Preparing for my Visit
Please share what you are most excited for me to observe and what are you most nervous about. What was a real highlight this week and what made you stretch? Respond to each other.
posted by Chris @ 9:30 PM
15 comments
15 Comments:
I’m most nervous to have you observe my math teaching. The way the curriculum has it set up is as whole group lessons and we do the lessons at the end of the day when the kids cannot focus any more. During math lessons I just feel like both myself and the kids are all over the place. I have a hard time trying to make sure that everyone is engaged in the whole-group part of the lesson, but feel like once we go into small groups and math games I am better able to see who needs help and what students did and did not understand.
I’m most excited to have you observe Morning Meeting. This is what I have been doing with the kids the most consistently and the longest. Therefore, I am most confident in how the routine will go. I feel like it’s a good way to gauge the students’ attitudes and set the tone for the day. We constantly do different things, so I feel like I am better at having everyone engaged and participating as we transition into literacy activities.
My big stretch this past week was dealing with a new student. He is a kind of wild boy who tests the limits. He really is a good kid, he just needs structure. However, he will push the boundaries and it’s been hard for me to figure out how to deal with. My teacher told me after school one day that you almost have to be “mean” the first few weeks so that they know that in your classroom there are certain expectations. Once they’ve learned the routines, you can relax a bit, but especially for students who are all over behaviorally, they need to know there is structure first. I’ve gotten better with dealing with him as the week progressed, but I was glad my teacher was there at the beginning to help and direct me!
My highlight this past week is how much I have taken over and how seamless and easy it seems. I am now doing our science/health/social studies block as well as math. I have planned most of the literacy centers for the week although I am not doing the literacy instruction because we just finished kindergarten review and are just now starting into reading groups and the basal. I have taken over most of our transitions and have walked the kids to lunch and specials by myself a few times. I’ve always been afraid to completely take over the class, but so far I feel very confident in how things have been going!
I am not sure what I am most excited for you to see. Math would probably be my top choice for you to see because that is one of the things I took over first, but there are a lot of games and the actual lessons are not that long. I would probably be the most nervous about whatever we do in the last hour of school because that’s when the kids get the craziest and we get the least done. It doesn’t help that we use that last hour for whatever is left to do that day, so there is never a specific routine the kids can get used to during that time. No matter what you observe, I will be nervous how the kids will be. I am more nervous for next week when I film for my TPA lessons. One of the days my teacher will be at a training and there will be a sub. I get to run the whole day to myself and the sub is just there to help, but I am still very nervous the kids will be crazy. I have never seen them with a sub. I hope that they will be okay because I have had them to myself without my teacher in the room before and they were fine, but sometimes kids get wild at the thought of a sub just being there!
A highlight this week was just how the whole week ran smoothly. It was the best week so far and everything worked together perfectly. There was even a half day with a fire drill in it, and everything worked out fine. The kids weren’t insane, all the parts of the day that I have taken over went perfectly and we even had time to plan the entire next week and make copies for everything we need next week. I am having a hard time picking my stretch, but I think I would have to pick this whole being sick business. I am so TIRED of being sick. Having a constant sore throat and always blowing my nose is getting old fast. I am just going to have to get used to it! I am taking lots of vitamins so I am hoping that is helping!
I am most excited about you observing me do calendar in the morning. I had 3 days to observe Sandy doing the calendar, before I was given full responsibility. I have continued doing everything Sandy wants in the routine; however, I have been able to put my own spin on things. For example, I have the kids up and moving while counting and I am trying to teach them new versions of songs for the days of the week and days of school. We also have incorporated aspects of the new Everyday Math curriculum into the calendar routine every morning including tally marks, even and odd numbers, counting and weather prediction. Essentially, calendar is a mini math lesson!
I am most nervous about the math lessons. As mentioned earlier, we just started using Everyday Math so Sandy and the other first grade teachers are just as unfamiliar with the curriculum as I am. We are learning as much as we can, but we are still trying to get the hang of how each lesson should go. I still feel like we will be learning a lot when you come and visit. We also have not used much from the Everyday Math curriculum, because we are working on activities that Sandy finds to be important at the beginning of the year and they are not in the lessons.
A real highlight this week was realizing how much I have taken over in the classroom. Sandy has done a great job with gradual release of responsibility. I do not feel overwhelmed and feel confident in my abilities. Other teachers have also mentioned to Sandy and Delome that Sierra and I seem extremely prepared and are doing a great job so far. It was very nice to hear! A stretch this week was getting centers into full swing. We have a computer center, listening center, 2 word work centers, reading to someone center and journal writing. Even though the kids knew what to do at each center, there were so many questions that they had and problems with headphones, etc. that it was a bit overwhelming. I can’t imagine starting centers without the help of a parent volunteer or someone else in the classroom! By Thursday they were getting the routine down, but it was still difficult at times. I know in a few weeks it will run very smoothly.
Sandy’s father is visiting so she will be gone Monday and Tuesday. A sub will be in our room, however, Sandy has made it clear that I will be running the show and the sub is just in there for extra help. Should be fun to see how I can handle 2 days of teaching on my own! Hope you all have a great week!
Cheryl,
I wrote my post before reading yours, but I found we had a lot of the same feelings! I completely agree with your comment about being scared to fully take over the class. I am happy that we both have found that after a few weeks we have the confidence to take over more of the class and the fear has settled a bit. I also know exactly what you are talking about when you need to be “mean” at the beginning. You always want the students to like you, however, for them to enjoy their entire year you do need to set limits and stand your guard at the beginning.
Sam,
We both will be experiencing our kids on our own with a sub this week! I can’t wait to talk about how it went. My teacher and I were in math training last week, so we had the same sub in the room who will be with me on Monday and Tuesday. We heard from another teacher that our students were extremely loud and not acting the way we would expect from them. My teacher talked to the principle and there have been problems with this sub before. My teacher told me to just take over to ensure our students behave how we expect and that routines stay the same. She will basically just be there because we cannot be in the room alone all day. Hope your day with the sub goes well!
Devon-
I love that you talk about the calendar in the morning! I love doing that with the kids. It is cool that your teacher let you put your own spin on things! What is funny is that my teacher already did the tally marks, weather and the even and odd numbers in her morning routine so she didn’t have to change anything this year. Other teachers were freaking out about their morning routines because they had to change something they were used to doing for years. I am lucky that our morning routine was a stress free thing! It sounds like setting up yours was stress free as well! Good luck with the sub!!!!
Cheryl-
I like how you said that you have to be “mean” the first couple of weeks so that the kids know you mean business. Classroom management has always been my struggle. In advanced practicum I had trouble with it because I was afraid the kids wouldn’t like me if I was too strict! Finding the thin line between the two was really hard for me. The kids even started calling me Sam at one point before I had to put my foot down. Then I realized they still liked me as a teacher. I just had to find the line between friend and pal. This time around I was very strict at first when teaching the routines and am still pretty strict at most times. I still have fun with them and let them be goofy sometimes (I let them dance in front of my camera the other day when I was testing it! It was adorable!) but if they start getting out of control I do not have a problem putting my foot down and taking away fun things. I have found they still like me. And I now realize why teachers tell me that we aren’t allowed to smile the first two weeks of school!
The thing I am most nervous for right now about your visit is that I don't know exactly what I will be teaching at that time yet. Right now, we are finishing our Animal Farm unit, and we will be moving onto something else by the end of the week. I am not sure yet what that will be, so I haven't started to plan the lessons yet either. So hopefully by tomorrow I know a little bit more about what I am doing with the students when you are here, so I can be a little less nervous for that part.
What I'm excited for you to see is my third period class. These kids are awesome. I love all my students and all of my classes, but this class just stands out. They are the most prepared and they are engaged. I feel as though I hardly have to put in any effort with them. I have great discussions with them over the book we are reading, and hopefully this continues for the next book. So I am excited for you to be able to see this class just because they are awesome.
My highlight of the week was just the whole thing. I really feel as though this was my best week so far and my easiest as well. I am really getting the hang of things and I am really enjoying working with the students as well. This week went by so fast too just because of all of the teaching I was doing. I'm hoping that this week goes just as well.
And my stretch was grading this weekend. There was just a lot of it, and I wanted to do other things, so I put it off until the last minute, which was a bad idea. Grading is something I am still trying to get used to and something that will take a while to establish a good routine for. With the next book, I am definitely going to plan better so that I don't overwhelm myself with grading again!
Overall though, I had a great week. I really hope that things stay this way (or just get even better). This has been the experience of a lifetime and I am enjoying every second of it!!
I am excited for you to see how different the PE classes are set up here in DoDDs. The requirements for the classes are different and somewhat more strict. I have found this to be really interesting when figuring out what will be taught throughout the semester. I am nervous about my personal fitness classes because I dont feel like I have fully gotten the hang of things yet.
Last week was a good week overall but my cooperating teacher gave me a lot more responsibilities starting monday after realizing how soon I was going to be observed. He thought I should be given more time to have control of the classes as a whole and get a hang of things before I was observed. The part that was a stretch the most of trying a new teaching style. I have a lot of students that do not handle the individualized aspects of a PE class very well so my teacher has be taking the students through workouts. I hadn't done anything like that before but after doing it for a week I feel like I have a better grasp on things.
This past week was a short week for me which was nice. On friday it was a CSI day and so the students were gone. We actually went over differentiated instruction in the meeting and so a lot of it was review for me. What was interesting was getting the opportunity to discuss the concept with other teachers who it was kind of new too. It was also interesting to talk with my cooperating teacher about different ideas we had for the same lesson plans and it gave me a chance to view a lesson plan from different points of view.
Chris I am excited for you to see me interacting with students individually. I think that I am getting very good at addressing student concerns and asking questions to steer them in the right direction. This will be especially highlighted during 2nd period, which is the resource math class with only 9 students. We are trying to give the kids a lot of time to do practice problems in class so that they can ask all of their questions. I notice that that particular class does not ask questions during group discussions and so it is important to give them the opportunity to ask them during work time.
I am most nervous for you to see me standing in front of the whole class and giving directions. I have difficulty starting a lesson or transitioning between activities. I know that I am getting better at holding fast to what I say and waiting until the students do what I want them to do before moving on to the next directions, but I still feel awkward when I am standing at the front of the room during lectures times and homework check. It just feels like all of the kids are staring at me. I am trying hard to structure lessons that do not involve too much of me standing at the front of the whole class and talking, but sometimes I cannot think of any other way for students to get the content in an efficient manner. As I mentioned in a previous post, I struggle getting class participation. Even though the kids seem to listen, it is so challenging for me to have them respond to questions, especially ones that I just want their ideas to know what they are thinking. Perhaps as I work on my wait time, the responses will improve, but then I would just have them staring at me longer. So, Chris, that is what I am nervous for you to observe. You will probably see that during 1st and 4th periods, but not so much during 2nd period. I have not planned the lessons that you will observe yet, but I do want you to see both sides of my teaching so I’ll do my best to structure the lessons in a manner that utilizes both.
A real highlight this last week was my 1st period class on Friday. It was the first of my TPA lessons and I think that it was fantastic, but also far from perfect. I ended up forgetting to define one vocabulary word that was important and my directions could have used some work, but it ended up okay. I had the students working in pairs to complete some challenging word problems and fill in a problem solving chart. That was the focus of the lesson, using a problem solving plan. I thought that the kids might just give up when they heard that we were doing an entire day of word problems, especially after I asked them what the first thing that they do when they see a word problem and the answer was, “just skip it.” The kids surprised me and most pairs finished all of the questions or at least attempted them. I had students who have been disengaged really involved in solving the questions. That was so much fun!
The stretch was also the same lesson. I had the lesson planned out, but needed to make copies of the questions before 1st period. I thought that if I started making copies at 7 that I would be prepared to teach at 750. Well, naturally the copier jammed and required two different teachers to fix it, I ran out of the colored paper that I wanted the different types of paper printed on, and I forgot my list of which problems went together. As the announcements were happening, I was organizing the questions into piles and by organizing I mean just trying to make sure that no group had the same problem twice. It was not how imagined the lesson starting. My teacher had to tell me to breathe because I was getting a little bit panicked and flustered. So, my lesson for the day is that if my lesson hinges on having copies of a particular something, make them the day before. Now I know.
Cheryl,
Perhaps you and I should have a chat about how you engage your students. I could use a few pointers and you seem to have the hang of it.
I am impressed that you have already handled a new student in your class. We had a few transfers during the beginning of the semester and it was hard enough getting them caught up in my class so I couldn't imagine having to get him up to speed in all of the subjects. Setting the tone for what you want to happen is not something that I feel strong in either. I don't want to have to discipline kids. I have my eye on two girls in my first period class that I think might need a talking too. I am not excited for that, so congratulations on conquering setting the rules.
Devon,
Isn't it crazy how we are now pretty much in charge of our classrooms? I did get a little deer in the headlights because I am now planning two different classes by myself and I am co-teaching the third class with my teacher. How did that happen? I think I might be just trying to make it through because I felt like I had enough on my plate just planning for Algebra and now I have two more classes to plan for. I am glad that you are settling in to your routine just fine. I have found the most fun in seeing my own ideas play out in the classroom and finding success. That sounds like your spin on calender in the morning. Good luck with the sub. I had a sub the second week of school and I was so nervous, but you are now a pro, so go get 'em girl!
Devon-
Like you and Sam I will also be in charge all day tomorrow for the first time because we will have a sub. I’m excited about it and not at all worried because, as you mentioned, my teacher has done a great job slowly giving me more responsibility, so I feel very confident in teaching tomorrow. I’ve also had the same experience with calendar turning into a math mini-lesson. We actually do two calendars a day. My teacher really likes Starfall, so we do that calendar, but then we have the whole Everyday Math routine of calendar, which is much more in-depth than Starfall, so we do that one at the beginning of math. It’s cool to see how something as simple as calendar can be used to teach math!
Sam-
I agree that it’s cool to see how smoothly everything is running! It’s amazing to see how much more smoothly things run once the kids have gotten used to us and know the routines really well. I agree too that I’m tired of being sick. I don’t know how much of it to chalk up to allergies, changing weather, and air quality in Germany and how much to assume is just sickness. I at least got rid of my sore throat though and am just constantly blowing my nose now…
I am most excited for you to observe the daily routine in the morning and the read aloud time after lunch. During this time I feel the most confidant as a student teacher and these are times that the students are the most excited and creative with their learning. The classroom has formed a very strong accountability system and the students, after four weeks of school, demonstrate this the most in the morning and after lunch. I truly enjoy running the daily board work because it is a fun way to get the students excited for the day and it is also when I do homework check. The students also are in charge of correcting the board work, and I am just the facilitator. With read aloud, the students come in after recess, and we spend approximately 30-40 minutes listening to a chapter book I have chosen to read aloud (right now we are reading “The Chocolate Touch”). I have been able to take techniques I practiced in my previous practicum and take it into this classroom through read aloud. I read one or two chapters aloud, and have the students practice visualization and prediction. At the end of each read aloud, the students are given a piece of blank paper to sketch what they believe will happen in the next chapter. The students are very creative during this time, and the skills they are practicing are rigorous and challenging. I also truly love watching how they describe what their picture is about and how much they have improved over the last few weeks!
I am most apprehensive for you to observe my math lessons, which I transition into almost everyday after I do read aloud with the students. Despite the fact that I am very familiar with the program “Everyday Math”, it is a challenging program to prep for and I find myself becoming overwhelming for the students at times when I do execute the lessons. This curriculum is also much more advanced then the previous programs the school has purchased, and so making sure everyone is on the same page through out the 90 minute lesson is a challenge. Yet, I am still confident in my previous knowledge of the program, and the pacing the DOD’s school system has set is much slower then the previous school I worked at.
One of my highlights last week was reading “Mr. Crinkleroot’s Guide to Walking in Wild Places”, preparation for our field trip we are taking next week to Engineer Lake! The students were so excited about being real scientists on the field trip and became extremely engaged in all the information Mr. Crinkleroot had to offer. The students also knew so much more about what it means to observe and record data. I am extremely excited about taking them out on the field trip and the connection to the book makes the lessons incorporated into the lesson a lot more engaging.
Something that was a challenge this week was not being able to fit everything in. Everyday there are so many routines, standards, lessons, projects, group meetings, homework checks, etc. to complete and finish. I felt as though my stretch came in me realizing you will not always get everything done and that’s O.K. I am very much a planner (what teacher isn’t) and when I can’t check everything off my to-do-list I feel like I failed the students. But my teacher has been very good at telling me that you have to set your priorities and to seize all teachable moments, even if that means you don’t get to math.
Cherly-
Wowha! I feel like we have lived the same lives through out our student teaching experience. I run the morning routine as well, and it is one of my most favorite times to spend with the students. I have been running the board work routine since the second week of school, as well as being in charge of planning our literacy/math block after lunch. I am also nervous for teaching the math curriculum. I am still trying to grasp how to have the students move as whole group, when there are so many different levels throughout the classroom. And our new math program is very much all over the place, it’s a challenge for sure!
Sam-
I completely hear you on the afternoon craziness. I do run the afternoon for the most part with read-aloud and math, but sometimes we also use that time to do independent work and anything we did not finish. Sometimes I feel a bit lost in the haze of it all, and wondering where our original plans went! I experienced that a lot last week, feeling like we did not get everything done a few afternoons in a row. But, my teacher told to just relax about that, because as long as you are getting MOST everything in your day completed and enjoying the job, you are doing the right thing.
Katrina,
Class participation can be difficult. I have one class in particular that is a really big class and for the space I have it is a challenge to keep them all interested because the room is not exactly big enough to have everyone doing the same thing at the same time. I have figured out a few techniques that seem to keep the period going but I still feel like I have a ways to go before I figure out that period. I also found out about making copies the day before. I had a lesson for my students that has written instructions and information on how they would be graded that I wanted to give out in class that day. I went during my planning period and two of the three copiers were out of toner and the third one was being used. I made it to class right before the bell rang with the copies. So it could have been a disaster.
Cheryl,
Your group math lesson sounds like my 4th period class I just talked about in my response to Katrina. I also feel like I have trouble trying to make sure everyone is engaged and at times it does feel like everyone is all over the place. But it sounds like you have taken over a large portion of the classroom so I am sure you will get this in order soon!
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