Genre Reflection Acrostic Poem ENGLISH

                         Genre Reflection

  Education

kNowldege

  Growth

  Literature

  Ideas

 Student

 Historical perspective

Writings

Genre Reflection

 Writing Poetry

Quiet place to think

Ideas flowing from my pen

Thoughts crowd my brain

I need to get it out

Express myself

Beginning Days in the Classroom

I was so excited to be back at school and in the classroom.  I decided to go by the school the week before classes started for the public schools.  I wanted to get a copy of the schedule of courses and the student planner so I would know what the policies and procedures for the students are.  That day, I was walking down the hall to check in with a couple of teachers that I had worked with last year.  I found myself smiling as I walked down the hall.  I felt happy and comfortable in this place and hope to have a place on the faculty and staff once I graduate in December, 2012.  This school has already hired two students after they completed their student teaching here.  This is very encouraging to me.  I was also very excited to learn that this was also the goal of my CT.  I feel as though I have met some people that care about me and my professional future.  It helps so much to have someone looking out for you and paving the way. 

On the first day classes met, I wanted to be there.  I think it is important to be in the class room welcoming students back and setting the tone.  I was introduced to the students and from the beginning the students have accepted me as part of the teaching staff.  I am learning from them and they are learning from me.  I am also learning from my CT.  She has a great sense of humor that I have not noticed before and wondered where this person came from as I have worked with her in the past.  I wondered to myself how I could compete with her as I am a more serious person.  I need to lighten up!  I know I don’t have to compete with her but I feel as though I am sometimes.

I also discovered how much I have in common with my CT.  We are both organized and can think alike at times.  We color coordinated the students folders and their spiral notebooks so they could be found more easily.  The folders are for homework.  I return graded work to the left pocket and they can keep work that they are doing in class on the right side.  (Returning graded work last year was a mess and piled up way to quickly) The spiral notebook is to write their quick writes.  I use quick writes to help them develop their thoughts and ideas.  While they are doing their quick writes, I am taking attendance.  This allows me to take care of other duties while they work quietly.  These items are kept in a plastic basket (milk crate) which contains an alphabetic card organizer so the students can quickly and easily find their own book and begin working as soon as they enter the classroom.  This helps me to put some of the responsibility on my students to help themselves.  I really struggle with this idea because I feel as though I need to be busy doing something all the time.  I know that I need to let the students learn responsibility.    I am working to improve on this.

Another thing that is new in the classroom this year is the “Noise Level Poster”.  We move an arrow up and down on the squares indicating what the noise level should be at that moment in the classroom.  Since this is new we are trying to remember to do this and inform students of our expectations regarding this issue.  I have seen this method work so effectively that the teacher only has to respond with a “what number are we on for noise level?”  I want my own poster!

I am anxious for the opportunity to be able to take on more responsibility in the class room and become “teacher”.

Ms. Rice's Classroom Lessons and Discoveries

Ms. Rice’s Classroom News

Blog Post 2 (09-07-2011)

 I am discovering that I know more than I think I do about teaching but I am still nervous and scared when asked to teach.  I arrived this morning with about 15 minutes before class was to start and I was told that I would be teaching on plagiarism, tone and mood.  I begin to think about plagiarism and how much information to share with my sophomores.  Would they know what I was talking about when I told them that collaboration on an assignment without giving credit to all members of the group is considered plagiarism?  I also wondered if I should get into the fact that it is possible to plagiarize one self.  My CT advised against that idea.  I moved on to the next concepts of tone and mood.  Tone is what tells the feeling of the story perceived by the audience and mood is provided by the author and sets the atmosphere for the reader.

Clear concise directions are extremely important when asking students to be creative in expressing their understanding of the concepts.  Trying to explain how to fold an 8 ½” X 11” piece of paper into a square and then cut it so that there are four triangles that will open up once glued to the flat square proved extremely challenging.  I had to explain this task to each group separately in order for my students to comprehend what was expected.  Once they understood the idea of the lesson, students were then asked to write down two words that described the tone from the song “Witchy Woman” and then draw four pictures depicting the mood.  These students were very creative and artistic in their depictions. 

I am also developing relationships with some of my students.  I have a few that are willing to share personal information with me.  I have to be careful not to get sucked to deep into these conversations as this disrupts class.  Thoughts/Ideas? 

The Crucible is our next plan of study.  I find it interesting that this coincides with my study of African American Literature.  It is interesting to me to be able to study literature with my students because while I was in high school, I took creative writing.  Therefore, I have heard of these books but have not had the opportunity to read them myself.  Having taken other literature classes and having the Sparks notes and the graphic organizers that my CT is using helps me to feel more at ease and confident about teaching.  I am thankful that my CT is so willing to allow me to teach and is still right there to fill in and clarify when she thinks it is necessary. 

Another item that we are teaching sophomores about is the Annotated Bibliography.  For some reason, students seem to struggle with the ideas and requirements behind an Annotated Bibliography.  We have used a graphic organizer that explains step by step what to do and where to find the information and students still do not comply with the directions.

Finally, we have presented the historical context for the literature that we will be reading.  One student asked, “I thought we were in English class not Social Studies, why are we studying history?”  To this the teacher responded, “That is a very good question, I am glad you asked.  I think that students need to know some background information and history in order to understand the allusion that is present in the reading.”

           

Composing a Curriculum/Essence of Understanding Michelle Rice Blog 1

Blog Post 1 by Michelle Rice on Composing a Curriculum and The Essence of Understanding

There are many components that make up the planning of a unit of study.  Planning stages consist of asking questions: Why read it?, What do I hope students will get out of it?, How does it fit with everything else I am teaching? and What standards does it meet?

Students need to understand the reasoning behind what they are studying.  How is this relevant to my life now?  Why is this important for me to know?  How does it apply to my life?  Will I see this again?  This is not only true of middle school and high school students but I believe of college students as well.  It is easier to learn and comprehend a subject when one knows the significance of the information.

Students learn differently and being able to assess how each student learns the best can play a significant role in comprehension and retention.  This information will also enable the teacher to more effectively use class time in a way that is useful to all students in the class (not necessarily at the same time).  Teachers who have an awareness of their students needs and study habits that work best for them can more easily adapt instruction of the lesson on a one-on-one basis in a way that would not work for the entire group setting.  A perfect example of this was last summer when I was struggling with some concepts in my Linguistics class. I went to the teacher during her office hours explained what I did not understand and she was able to use different words that I could better understand in an environment where I felt safe to ask questions.   

Having routines and procedures in place help the class run more smoothly and allows for a less stressful environment.  According to Wong teachers with routines and procedures in place have an easier time teaching students and students who know what to do and when can go on with learning whether or not the teacher is present.  I am trying to implement this in my classroom using Quick Writes while I take attendance.  Every class period begins with a statement or thought that students are to write about in their notebook.  Students have been asked to write for at least five minutes on the given idea.  I have explained that these are private (confidential) journals and participation points will be given so dates are important to include.  By giving participation points, students are more inclined to write about the concept provided and tend to work quietly with little conversation while I am taking attendance.  This idea is another concept from Wong.

Other ideas of designing a unit that I have found helpful are: the use of vocabulary terms, leading students through an assignment to show what is expected and how to complete the graphic organizer.  Also, I use an After Action Review (AAR) at work for all events.  We look at what worked well, what did not and write down what should be changed in order to improve for next time.  These are all things that can be transferred to the classroom teacher.  Having a definite Beginning, Middle and End of class time posted allows for students and visitors to follow along.  What are we doing today is not a question to be asked because it is outlined on the board.  If a visitor comes in to observe and wonders what the teacher is doing all they have to do is look at the board and compare it to what the students and teacher are doing at that time.

Another idea I found interesting was “Hemingway’s advice to writers: Always stop when you know what to write next, so you come back to the work able to regain your momentum.”  I have never heard this before and am afraid I would lose my train of thought if I left something unsaid.  Has anyone used this idea and does it work for you?

  Understanding and being able to draw students into a discussion takes practice and time.  I have heard it said that a new teacher requires seven years to learn the teacher talk.  I believe that it also takes time to learn the ideas, techniques and strategies to use to get students involved and comfortable with the idea of communicating effectively.  Being able to establish an idea and explain one’s views with supporting facts and details makes for an ideal way to communicate and discuss ideas while respecting another’s perspective.  One way I have seen demonstrated to do this is the inside-outside circles.  I like this concept and believe it can be used effectively to teach students better communication skills.

Excited

I am so excited to start my pre-student teaching.  This will be such an amazing opportunity to learn and grow.