with one another and challenge one another to go beyond their current level. Everyone in the class is both a teacher and learner. The teacher is not the only one who brings learning to the table, the students are also more than capable of teaching one another.

Schmidt also refers to behaviors in this chapter. The three behaviors that I can use in my placement are: model being a learner, never too late, and feedback. I would say that modeling is one of my strengths. Sometimes I plan to model in a lesson, but more than not it just happens. I naturally model everything I teach. Something I wish I saw more of is my students modeling learning to one another. I want to see them helping each other out more and much more less of students just copying down something during group times. I want each and every student to understand, not just copy. I understand that sometimes students might learn more and better from a peer than they would from me and I encourage that. I know that I do not know everything and if a peer can explain something better than I can, I am all for it.

Secondly, the behavior "never too late" is a behavior I want to utilize more in my classroom. It is never too late to learn something new or to master a standard. I am so proud of my students when they persevere and rise above a challenge. Lastly, feedback. You can never give too much feedback.  Although, you can give too much vague feedback or useless feedback. This semester I learned that I am queen of "good work" and "great job" feedback on journal responses. I have been pushing myself much harder to have more meaningful and specific feedback in order to help my students continue to learn.

Week 3

This was another strange week since Monday we had off for MLK day and then Tuesday we had an Institute day. The Institute day was good to experience but I was disappointed that a lot of the teachers weren't paying attention during the presentations. I learned about TDQ's (text driven questions) and Close Readings from the reading specialists from the district. I also learned all about the Foutans and Pinnell Benchmark Assessment. On top of hearing some great presentations, I was able to write down a bunch of teacher resources like literacy shed, and receive a bunch of handouts to use in my future classroom. We also worked on writing the grade level SMART goals.

On Wednesday we got a new student! She is extremely bright and made it into the Math Challenge team on her first day! I also went to my first 504 plan meeting this day and it went so well! Everyone was so prepared and it was great to be on such a great planning team in which I could tell the mother felt supported and comforted by the teachers and staff present. I loved that the 6th grade middle school special education teacher was there too to talk about transition into middle school.

On Thursday, I taught a math lesson that was supposed to be a review of equivalent fractions and adding and subtracting fractions in word problems. We had been working on multiplying fractions all week but we were going to have a word problem assessment on Friday so I wanted to review. I was so confused because it seemed like all my students completely forgot the past month we spent learning about equivalent fractions! I assigned some extra review problems for homework and said my prayers that they would not forget tomorrow on the assessment.

On Friday, it was assessment day!! They had a social studies quiz, and a math quiz, and a spelling pre-test! They did awesome. We also did a 3 part activity with the story of the 3 little pigs. First, I read them 3 different versions of the story and we did compare and contrast t-charts. We also did stations in which they noted differences, the point of view, the narrator, and the main characters for each story. Although overall the assessments went well, two of my students who participate the most and who I know knew the material, scored far below the rest. I decided to make a decision to talk to each of them individually about the quiz and they both expressed having anxiety and knowing they did poorly. I decided to pull them out of class during reading contract time and give them an opportunity to redo the parts they missed and earn back half the points so that I could give them a meets for the standard since I knew that they had mastered the skills. I did not want to punish them for one bad performance because of stress.

Overall, it was a great week and I think that I really grew in the areas of professional development and assessments. IPTS standards 9 and 7. Specifically 9A which states, "evaluates best practices and research-based materials against benchmarks within the disciplines."
 
Schmidt Chapter 4

My understanding of culture was changed by my reading of Schmidt in 3 ways. First, on page 77, I was introduced to the perils of color blindness. I cannot count how many times I have heard the phrase "I'm color blind" used in a positive manner to show that a person does not see people's race or cultural differences. In fact, they treat everyone the same, ignoring anything that makes them a unique individual. Through reading this section of the text, I came to a better understanding of why being colorblind is not truly accepting all cultures in the classroom. Instead, we should notice, and celebrate and learn from each other's cultural differences.

Second, I learned that it is better to "keep your eye on the prize" than to use every "mistake" as a teachable moment- especially if they are culturally sensitive ones. Just because a student has a different dialect or a language difference because of their culture, does not mean that every time they do not use proper American English, that you should correct them. Sometimes it is far more beneficial to the student to just respond to them instead of negatively drawing attention to their cultural difference.

Thirdly, I learned that we as teachers must create a culture of inclusion rather than a culture of exclusion. I loved the quote on page 89 that said, "Social equality cannot be attained merely with material resources. Those who have knowledge and education must be ready to share it with those who lack them, for inequality in money and property is not always most tragic. There is an even more crying inequality-- between those who know and those who do not know."  --Golda Meir. I think that that is so perfectly stated. It is quite tragic that there are still those who are not given equal opportunities and are surrounded in exclusive environments.

Schmidt Chapter 3

From reading chapter three in Schmidt, I learned a lot about behavior. I learned about the term accommodators and camouflagers.  My classroom has many accommodators and camouflagers. Accommodators self-accommodate for their disabilities by doing things like looking at what other people are doing before they start working. The accommodator that I am going to reference is also a camouflager. This student of mine was recently diagnosed with ADHD and Generalized Anxiety Disorder. We just had a 504 plan meeting for him recently. These diagnoses flew under the radar at school because he hides his disabilities so well. In fact, he bottles up all day and then has huge explosions at home. The ways in which he hides his disability are through self-coping mechanisms like talking to himself during tests and when copying down the assignment notebook-- both overwhelming tasks for him. He is very good about self-accommodating at school. These coping behaviors can become a distraction to others and he needs to learn to control his behaviors at home by using more coping and relaxation methods there as well. 

Something else that I took away from the Schmidt text were a few reminder to use body language in order to get desired results for a behavior change and to provide supportive redirection. I was reminded that a simple glance or sign language sign could completely stop an undesired behavior in one of my students without causing a huge disruption or embarrassment for the student. I was also reminded on page 60 that my comments should reflect concern for the child. An example she gives is "I know you love to talk to your friends but..." I think that these are good for me to remember to use more often because they are effective and loving ways to help my students become more aware of their behaviors and when they need to alter them.

Week 2

This was my first full week of student teaching. Boy, am I exhausted. On top of teaching full time for the first time, I was helping my fiancé move into our future apartment and was painting and cleaning until 10:00 pm almost every night! Phew, I am glad that is over!

This week I took on Math and Social Studies full time and it was a blast! I learned a lot, planned a lot and then changed things up! Flexibility is something I am becoming better and better at. It seems that you can plan and plan and plan but when it comes down to it, you have to go with the student's pacing and something always seems to come up. No plans are ever really set in stone, and that is OK.

Something I learned this week was a way to teach multiplying fractions. My cooperating teacher is awesome about modeling for me and helping me in any way possible. She taught me the "brownie pan method" and how to explain in a more effective way than I was able to come up with on my own. My cooperating teacher is so experienced and I am just trying to soak up any tips and tricks she has.

This week I worked a lot more with a few of my students who are tier 3 or special education students. My favorite part of teaching is differentiation and explaining concepts and rewording things until my students "get it." I am learning more and more about them daily and how they learn best. One student in particular struggles with her attention span and staying focused. I tried chunking her work and covering up excess materials on the page and this seemed to really help her stay focused on one topic at a time. I think this is a strategy I want to explore more with her.

This week I was able to go to "Data Day." This is where the grade level team meets with the principal and specialist to go over all the special education and RTI student's scores and data. Based on the information given and teacher comments, the team decides if the student is appropriately placed or needs to be moved up or down a tier. At this meeting I learned a lot about quite a few students in my class and how I can better differentiate for them and support them in the classroom.

This week was VERY eventful. My cooperating teacher and I were informed about a situation going on at home with one of my students. The student has begun to act like a baby at home; unable to get themselves ready in the morning and laying around all day instead of playing age appropriate games. This behavior is not evident at school or if a friend is present at home. Another student was recently diagnosed with ADHD and Anxiety and put on a 504 plan. Both of these student's parents came in or are coming in for meetings in which I may get to observe. I am very curious to see how these situations play out and how I can support these students better in the classroom and show them an attitude of Christ-like servant hood.

The most exciting day of the week was Friday! On Friday we rearranged the desks because we are getting a new (highly gifted) student on Wednesday! We also had a TALENT SHOW!!! This was so much fun and I got to learn so much about my students! One student was able to say the alphabet backwards in less than 10 seconds! AMAZING! We also had a comedian, some instrument players, sports card collectors, and artists. It was so great to see all the talents and hobbies my students posses. This is definitely something I want to do in my future classroom.

Week One

Hello! This is my first blog post of my student teaching experience. I will be blogging weekly to update my readers on what's new in my classroom. I am currently student teaching at the same 5th grade classroom in which I completed my novice teaching. This has really made my transition into being a full-time student teacher a smooth one. I am already so comfortable and acclimated to that classroom and those students that I was not really nervous and I have been able to jump right in with teaching lessons and leading small groups. I love that I already know my kids and that I know the policies and management plans for the classroom. I am truly excited for this experience in this classroom of awesome learners.

This week was a hectic but short one. We had TWO snow days! Monday and Tuesday I spent as half-days in the classroom because of student teaching orientation. These days were great for getting back into the swing of things in the classroom. I was proud of myself that I remembered everyone's names since I had been gone for a whole month! It was encouraging to me how excited my 5th graders were to see me again. The days were filled with questions like, "Are you going to be here forever now?" "Can you finally stay a full day and be my real teacher?" Then, there ended up being 2 snow days-- which were quite beneificial to me since I was already asked to teach 2 social studies lessons (which means I have to write two lesson plans).

On Friday, I spent my first full day in the classroom. I was put right to work. I led a math small group, did some individual reading conferences, lots of grading and photocopying, and giving spelling tests and pre-tests. I wish every classroom could have two teachers all the time! I loved handing off the teaching and responsibilities back and forth between my cooperating teacher and myself. Co-teaching is something I am very open to and excited about. On Friday afternoon, my cooperating teacher asked me to take over mathematics full time! This is a huge deal because they don't really have a set math curriculum. There are many resources to pull from, but you kind of have to plan a unit from scratch and play it by ear according to the standard (which is very vague). So, this weekend I planned 2 lessons of many more to come on multiplying fractions. I plan on teaching these first two and seeing how the students are grasping the material before planning any more. I know that this class' pacing can be slow for certain concepts so I do not want to rush it. I really see myself growing in Standard 3** of the IPTS.

**Standard 3 - Planning for Differentiated Instruction – The competent teacher plans and designs instruction based on content area knowledge.

Next week I am looking forward to teaching math and social studies full time and learning more about teacher responsibilities and how to juggle all that they must take care of throughout a week. I am also looking forward to helping at homework help on Tuesday's until 4:45. I think that will be a neat opportunity for me to experience working with a wider range of students and grade levels.

Classroom Confidential-- Schmidt

 

In Classroom Confidential, Schmidt refers to Gardner's multiple intelligences. The two that really struck me were Naturalistic Intelligence and Kinesthetic Intelligence. Naturalistic struck me because while I was reading the description, I was able to picture a few of my students. My class seems to have a love for science, animals, and nature. Anytime we are doing a science experiment or research project, student interest seems to sky rockets. Any writing assignment in which students can pick a topic, 15 out of 23 most likely will choose an animal or nature related topic. Noticing this has encouraged me to incorporate more naturalistic topics and examples into my teaching.

 

Kinesthetic Intelligence struck me because I do notice that my students are stationary for large portions of the day and I know I have a lot of football players and athletic people in my class. We do move around during math and reading for different small groups and conference groups, but there is no real active movements except for every other day in gym class and at recess (which has been indoors lately due to the weather). I have been learning a lot about brain breaks and the importance of movement in the classroom. It might even be beneficial for me to allow students to move around the classroom as I teach. There are plenty of table seats and floor seats for students to move around to that wouldn't be distracting.

 

All of the different intelligences that students have can come together in order to make a "full brain learning" experience for the class. If I am engaging all my different types of learners throughout the day, I am much more likely to fully engage each of their brains, bodies, emotions, etc. I love how Schmidt talks about teaching your learners how to learn. We must discover their learning styles and strengths, play off of those and encourage the whole class to learn in many ways in order to engage the "whole" child and not just the "copy the board and follow directions" child. This isn't easy to accomplish at first, but by teaching them how to learn, life long learners are created and their bull brain learning is fostered throughout the year and hopefully beyond.