Student Teaching Experience Week 9

Keep Calm and Carry On

I try extremely hard to make meaningful lessons and culminating activities, and this week demonstrated that.  I want my Honors students to be challenged, and I want to make sure my regular classes are on track and challenged as well.  There are days when I know that my lessons are not going to go as planned and I need to know how to think on my feet and get them on a track that keeps my students moving forward. 

Reflecting on my lessons has been crucial.  I know what lessons take longer than I think and what activities do not take as long. Reflection has led me to understand how well my students do with certain activities and what activities work the best in the classroom.  Which led me to create a project that I am really excited about for my students!

On Friday, I assigned my 5th period class a Spanish American War Options project. This project is allowing my students to choose how they want to carry out a depiction of the war.  A number of my students got extremely excited about making a movie about the Spanish American War, and others are going to work alone on a comic strip of the War.  I know that my rubrics have to be detailed so that my students know the expectations I have for them. 

This project is due Monday, November 4th.

Student Teaching Experience Week 8

Things are looking up!

This week was a week of healing for the students, staff, and community at Clay-Battelle. In no way are things back to normal, but the healing process has begun.  I dove back into the material and tried to get caught up on grading the maps that I had my students color while they were trying to come to terms with losing a friend.  I thought it would be good to get back into a routine again this week.  My mentor teacher felt the same way.  This week my students did a great job going through material and keeping their heads up.

The football game was postponed until Monday October 7th, and I don't think I have ever experienced anything so lovely in my life.  All of the fans wore pink for the student who passed the Monday before, and the opposing team's cheerleaders brought roses for our cheerleaders.  The opposing football team released balloons for her, and a moment of silence marked a moment of grace and peace over that field for her. Tears welled in my eyes when I saw that our cheerleaders had painted a big pink heart with her signature painted on it in her little squiggly writing to mark the young girl's spot in the cheer line.  So beautiful.

I gave my 11th graders an assignment on yellow journalism that is due Friday and it definitely taught me that I need to have every question ready to answer.  They seem to be doing a great job on this assignment so I'm anxious to see how they do on this article.

Student Teaching Experience Week 7

The week of September 30th-October 4th at CBHS was one that I anticipated to be upbeat, fun, and full of school spirit as this week was supposed to be Homecoming.  My heart was broken on Tuesday morning when I woke up to a message letting me know that one of my students was tragically killed in a one-vehicle car accident.  She was a bright, beautiful girl.  She was a state track champion, cheerleader, 4-H member, and she played on the volleyball team.  She had a smile that could light up the room and a super contagious laugh.  She was a true leader in this school.  When I received that message my stomach immediately turned, and that feeling lasted all week.  This week at school was nothing like what I anticipated it to be.

When I got to the school on Tuesday, October 1st, the students were extremely quiet and blank stares filled the commons area.  There were so many tears.  The teachers had a meeting in the library before school started, and every single one of the teachers and student teachers were crying.  This young girl had touched the lives of so many, and the fact that she died at the age of 16 tore every one in the school apart.  The principal was an amazing leader through it all.  He told us what happened and said, "I don't care if you don't do one educational thing today.  You need to be here for these kids."  This school is extremely small--436 kids total from 6th-12th grade, and they have all gone to school together since Kindergarten.  They are constantly around each other in and out of school, and they are an amazing network of support for each other.  So many of the kids felt the loss as if it were their own sister, and it has been amazing to see them reach out to each other with support, love, and tissues as they mourn the loss of their friend.  

On Tuesday, most of my 11th graders were not in class.  They were allowed to walk around and talk to the counselors, and many of them left with their parents for home.  

I remember reading an article in my Education 400 class about how the school serves as not only an institution to explore content, but it is also a social and moral institution.  We, as teachers, have a duty to provide all students the proper experiences educationally, socially, morally, and intellectually.  My mind went back to this article on October 1st as I watched the amazing network of students reaching out to their peers.  And there I was at the front of the classroom.  I had to be a rock.  I had to guide these students and let them know it is okay to grieve, to be sad, be mad, be upset.

Through this tragedy I did notice one thing: my love for this school has grown so tremendously over the past two years. Why is it that I realized it this week?  My heart was so broken, my stomach so upset, and my tears continual when I received the news of this young girl's accident.  Yet through all those feelings my heart was so touched to see these students and the community rally around the family of this girl; everyone was quick to hug, to share stories, offer tissues, give students time to take a quick walk down the hall if they felt the tears welling.  The love instilled in the community surrounding Clay-Battelle is unreal.  It's amazing.  

This young girl will forever be in the hearts of her peers, her teachers, and me.  

Student Teaching Experience Week 6

During the week of September 23rd-27th, my 11th grade classes wrapped up the Progressive Era (1890-1920) and my 9th graders wrapped up ancient Egypt. 

With my 9th graders, I used Google Earth to look at Egyptian pyramids, which is the first time I have used Google Earth while teaching.  I enjoyed using it as a resource, but it was slow to load and I felt that I should be using it differently.  What I had done is set up a bell ringer question that asked the students about the size and structure of the blocks that went into these Egyptian pyramids and then projected Google Earth's version of the pyramid of Giza.  I'm sure there is a better way to use it in the classroom that involves the students a little bit more.  Instead of being observers, I could have them asking more questions and navigating it. 

With my 11th graders, I was pleased to see how seriously they took their test.  Their test was on Friday and this was the first time they have taken a big test this year in my class.  We reviewed on Thursday with a fun Jeopardy game, and the students paid attention to those questions, clearly studied their notes, and performed well on their tests on Friday. 

As far as notebooks go for the 11th graders, I was disappointed for the most part with how they are keeping their notebooks.  Everyone seemed to have a story while I was going around collecting their notebooks.  "Miss McCoy, my notes stop here and then continue on in this section of my notebook" etc.  I had a student hand in his/her notebook and then 10 minutes later hand me a loose sheet of paper that goes in between page 3 and page 4.  I need to bring it to their attention that they need to be keeping up with their notebooks throughout the week and asking me if they need anything for notes that they missed for multiple days in a row.

I still need to be better about reflecting on my lessons.  This will help me help my students. 

Student Teaching Experience Week 5

Through my experiences this week, I have learned the importance of reflecting on my lessons every day.  my students will learn the best if I am reflecting on my lessons and making adjustments to my lessons based on these reflections. 

During my first period, I am able to see how my lessons for my 9th graders will be received by the students.  As a student in my own high school, I remember being bored to death by readings, worksheets, and notetaking, so I know the importance of switching it up.  I have found that it is hard to find the time to create the elaborate and meaningful lessons that I think of in my mind.  The important thing is to put forth a big effort in creating and implementing these lessons, reflecting on them, grading the papers and assignments in a timely manner, and keeping communication open with students and parents.  It is also integral for history teachers to thoroughly research how the resources we are using to convey historical topics to students are depicting the story.  What all does this resource say about this specific historical event? How can I best pass this along to my students?

Bottom line: I want my students to learn A LOT and have fun doing it.  I always hear my professors talk about "being a reflective practitioner" and they are right! It is so important. 

My student teaching experience this week was full of moments where students were bored by notes and readings, and there were only few moments where conversation was foreward moving and truly diving deep into the material.  I know there are times where lessons will not go well, but it is important that students are learning and are enjoying learning.  Bottom line: it is so important to reflect, and implement changes in my practices based on my reflections.

Student Teaching Experience Week 4

This week in my classroom, I felt that my students really grasped the main themes behind the content in both my 9th and 11th grade classes.

My 11th grade class did a fabulous job in continuing with Progressive Era this week with woman's suffrage. We explored it through clips of Iron Jawed Angels, a HBO film depicting woman's suffrage through the story of Alice Paul.

Student Teaching Experience Week 3

This week at Clay-Battelle was great.  I got a great sense of the community of Blacksville and the relationship the school has with the town.  I sat in on my first SAT meeting, saw the students getting excited for the Friday football game, and felt like the students are getting a grasp on the routine of our class and the content.

Some goals I have set for myself as I feel that they will benefit my students:

1.) I need to reflect on my lessons at the end of each day, not at the end of the week.
2.) I need to follow through with my warnings.  If I tell students I will move them if they begin talking to their neighbor when they shouldn't be, I need to follow through with that and move them.