Week in Review 3/2 - 3/6 due 3/10
Time for your Week in Review posts.
Entries should be posted no later than the following Tuesday for the previous week.
Please make sure you did the conceptual framework response last week....it looks like a couple people missed posting, as well as addressing the conceptual framework. ;-)
Chris (and Heidi)
posted by Heidi @ 1:01 PM
4 comments
4 Comments:
It was a great week for me. The last 3 days of the week were very successful. I felt like the classes were flowing, students were engaged, and I was getting great reviews from my cooperating teacher.
On Monday and Tuesday I am inviting my principal to observe me for a lesson or two. It is going to be a busy week with Terra Nova testing going on, but I am emailing her with my lesson plan and my PowerPoint’s. Hopefully she can sit in at least for part of a period.
I am trying to get my principal involved because she is a very knowledgeable and experienced educator. I may ask her for a letter of recommendation as well and I would not expect her to write one without having observed my class many times.
I am learning more and more that the amount of time that I put into lesson planning DIRECTLY affects the success of my teaching. Even if I know a lot about the particular subject of the lesson, if I do not put in an adequate amount of time into planning the lesson then I struggle in the classroom.
We took a break from traveling this weekend and it is nice to have the entire weekend to plan this week out (rather then do it the Thurs/Friday night before we leave or Sunday night after we get back).
I finally posted on last week’s prompt on the conceptual framework, so please read my thoughts and respond if you have any thoughts.
Hope you all are well. WE ARE TEACHING IN EUROPE! Life is good, enjoy your days to the fullest!
Hal
My cooperating teacher scheduled me to do some observations with other teachers for a few periods last week. It was a nice break to be in different classrooms for a change. After teaching for a while now I think observations can be done from a new perspective. What I really noticed was how individual every teacher and their classroom was. I feel that I am still trying to find my groove a little bit, figure out the type of teacher I can be that suits my personality. I think my teacher persona needs a little time to develop….and right now it is overshadowed a little by the type of teacher my cooperating teacher is. In any case it was refreshing to see how many different styles there are.
Another thing I noticed was that my students act for their other teachers in similar ways that they act for me. In other words I need to remember that is just the way that freshmen Biology students tend to act and not to take it personally.
Good for you Hal for having you principal come. I had the principal come last week. Mostly it went well, but we did a DNA extraction lab that I had practiced with other classes. Of course it worked well in the other classes and not in the section he came to observe. I agree that it is important to have the principal come, especially if you want to ask for a letter of recommendation. The principal at my school is very nice, but he is still somehow intimidating. He met with me the day after the observation and although he had only mostly good things to say I still found it a little nerve wracking to be critiqued so closely. One thing I have noticed is that when he is in the classroom my students’ suddenly switch to extra good behavior mode. Which is wonderful as it allows me to focus just on teaching.
This week was great for me as well. We did a lot of fun activities and most of my lessons worked out the way I wanted to. We were studying folk tales and I thought the kids might enjoy making up their own. We had a lot of fun writing them all week and on Friday everyone shared their stories. I am getting better at making sure we get all subjects in each day. As much as possible that is. I am just now realizing the strength of the bond between these students and their teachers. They are so caring. Friday we had an interesting discussion on how I am a student like them. They are very respectful of the fact that I am learning with them and I think that is important for the students to make a greater connection with me. We had many students make great progress this week. Everyone celebrated each other’s victories. I think it really makes a difference in the moral of the class if everyone is always supporting each other. The genuinely care for one another. I think this makes anything they learn this year more memorable. I am getting excited for Chris to come and meet all of my great students.
I have invited the principal to come observe me a couple times, but she still hasn’t had a chance to come. Is anyone else having this problem? For most of my applications for next school year I need an eval from her because I don’t have any work experience. I’m not sure what to do if she doesn’t come.
I hope this week is as good as last week. Today the weather is being crazy so I hope this doesn’t rub off on the kids.
Heidi-
I am sorry that this is late! Things have been a bit crazy with TerraNova testing!
Thanks,
Katie
This past week has been a bit hectic. Mrs. Heit and I have been preparing for the TerraNova testing that the third graders will do. She had me do a scavenger hunt through the teacher’s guide to the test. It was a very constructive experience. I was able to see how the test was set up, what the results would show, and know how the teacher’s guide can be a helpful resource. I planned various activities in the afternoon that touched on the topics covered in the test to give my kids a little extra practice. The students are each working on an Animal PowerPoint. It is amazing how much the kids already know about making a PowerPoint. Each selected an animal that they wanted to research and have been looking up information. I have been really working on helping the students create a thorough and correct bibliography, almost all of the students have the concept down. They are all making great progress on their reports and I am glad to see how excited they are about the facts they are discovering, it makes all the work and stress worth it. I have also been working with Mrs. Heit to make sure that I am prepared to take over on the 17th, I think I’m ready. Thankfully she will always be there to help if I need her.
This was officially my last week in the SpEd room since I am taking over Mrs. Heit’s room starting March 17. It is sad to leave but it has been a great experience. I have learned a lot about classroom, as well as, behavior management. I was able to put a lot of the information and techniques that I learned at WSU into practice. The kids have been great and I will stop in occasionally during the next few weeks to see how they are doing.
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