A Step Into Teaching

Definition

2008-12-10T17:43:00.001-08:00

I can demonstrate that I understand the importance and role of diversity in constructing meaningful teaching and learning experiences for children.

Definition

2008-12-10T17:40:00.000-08:00

I can demonstrate that I understand and have the ability to employ appropriate technology for developing students' knowledge, understandings, skills and dispositions.

Entomol-whata?

2008-11-30T17:19:00.000-08:00

Above: My cousin Bryan Reese holding a picture of a dragonfly

My cousin Bryan just completed his dissertation for his PHD in entomology. Entomology for those who don't know is the study of insects. Bryan has been studying entomology for around 15 years now, specifically dragonflies. Now I know, what all is there to know about dragonflies, but really they are quite interesting. Like did you know that a dragonfly spends most of its life underwater and once they fly they only live for a few weeks? Dragonflies have 30,000 individual lenses on their eyes. Because of these lenses and the size of their eyes, dragonflies can nearly always see 360 degrees all the way around at all times. See they are quite interesting.

So what does this have to do with class? It shows that even the smallest things are interesting and have a lot of information on them. Bryan dreams of becoming the world's renowned entomologist on dragonflies. He has to study every aspect of the dragonfly.

As a teacher this inspires me to become very knowledgeable about my content as well as the world of teaching.

I put this in personal goals because it is a goal of mine to become knowledgeable and to truly understand what I am teaching as well as many ways to teach.

Counting Down to Stage time!

2008-11-30T12:22:00.000-08:00

Above: The kids I taught at church and me on my last day before I left for college.

This morning I got the chance to go and see my home church again, before any of the kids were there. While there the family pastor, a very dear friend of mine, kept asking, "When will you be back to teach?" This question just fired me up. I will be back to teach in 14 days. Teaching these children was something I looked forward to every week and it's something I've missed lately. When I taught, I knew that I was impacting kids life's and that I was making many little friends. I loved getting off the stage and having them rush and hug me or to see me somewhere and want to come talk to me or say hi.

I can't wait until I am a teacher and the same things happen with the children in my class. I look forward to waking up every morning knowing that I get to impact children's life's.

I put this in philosophy because it connects to the passion I have for teaching and the passion I believe teachers should have. A teacher should look forward to work, and see each day as a new opportunity to impact a child's life.

Cramming?

2008-11-30T11:45:00.000-08:00

Below is a TV ad for the new Leapfrog product that helps students "cram" for tests.

When I saw this product, I had to stop and really ask myself , " Do we really have such toys for this now?" I know that as a college student, sometimes I do find myself merely cramming for tests but is that something we want to promote?

When you look at cramming, you notice that typically when students cram they retain little. If we are promoting cramming at a young age, then it is just showing that students are retaining even less than what they were before. With these students merely cramming, they are falling behind in class because they are not really learning the material.

How can we change the view points of students to make them want to learn the material? With today's technology it seems like we can do anything. We are able to upload their books to hand held devices, but what else can we do? We should promote learning, not cramming.

I'll sit in a BOX if I have too!

2008-11-30T11:36:00.000-08:00

The other night I was making my backboard and I was getting stuck with how to actually make it. See, I was given 2 small boxes so I had to come up with how to put them together to get one big board. When I started, I quickly cut one down the side so it laid flat. I realized I should have waited. Well, being the person I am, I put the other box over me. I literally sat in the lobby of Pearson's for an hour with a box around me. It really helped me get my mind thinking though.

I was able to sit, analyze , and think out of the box ( quite literally) I came up with the idea to cut the second box, glue the two boxes down the side, cut off some flaps, and ta da! I had my board. I was even able to add some red stripes to really make it look like the Cat in the Hat hat.

When I changed how I was thinking, as well as my perspective, I was able to get the job done. Sometimes all you need is to think outside of the box, even if that means sitting in one.

I'll listen if you write and they act

2008-11-30T11:16:00.000-08:00

In classroom's today there are many types of learners. Some have to do an activity to gain a concept while others have to hear it and others have to see it. How can a class be formed to meet the needs of all the different groups?

This is a question that we all have to ask ourselves right now with our learning center. I keep asking myself, is there equal amounts of activity for all three types? Are the concepts the same among the activities? These are sometimes difficult questions but they are helping with our future classroom.

In our learning centers, we are placing many activities so that the child may pick the one that suits them. A student knows typically how they learn best. In a classroom, a child should have a wide variety of activities that are open to them that allow them to choose.

Children need chooses and classrooms need options. I feel like many classrooms today consist of the same thing- worksheets. Yes, some children learn from these but many don't. Some view it as busy work and do not learn the content.

In my classroom , as well as learning center, there will be options so that children of all learning styles are able to learn.

Can you do it?

2008-11-05T19:50:00.000-08:00

Above: Student observes object and describes it

In GSTR, our professor decided to challenge us to try to find 50 characteristics about a certain item that she gave us. Some were given ornate objects like the one above, others were given a leaf like the one below.
No matter what the item, the challenge was the same. Some came up with more that 50, others just swept by but while doing this activity it reminded me of our sketch books.

With this activity we really had to observe the object, find every little characteristic about it, and the same was for the object we were comparing ourselves to. We had to do the pre-writing and we had to take some time to really make sure we didn't miss anything.

This to me relates to teaching because when you teach, you have to make sure that you look at the content from every perspective because one student isn't always going to see it the same way you do . You as a teacher should make sure you know the content to the full extent, so that when a student is troubled, you know the answer. As a future teacher, it is my goal to make sure that while I am in the making of being a teacher , that I will look at all the different perspectives of an area and that I will take responsibility for learning everything that is required of me.

Pumpkin, Pumpkin

2008-11-05T18:59:00.000-08:00

Above: Dorothy and I walk as we search for the right pumpkin

When I heard that we were going to the pumpkin patch, I became very excited. It had been literally years since I had gone to a pumpkin patch, 13 to be exact. The last time I went was when I was in kindergarten. I began to reflect on what I learned that year.

Being a small kindergartner, I wasn't concerned about what I was learning, I was just there to have fun. After the field trip, we made pies and baked the seeds and had a whole weeks worth of lesson's on pumpkins- did they phase me as academic? Nope.

Going back now, I actually was looking for things I could learn and teach. When I was looking at the goats, what lesson's could I teach? What about the corn maze, corn hulling, pumpkin finding? Each topic held it's own lesson. Driving to and from had a lesson. The archeological dig had a lesson.

Then to come into class on Tuesday and get to do the different activities, it all made since to me as to why I did those activities as a kindergartner. We learned measuring, how to follow directions, simple fractions, temperature, and more from baking the pie. From the seeds, we learned that all the parts of a pumpkin were edible.

Doing these activities and then having to come with activities really made me think about how as a teacher I have to come up with activities that aren't just on paper. By this I mean hands on, memorable learning experiences. Children should be able to take something out of every lesson I teach and never feel like they are just doing busy work or that they are merely doing something for "fun." While the activity may come across that way, when the child reflects back on the activity, they should be able to say that they got something out of it. As a teacher it is my goal , job,and duty to make learning experiences out of everything.

Beauty in Recycling!

2008-10-27T18:26:00.001-07:00

Above: Water bottle chandler created by four year olds.
This past week I received an email from my mom with this picture attached. She is the assistant teacher for a pre-kindergarten classroom. I was blown away by this picture but more by what can be taught through it. The children helped collect the bottles from home or other classrooms, which helped build community. They then had to color the bottoms of the bottles (after the teachers had cut them off) Through this they learned about stained glass and how the light shines through. They then got to help string on the bottoms. I don't know if they did these in any order but it helped with hand eye coordination. In all of this though, they learned about recycling and how you can turn trash into a treasure.
This chandler hangs now in there class and the children are able to proudly proclaim that they did that and that it is their work. This ties into student directing. Students should be able to be proud about their work and one way to promote this is to limit the use of ditto sheets and other store bought materials. The students don't care about them, they actually don't like them so they tear them up. But when you put something in the room that is theirs, suddenly their attitude changes and they respect the work.
As a teacher, I feel that I will strive to offer as much student direction as possible. I will do this by not having ditto sheets, things bought from stores, or by decorating the classroom by myself. It is the students room as well, so they should get to help design it.

Warning Do not Stand On

2008-10-27T17:59:00.000-07:00

What is this strange little green and white machine? It is a laptop. One Laptop per Child is a foundation that created these handy little guys. The mission of this foundation is to give one laptop to each child in the world's poorest countries. Why though? Because just as the children in America need access to this world of the Internet, they need it as well. This allows for more education opportunities. The laptops are created to be very durable and do not allow any dirt to get into them. The keyboard has no little crevices and all the ports are locked closed when the laptop is put down.
What I really like about these laptops is that it is giving children all across the world to access something that we often take advantage of ( unless you live on Berea's campus, then you know how important Internet is, especially when shortages happen!). It's so easy for us to access, and this foundation is wanting to bring it to those in the hardest circumstances. It shows how our world is growing and that even in the areas we claim as impossible for internet, they truly aren't impossible to reach. It gives hope that one day, all the world will be able to access the internet- which is a truth that seems closer than we think.

Where the Wild Things Are

2008-10-27T08:38:00.000-07:00

A childhood classic that brings light to my day! On Thursday I did my first day of field work. It was such a new experience because I was use to working with kids in schools and to work with homeschoolers was awesome.
After spending a few hours with the children it came time to do a quiet activity. While doing the activity ( which was using blocks to build what ever they wish) one of the students put to pointy blocks on their head. I made the comment that the student looked like had just steped out from where the wild things are, and we laughed. I then asked if the student had ever read the book to which they replied no. Several in the group had not so we decided to take a break from building, grab some hot chocolate and read. I grabbed the book and the girls grabbed the animals and we began.
As I read, the girls acted out the story and really enjoyed the book. We explored how the dinner got into Max's room and other questions that the students could come up with. I was able to ask open ended questions to probe futher thinking, as the students answered I could tell that they were thinking deeper and deeper about the story.
Overall it was really a great time getting to sit and read , probe exploration, and discovery of a new book.

HERE COME THE KIDS!

2008-10-13T20:52:00.000-07:00

So this week at work, we finally started working with our kids. This really made me happy because I've waited so long to do so. Now, I know this isn't a class, but since it's working with kids, it gives me more experience. When we met our kid's on Tuesday, it was quite an eye opener- I had forgotten what fifth graders were like. Now, in our program we talk about diversity and some other aspects. On Tuesday, we had fun getting to know the kid's. I think my favorite quote from the day was " You have to get on my level" Isn't that so true though? With working with kid's, shouldn't we get on their level and do things that they find enjoyable ( not for our own pleasure.) I think this is one thing that I will truly work on this year is constantly asking myself, how will the children view this activity. All in all though, we had fun playing line games, name games, and doing an "All About Me" page that the kids presented at the end of program.

Cinderelly Cinderelly

2008-10-13T19:40:00.000-07:00

So it's the first day of class and what do we do? We recreate the story of Cinderella, but not all in the same way. See , we were divided into groups ( first important thing) then we were given different activities ( second important thing) but we all had the same goal ( third important thing).

I think it was important that we were divided into groups because students sometimes work better in groups. Now, yes some of the groups weren't allowed to talk but it still can show how some students work better. While they were still in a group, they were allowed to work independently. Now in some groups, they had to completely rely on each other and work together. This shows that there are different ways students in a class work.

Second I think it was important that we all had different activities. This showed that there are many ways to introduce a topic or get a point across. We as a class were able to explore the different ways of "teaching" and learned which were more effective then others/

Third I think it was important that we all had the same goal. This tied it all together. Even though we may have had different activities and we were working in different ways, we still all had the same goal which shows that there isn't always one way to reaching a goal.

I think by doing this activity it opened up the semester in a great way because we already started exploring the different ways of teaching and we are learning that different teaching styles are okay.

Learning Centers

2008-10-13T18:29:00.001-07:00

I am actually really excited about these. With this center, I will be able to explore who I am as a teacher and develop activities that I find fitting. Already my mind is exploding,literally, I couldn't sleep one night because I my mind was going crazy with ideas. I enjoy activities like these because it shows what I am passionate about and also reflects what I got from the class. Already I can think of one thing that I've learned from observations in the class- color coding is so important. Never had I seen little baskets with all the materials set out and to see each of them with different colors. It was a brilliant idea- I even sent the pictures to my mom who is a preschool teacher. To create a system in which the children are able to do for themselves with little help from the teacher is a goal of mine. One of the most inspiring people to me once told me " Never do for a child what they can do for them self" and I find that to be very true. As a teacher, I want to guide these children in becoming independent so that they are able to function in society without always having someone else to provide for them or walk them through things.

Starch and Glue

2008-10-08T21:51:00.000-07:00

When doing this experiment I was thinking back to my past experiences with doing this. I really couldn’t remember how it felt so I was really excited to get to play with it again. I posed a few questions for myself- would it bounce, what would happen if I added food coloring, and what would happen to the consistency if I added glitter. To explore these, I did each thing. I bounced the ball and it bounced a little. I added green food coloring and it became really green. I then added the the glitter and the consistency stayed. The way that others influenced me was when they were adding other things to their experiment. When Nooema added glitter, I thought that would be cool. When I look at the pictures of me smiling I just remember thinking how awesome this was and how it brought me back to my youth and how I could incorporate this into my classroom as well as into my program this year.Well since I had done this experiment before, I was building off my old experiences. By doing this I think that I prohibited myself from expanding my knowledge. I didn’t allow myself to explore what other things would do to the experiment. I did explore a little inquiry when adding the glitter and food coloring and by attempting to see if it would bounce. The new experience that was created was the experience of adding things to the experiment. We weren’t ever allowed to add anything to our starch and glue before so to do it this time was fun. I remembered this experiment because I had had a previous learning experience. The importance of experience while you learn is that by experiencing something once, you are more likely to remember the concepts that were taught with that experiment.

As A Teacher

2008-10-08T20:57:00.000-07:00

"As A Teacher" projects now seem to be one of my favorite things. I will have to admit though, it was pretty tough on the first one. You thought you got to a point when you were done and you couldn't go further but then you sat back down are realized, I can go further. Or you got to the point when you were like man I don't have enough words and I am out of ideas, but some where deep inside you came another idea , another metaphor that worked and you were able to just go with that. Once again this is an example of inquiry because you have to constantly ask yourself, "How am I like this object" you keep on asking how until your done. It is also personal development because you are exploring who you are and you are developing who you are as a teacher. I think with these we are going to be able to look back on our first one and then look at our last and see how we've grown. For me, it gives me a chance to explore myself and really just see who I want to be as a teacher. I want to make this project in a sense more personal instead of always doing generic metaphors that don't apply to me.

Balloons

2008-10-08T18:14:00.000-07:00

With this experiment we had to do a lot of inquiry. We had to constantly ask our selves " What is lighter than this?" or "What will make this float in the air?" We had to explore all the materials that we available to us. By doing this , we were able to dive deeper in our thinking . We had to constantly test the project to see if it would work and when it did, we continued to test it until we knew it would work. I enjoyed working with Haven because she kept making changes that helped. I didn't even think about breaking items in half, which in the end was the way we had to go. This project allowed us to explore inquiry in a constructivist way by forcing us to continuously ask questions and test the experiment.

Philosophy

2008-09-26T19:28:00.000-07:00

I want to teach because I want children to be strong, independent leaders who are accepting of a diversified society.
I believe that schools should prepare students to be strong, independent leaders who are accepting of a diversified society. I believe this because I want our future to be one where the children of the world can stand next to each other and not judge the child next to them because of their skin color, culture, language, background, or history.

Blogging experience

2008-09-25T08:41:00.001-07:00

With this blog we have already experienced technology and how we can integrate it into the classroom. We are able to proceed forward and keep up with our own development . I think it is a way that I am able to communicate with others as well as explore the different ways that technology is a benefit in the classroom. By blogging, we have immediate access to our information as well as all who wish to access it and we are able to search through the web while we write our thoughts.

Definition

2008-09-25T08:38:00.002-07:00

Personal Development- I can showed that I am responsible for my own learning and development.

Definition

2008-09-25T08:36:00.000-07:00

Teaching for Learning- I can prove that I know how to create learning experiences by focusing on developing engaging, memorable experiences that teach certain concepts.

Definition

2008-09-25T08:35:00.001-07:00

The Nature of Learning- I can prove that the ways of learning listed ( experience, time, inquiry, interest,self correction, and external criticism) make sense to me.

Definition

2008-09-25T08:29:00.000-07:00

Understanding of Content- I will demonstrate that I have general knowledge and an in-depth understanding of the content I am responsible for in this class.