Hopes for Your Own Classroom
At this point, you should be doing the majority of planning and teaching. If coteaching, you should be providing the leadership as you work together as a team. This experience should provide you with an idea of who you are becoming as an educator. Share with each other what you are learning about yourself. What will be the important factors necessary for you to feel successful in your own classroom?
posted by Chris @ 8:55 PM
14 comments
14 Comments:
It has been really fun as I take over all the planning! Last week our unit was owls and bats. It was really cool because owls eat bats! So we got to learn a little bit about the food chain too! For centers, I set up a table where the kids made an owl puppet and a bat craft that used their hand prints for the wings! They were so cute! Another center was writing stories about bats and a bat fact book! They loved the bats and owls! I read them Stellaluna and let them watch the Stellaluna movie and then we compared and contrasted the differences between the two. It was really fun! Two students got done with their centers really early, so I had each of them do a special report on Owls and present it to the class. They loved that and the class liked hearing facts from a different source than the teacher. I have sat down and loosely planned the rest of November and its going to be all about nutrition and letter writing. We are making giant food plates (the new pyramid) and having the students learn the difference between proteins, grains, dairy, etc. They will color and cut out foods and paste them in the correct spots on their giant plates. To go along with nutrition we will be learning about staying fit as well and I am having my Zumba instructor come into the class and teach the kids some dance moves! Cheryl did that last week and the kids loved it in her class so I can’t wait for my kids to get a chance! For Veteran’s Day they are learning how to write letters and then we are going to send letters to soldiers in Afghanistan! Hopefully they enjoy the rest of November as much as they enjoyed bats and owls!
I have learned that when working in centers I have to allow them to talk a little bit. It’s hard for them to work silently for so long. At first I didn’t like letting them talk while working, but now I have found that they work harder. Some of them even sing while working which is even better at keeping them focused. Another thing with centers is that we have to take a short break half way through centers. It’s hard for them to work for such a long solid chunk of time. So at 10 we stop and I read them a book, learn a poem or watch a video. Sometimes we let them have a snack during that time as well. It helps them focus for the second half of center work time.
I think a necessary factor to help me be successful in the classroom is not worrying so much if the lessons do not go exactly as planned or if something unexpected gets thrown at you. Also, I need to make sure to over plan so that I will always have fillers if I need them.
I have learned that I can hardly wait to have my own classroom, although it's a couple years down the road. However, the reason I can't wait is because, as much as I have been enjoying this student teaching experience, I am learning that you will always have your own way of doing things. Sometimes, I feel restrained in student teaching because we need to run the classroom as we would, but with our cooperating teacher's rules, routines, etc. I am really enjoying the experience of this classroom, but there are just things I would do differently than my cooperating teacher does.
I have also learned that as much as I can try to plan every little detail of a lesson, it is NEVER going to go the way I planned it. And many times, it is better that it doesn't go the way you planned it to. I really do try to plan every little detail and every minute, but my plans seem to go out the window before class even starts sometimes. This last week, I think about a quarter of what I had planned went out the window. I had planned some grammar lessons to go with my short story unit that I started on Monday, but the grammar lessons I had planned couldn't happen because the grammar lessons that needed to be before those grammar lessons did not happen since I was out of school sick for a week. So the students didn't have the prior knowledge that they needed to complete those lessons, but I think it was better because I realized just how much I had planned for the short story unit, and with that unit being for my TPA, I need to be able to cover it all by the end of next week. I'll do the grammar lessons later, I guess.
I am also learning that I need to be quick on my feet. I need to know how I want the students to respond to a question I ask, as well as the various responses that they could give so that I can be prepared to give them an answer immediately. I have to be able to give the students a response as quick as possible...there should be hardly any lag time there, and that has been something that I have been working on throughout the entire semester. It's gotten much better.
I have also learned that I am going to want a lot of varied instruction in my classroom, meaning that I want there to be a balanced amount of whole class discussion, small group discussions, individual work, sharing time, etc. I want to be able to find ways to vary the instruction so that the students aren't bored and so that I'm not bored, too. This experience has definitely shown me that there needs to be that varied instruction and that I want there to be that varied instruction.
Again, I can hardly wait to have my own classroom. I will definitely run things differently, such as rules and routines, than they are being run right now, but that really isn't what is important right now either. It's definitely good to get a grasp for what rules and routines I might want to have in my classroom, but what is really important is that I am learning how to become the teacher that I have always strived to be.
Doing first grade with Danielle has been really nice for me. I have never observed at the primary level, so it’s been nice to see the flow of her classroom. I also really like that she uses centers. It’s been great for me to learn to use centers because I think that they work really well with the needs, interests, and attention span of the first graders. However, we only use the centers for our literacy time. If I end up in the primary grades I would like to try to use centers during math as well. Not only do the centers keep the kids engaged better, they also help to differentiate instruction because kids are still practicing the focus skills, but at their pace and levels. It also allows you to pull smaller groups for differentiated instruction because all the kids are engaged in another task. The games in the Everyday Math series are nice for this and I think if I had more experience with the curriculum it would be possible to do centers more effectively in mathematics. Even in older grades, incorporating some aspects of the centers I think will help me to keep students engaged.
Another thing that I am learning from Danielle is to make learning purposeful and fun. She did not want to have the kids start writing until fairly recently; about two weeks ago. For me this was frustrating, especially after our block 1 and 2 classes in elementary literacy, in which we talked about kids writing every day. Even the littlest ones. They can do it if you give them a chance to. Even pictures and invented spellings are a start to writing for these kids. However, she wanted their writing to have purpose, so this was why we waited to start the writing. The kids are more interested in writing if it has a purpose that is meaningful to them. It also gets them excited about writing. I think finding purposes for my students to write that are meaningful and engaging will help them and me feel successful in the classroom, at all grade levels.
I think that getting to know my students’ parents will help me to feel successful in the classroom as well. Parents are such a big part of their students’ education and having a good rapport with them makes your job as a teacher so much easier. Right now we have a student we are referring for SpEd and having his mom on board has been very helpful and having lines of communication open with her makes the process so much easier. Additionally, this helps me to incorporate the community in my classroom. It will give me the support I need in my classroom getting projects done and also give me additional resources. For example, last week I had one of my student’s parents come in to teach our students Zumba for one of our health standards, which they loved!
Another thing that will help me to feel successful in my own classroom is to remember that students will not always grasp a concept immediately, the first time the lesson is taught. And just to remember not to get discouraged by this. The students will get it eventually and that particular day may not have been the best day to teach a lesson due to other outside factors as well. And part of this is just knowing my class and feeling out the rhythm of that particular day.
Cheryl,
I really like what you say about students not grasping a concept immediately. This is so true! And it can be really frustrating at times to deal with because, at least for me, I sometimes feel as though I've give them the concept in as many different ways as I can think of, yet they still aren't getting it. But I usually just have to make myself slow down and realize that they will get it eventually! I even have to remind myself that my students are not necessarily going to be what I was like when I was in high school, able to grasp a concept almost immediately. I definitely agree that it can be frustrating though. But it is so awesome when you finally see that lightbulb go on for them! I love seeing that!!
Also, I'm really glad that centers have worked so well for you in your classroom. They sound awesome, and it also sounds as though you and your students are getting a lot out of them. Keep up the good work!
See you when you get home!! I hope you are enjoying your leaf walk :D
Kara
Kara-
I am completely on the same page as you! I always get these fun ideas of what I would do if it were my own class! I need to start writing them down! I also agree with the planning of lessons! They never go as planned! Especially with six year olds! However, it is always fun to see where they go! I think it is cool because they often go in the direction that the kids are curious in so they end up staying more engaged and learning things that they are actually wondering. I love that we need to be quick on our feet! It makes for an interesting day! I think it is especially fun with six year olds and my mentor teacher. We are always laughing about stuff that we come up with when the kids throw us for a loop!
Cheryl-
Centers are awesome. I agree. They basically do the work for you when it comes to differentiated learning and for the real low ones, the centers give you time to work with them one-on-one! It is great. I also have never seen them before so I am really glad that Carol does them as well! I find it interesting that Dannielle has just started writing! I have never thought about it having to have meaning. Although, now that you mention it the kids seem to be more interested in writing lately. I do not know if it is because the topics we are giving them or because they are getting the hang of it. Either way, I found that school of thought interesting.
What am I learning about myself? Well, last week I kind of wanted to throw in the towel. It was such a frustrating week and it seemed that everything crazy all happened at the same time and I was over the whole thing. My roommates got to see me at my worst and they definitely picked me up. No worries, I am back to wanting to be a teacher.
I have learned that I still have a long way to go in responding to management issues. My mentor teacher keeps telling me that I need to work on my attention getting and waiting for attention before giving directions or instruction. It just feels like I am waiting for so long and I have so much to do that I need to get started. My patience is tested every day and I am learning that I need to take a few moments and pause. So when my prep period starts I just sit down and breathe, think back over the first two periods and relax. I don’t realize how tense I am until I have no students in the room with me.
For me to feel successful in my own classroom I need to have clear outlines and expectations because if I don’t draw a line it is super easy to cross it. By this I mean that when I set a deadline I need to keep it and not bend to the sap stories and the puppy dog eyes. What is important is that students learn the material, but also that they learn responsibility. I totally caved to some puppy dog eyes.
Another aspect is that I need to be confident in what I am teaching. I can teach Algebra without any review or looking back at it, but this Discrete stuff that I am learning just ahead of my students is exhausting because I don’t have a deep understanding of it and I have to think hard each time a student asks a question any deeper than what the book can teach me. It is important for me to really know the content (duh). This is why if I have a choice, I will never choose Statistics (that is so not real math anyway ) Perhaps that means that I should study up on my stats so that I am prepared for any class. Okay, the moral of the story is that I need to know what I am teaching before I teach it.
I remember one of my math teachers tell me that she learned so much more about the math topics once she had to explain them to someone else and I am finding this to be true. I can’t hide behind anyone or anything, I have to know it all and I have to know it all the way around.
Sam,
I want to respond because I love Stellaluna and I did not know that owls eat bats. I learn something new every day.
My hope is to be able to plan that far in advance that I know for an entire month in advance what I am doing. My teacher and I are working on that. I have a rough sketch through Thanksgiving, but not even close to your detail.
I struggle with the talking in my classroom. I don’t want to be fighting unnecessary battles over students chit chatting while working, but when they are quiet I see them getting so much more done. I wish that I could give them work time and expect them to use it, but that just is not true. About half of the class utilized the time today, but the other half did pretty much nothing and I can’t police everyone. Rather I hat spending my time asking kids to get back to work or to quiet down when there are students who are actually asking for my help with the math. Dilemma.
Katrina!!! (As I use your computer to write this to you…)
I think that we all have the same experiences about going crazy with school and being frustrated teaching. I’m glad you worked through it and realized that you were being too hard on yourself (and didn’t end up walking home… ;)
I think that I also need to work on management. I have a dream class: only 16 students who are all very well behaved and who are all good friends with each other and respectful toward adults. So, currently I do not have too many management problems. However, this scares me for when I have my own classroom because I know right now I have an ideal class and this may not happen. I also have the same problem waiting for students to have time to think and to respond to my questions. I expect students to be able to respond to questions right away, but have to remember that this is the first time they are exposed to the material and therefore are taking time to understand the question and respond.
I think that you’re right that we have to know what we’re teaching our students. However, it’s not possible to know every single thing, so I think it’s just as important to know resources where you can get answers and learn the information. You are doing a great job!!! Keep it up! :)
This student teaching experience has given me a lot of opportunities to try things, fix things, and change things. What I have gotten from it the most though is a firm understanding of things I will not do in my own classroom. In my current classes the way my cooperating teacher has things outlined is very confusing for the students. They were never given a syllabus for the class or any form of communication on where their daily points would be coming from.
So from that one thing I have learned about myself is that I find communication to be one of the most important parts of my teaching. My students need to know exactly what I want from them and exactly what they are getting graded on. More than that they need to be able to access this information after the first week of school. I find myself putting up posters in my classrooms with almost all of my lessons. I find that hanging up some key information on the walls is way more helpful to the students then I would have ever imagined. They refer to them almost daily.
My cooperating teacher and I have not exactly met agreed on how to motivate students. I have noticed that in a lot of ways our teaching is similar but in a lot of ways our teaching styles are very different. I am currently trying to figure out what motivation techniques work well for me but also which ones work for a variety of students. Taking over the classes has made me realize how important motivation really is. In PE classes it is all to easy for students to just come in walk around and leave. As a PE teacher it is up to me to help connect the information to their lives and make them want to participate and get better.
One thing I have learned is that I need to be prepared with back up plans for any physical activity. I have had multiple students get injured outside of the classroom and come in with doctors notes saying they may not participate. I find myself writing up paper prompts or copying worksheets weekly so that these students have alternate assignments to complete to still get their daily points. As a teacher I think that it would be a smart idea to plan for alternate assignments when creating different learning segments. The assignments need to match up with the information the students would be receiving if they could participate in class.
Over all I have enjoyed my student teaching experience and it has made me excited to be done with school and actually start teaching!
Kara,
I can relate with you a lot about learning what you would do differently in your classroom. I think that is an important part of student teaching, learning what does and doesn't work for you in setting up a classroom environment. I also like what you said about lessons never going exactly as planned because I 100% agree. I find myself getting pulled off track because students ask questions that I wasn't expecting but are still totally relevant to that days activities or finding that I didn't plan enough time for students to master a skill and I have to rearrange days and lessons.
I think that you have been given a good opportunity to see a lot of what you wouldnt do so it makes you that much more confident when you try things that work and are effective in your classroom!
Katrina,
One thing I wanted to say is that I totally agree with you on the needing to stick to your guns about due dates and stuff like that. For my PAN class they are supposed to turn in some papers when it is their turn to teach their physical activity. The first student who went pretty much copied his entire paper so I gave it back to him and told him to do it again. This was like three weeks ago. I told him last friday that if he didnt get it to me today he would be getting no points for it. Today he turned in half of the assignment. It is so frustrating because part of me wants to listen to his reasons why it isnt turned in and just let him turn it in late but the other half feels like I need to stick to what I have been saying for three weeks. I think that this is something we develop as we get more confident in our teaching! Good luck to you!
Through my experience here, I have been exposed to many alternative ways of teaching and classroom management, which has been a priceless experience! My teacher has had full confidence in me taking over the classroom very early on in the semester, and this has helped me really take charge in ways I never thought I could. My teacher is very free with her curriculum, and is all about having creative outlets for her students as well as working in partners/small groups. I think partner work and small group is vital for a supportive learning community in the classroom. My teacher and I have been focusing on having a solid literacy block everyday after the students complete their board work. My teacher and I have been co-creating this “spider-themed” curriculum. We made three centers, and I had created the majority of them. One station I read the book “Charlotte’s Web” to a small group, another station students researched spider books and created an organized paragraph based on facts they found in the books, and another station created their own spiders to be hung outside our door on a homemade spider web we made. I strategically placed students in small groups to rotate to support ELL learners and lower achieving students. My teacher was a gifted teacher for years, so students that would complete a station faster or needed more of a challenge, my teacher provided them with extra resources to research spiders. My teacher is also very close with the environmental program here on post, and she had an employee of this program come in and work with a few students one-on-one to go more into depth about arachnids and insects in nature. I was very pleased with how the stations turned out and saw how well the second graders focused when they worked together and talked to each other. I felt like students were not a distraction to each other, but constantly refocusing each other on the task at hand. I also really enjoy leading Tai Chi and snack after morning board work. Instead of going outside for our morning break, my teacher has the students participate in Tai Chi and then we have a “social snack”. The students all benefit from this and it shows through out the rest of the morning block. Students are calmer and have been able to socialize with their friends in a classroom setting. I plan on definitely implementing Tai Chi or kid’s yoga into my future classroom.
In order to feel successful in my own classroom, I plan on taking the creative curriculum that my teacher has given me, and having a fun interactive break time for my students. I enjoy the freedom my teacher has given me as well to design a lot of the curriculum, even though sometimes I feel like I would learn more if she gave me a little more structure. I love having students working in small groups and will take the “buddy system” and management system my teacher has shown me into my own classroom. The students are constantly holding each other accountable, which I can see has created a great learning community. I also really like the “certificates” and “bumblebee” reward system that my teacher has created. Students transition from wanting certificates for buying items on Fun Fridays, to wanting to earn “bumblebee’s” to eat lunch with my teacher and I on Fridays. By students choosing their reward, they are becoming more internally motivated to try their best everyday. I plan on having this creative reward system in my own classroom, as well as organized centers to feel successful in the classroom.
Throughout this experience, my cooperating teacher has done a really great job of gradually releasing responsibility to me in the classroom. I did not even realize I had taken over the classroom because I felt very comfortable. Before I began student teaching and even the thought of student teaching during the blocks terrified me. The thought of running the classroom on my own made me very nervous and I was not sure if I could really do it. After being in the classroom for the past 47 days of school and taking over full time, I have realized that I can not only teach full time, but I can do it successfully and really enjoy it. My teacher has done a great job of supplying me with materials to use, however, she gives me full control of how I want to teach the material and grade student work. I have found that that I really enjoy working with the younger students, even though I was in the sixth grade last semester. It is amazing to see the growth of each student as we prepare for student teacher conferences. At times, it seems like students are not working as much as I think they should, but it is clear from their work that they have all improved throughout the semester. It is the best feeling to know that while I have taken over the class, students are really learning the material and improving. I have also started to realize that it is ok to not follow a schedule exactly or not get to a lesson if there is not enough time. At first, I was very concerned about the time and squeezing everything in. I now have become comfortable with the fact that nothing will go as planned and that it is ok if we do not get to something that day. My teacher is really flexible and I have learned from her to stay calm and just work on what we skipped another day.
For me to be successful in my classroom, I think it is important that I understand what standards need to be met throughout the school year and know what the curriculum well. At the school I am at now, teachers do not have to follow any set schedule which gives them a lot of freedom. I have noticed that I need structure and am a planner, while my teacher is more last minute and does not need a set schedule. She has been teaching for over 30 years and has so many lessons she can pull out of her memory, but I do not so I need more planning beforehand. I also feel like I need a more set schedule everyday so that I can follow a routine and my students. We follow a pretty lenient schedule now, however, I think I would feel more successful if my classroom stuck to a set schedule. I would be flexible for change, but I would want to make sure I made time everyday for all the activities planned for that day.
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Alyssa, I think you made a really great point about having backup assignments and activities for your lessons. You never really know how well a lesson will go or how fast students can complete work. For example, today a few students lost their math packets and I was unable to leave the room to make copies. Instead of having these students miss out on the lesson, I decided to use an activity that I had set aside as a filler. If I did not have that ready and copied, I know that I would have been really stressed trying to think of an activity on the spot!
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