Being Tech Savvy Can Make Everyone Happy

Although it is only Monday, this week has been quite overwhelming already!  As the two semesters of expectations seem to be starting to overlap, it only adds to the list of things that need to be completed by the beginning of January.  From discussing the portfolio requirements to checking out current teacher website pages, I am starting to brain storm different ideas for these tasks.  One of my main concerns is going to be trying to figure out a way to incorporate technology into my lessons. Observing how my CE uses technology, the use of technology was based off of an award system.

However, my challenge is going to be figuring out a way to incorporate technology on a daily basis.  For my research piece, I found this article on Edutopia.org that talked about different ways teachers use technology in their lessons daily to engage all students.  This article discussed several tips on how to implement technology within different assignments without it distracting the flow of the lesson.  I want to make the use of technology in my classroom just another regular routine for my students.  I think the students could greatly benefit from using technology because it doesn't limit their application or exploration of knowledge. This article talked about giving the students the choice of their assignment.  I have heard of the project based off of Google's idea, "20 Percent Project", which allows the students to use different resources to create a project expressing their passion.  However, one of my favorite ways that teachers implemented technology into their lessons, is at the end of a lesson, they had a slide for questions and answers that allowed the shy who were afraid to speak or ask a question in front of the class to still participate.  I will most likely use this next semester during student teaching, because I have a couple of students who are like this.

For additional information and some more awesome resources, check out this post: https://www.edutopia.org/article/empowering-special-education-students-technology-kathryn-nieves

This article and blog post mostly relates to the NCTCS four because it is the teachers responsibility to understand their students and help take their interests and turn them into learning experiences.  It is also the teacher's job to accommodate for their students with whatever they need in order to see them succeed.  

Look!!!! A Squirrel

As the weeks throughout the semester continue to fly by, I am trying to learn as much as possible about my CE, students in the classroom, and all of the routines implemented by my school.  A topic that keeps coming up in my CE and I's conversation is how we can reach the student's who just do not have the motivation and determination to give all of their effort when learning.  As I had my first observation last week, this is a topic that came up as well concerning one of my students in one of my groups.  My professor suggested that I switch around my seating chart for my small group instruction and have the more distracted, off task students sit directly in front of me to hopefully help this issue.

We all have those students in our class who just cannot seem to focus for more than two minutes at a time.  I often get really frustrated with having to constantly redirect their attention back to instruction. Some of my students have been put on behavior plans to address this very same problem.  My CE is constantly thinking of ways to reduce the amount of time she spends having to redirect the students' attention back to the focus of the lesson. She has taken the time to know how her students learn best, and so she has been able to incorporate rewards or consequences that are based off that particular student's interest. Which this, in return, helps the student to stay motivated to stay on task throughout the day. This week, I found an article on Edutopia that gave helpful tips on trying to help reach these students that I plan on sharing with my CE.  I found them to be really simple, yet very effective.  It talked about breaking up instructions into smaller sections.  Having the students create short checklist and this will help them to stay motivated to complete their assignments.  This is something so simple, yet has been proven to help students who struggle with staying focused.  Another tip that was given was to have the students set goals.  Maybe the student sets a big goal that will be for the week, or the entire day and then have them set shorter goals to help them reach that big goal.  I want to see if this would help some of my students in my class and am definitely willing to give these tips a try!

This blog post relates to facilitating students learning by having to know the strengths and weaknesses of your students in order to best address their issues.  Every student's situation is going to be different, and that is why it is important for the teacher and student to work together so the student can be successful and enjoy their learning experience!  

The Brain Drain

This week is another short week for the public school system.  Today, on Halloween, the teachers conveniently have a planning day.  The teachers are in their classrooms, cleaning off desks, grading papers, and making lesson plans for the following weeks to come.  This is a day set aside for teachers to catch up and reorganize their plans for instruction.  Although this week feels like a shorter week for me, since I will only go to my school on Wednesday and Friday, it is also a big week for me.  On Wednesday, I am being observed for the first time by one of my professors and am wanting to make a great impression.  Also, on Friday, I have an introductory meeting with my student teaching supervisor and my CE!  This is exciting, yet a little intimidating.  I feel as if my brain is already on overload this week, and being introduced to all o the expectations and requirements upcoming for next semester hopefully will not overwhelm me too much.

With all of life distractions and still having to manage course work, on top of juggling to meet the weekly time requirements in our clinical placements, it can be difficult to fit it all in.  This week, especially since I am going out of town for the next two weekends, I am having to submit all of my assignments by Thursday, I feel like I am having to do and work on several things at once. Every time I do homework, I make a habit to have several tabs open on my computer and will switch back and forth from one thing to another.  However, I found an article on Edutopia that suggested that might not be the best way to get things done in a timely manner.  From the article, I learned that it takes more brain power and energy to multitask than to just do one thing at a time and take regular breaks every so often.  This completely shocked me, because often times I feel like if I can juggle several things at once it will take less time to accomplish all of my tasks.  The article suggested several tips in order to help the reader focus when doing homework.  I a going to try these out this week since I am  in such a time crunch with a ten foot long to do list.  If you would also like to check out some tips on how to do a task more efficiently, here is the link to this awesome article: https://www.edutopia.org/blog/conquering-the-multitasking-brain-drain-judy-willis

This blog post best relates to NCTCS to one, three, and four.  The teacher is responsible for taking leadership when in their classroom, as well as taking leadership when planning curriculum with their grade level teams, etc.  They can display this leadership when planning by knowing the content and knowing how their students learn best.  My CE's lessons are not going to be exactly like the other third grade teachers because not all of their students in their classes learn best the same exact way.    

Be in the Loop

This  week is going to be a short week, being that fall break took Monday and Tuesday from being in our classrooms.  However, that means this week is going to fly by faster than normal weeks and there is a lot to get accomplished within a shorter amount of time.  For my small group instruction, I am just continuing the magazine that we started last week and taking these extra days to catch up, or delve a little deeper into the activities that I originally planned for last week.  My students are still very interested in the articles we are reading and have been cooperating each week to complete the assignments I have for them.  As the semester moves past the halfway point, I have started to notice the different tasks my CE does to keep the parents/guardians in the loop.  She makes an effort every week to sit down and reflect on the week, as well as to include the different events and important dates that they may need to know for the upcoming week.  I really admire this about my CE and have heard praises from the parents thanking her for keeping them involved with what their child is experiencing in the classroom!

I found a really good post on Edutopia.org giving teachers resources and tips on how to create an eye catching and informational newsletter for parents/guardians. This article listed various websites and apps that allowed teachers to make their own webpage for free and even allow them to update it whenever needed.  This is awesome for someone like me, who is getting ready to have a classroom of my own because having knowledge to free resources is key!  I plan to send home a weekly newsletter with my students as well.  I am sure I will have some practice when I am student teaching and will be able to see an example of a format I could implement in my future class.  This article not only listed resources to create a newsletter to send home, but it also gave different ideas about how to send it out.  For an example, I thought having a QR code would work really well if it were to be printed on their take home folders. The parents or guardians could just scan the code each week and the newsletter would pop up for them to read over.  There were other ways a teacher could make this process work, but that is just one that stuck out to me.

I highly encourage you to take a look at this article because it lists multiple resources to use and give ideas on how to implement them!!!!  https://www.edutopia.org/blog/tech-tips-for-parent-newsletters-monica-burns

This blog post best represents NCTCS one because the teacher should take leadership not only for what happens in their own classroom, but also be responsible for taking leadership outside of their classroom.  One way to do this is to reach out to the parents/guardians and let them know exactly what is going on in your classroom and how it is going.  Newsletters is a great tool to practice this standard!!!    

Comfy Classroom

This week has been awesome!!  I have had a great experience being able to teach whole group instruction.  My students loved my lessons and were attentive (for the most part) and were eager to answer all of my questions.  I recorded them to count for credit for the EdTPA requirement.  My CE has been very encouraging and has been very open to providing me with feedback.  I was able to set aside time with her during our planning time to discuss what I should look for in my next lesson and how to address certain student's behavior.  I was then able to take into consideration her feedback and tips in order to make my lessons flow more smoothly.  I feel like our relationship is continuing to grow and she is allowing me to take on more and more as the semester is goes on.  The one thing I have noticed is how my CE has mastered the perfection of her classroom and learning environment.  The students are expected to be aware at all times because of the effort she has put in to setting up her classroom environment.

I found this article on Edutopia discussing how the learning environment has a direct impact on one's learning experience.  As the days are getting shorter, light from the sun is not a prevalent and it affects our emotions, and other forms of mentality. Our environment is constantly changing and affects us in ways we don't notice. One factor that we don't realize has an impact on us is light exposure. blue light exposure for example, has the most impact on the human hormones secretion. being exposed to Blue light makes you more alert and less sleepy. Sunlight,full-spectrum LEDs, and most digital screens are fill of blue light. "21,000 U.S. elementary students showed that, over one school year, kids who were exposed to more sunlight during their school day displayed 26 percent higher reading outcomes and 20 percent higher math outcomes than kids in less sunny classrooms." (Learning Environments, The Science of Effective Learning Spaces) 

This blog post would tie in with NCTCS number four, which deals with facilitating students' learning.  This post deals with setting up a safe and comfortable learning environment and takes a closer look at some of the elements of a learning environment. 

If you want to check out some more facts and statistics from a study performed studying elements of the learning environment: http://www.edutopia.org/article/science-of-effective-learning-spaces-melina-uncapher

Read To Achieve: Run Down

This week, I am extremely excited because on Wednesday, I will get to teach my first whole group lesson ever!!!  I am going to be teaching "Adding Dollars and Cents".  I have worked really hard planning and preparing for this lesson.  I really hope that the kids are going to enjoy it and connect to the content.  I am also continuing to teach my small groups, but the student groups that I am working with are changing. However, most of the students that I have been working with will remain the same, and I will gain a couple of others.  Today, I had a lesson that I felt really confident about because I could see how the students were making those important connections.  The article that we read and discussed was called the "Perfect Pet?" and the students were engaged, participated, and accurate with their responses to my questions throughout the entire lesson.

Read To Achieve is a third grade state required portfolio that tracks student's progress for math and reading throughout the year.  This helps to provide evidence for a student who may not pass the End Of Grade test, but may be considered to be promoted to the fourth grade.  The state uses this portfolio as a back up plan, or another way to evaluate the students academic skills.  My CE takes this task seriously and took the time out of her instructional block to explain to the students exactly what they were about to do and the purpose behind these timed test.  My CE took this subject matter, hoping that the students will do the same when approaching these tests throughout the remainder of the school year.  I really appreciate how my teacher has structured her "Read To Achieve" standards.  She also gave me a run down of how this would be implemented all year.  On Mondays, she will do an instructional passage, which will take up half of the reading block, but she reads the passage aloud and models their reading strategies to help answer the questions at the end of the passage.  Today being the first day they have started Read To Achieve, I observed and was amazed at how well she made the reading passage exciting.  I loved the different ways she used her vice when reading the passage, and how she constantly stopped to discuss or ask the students questions in order to keep the students engaged.  My Ce has a really good balance of stressing how important it is to do their best on all of these tests, but she also encourages them that it is doable and lets them know that she believes in them.  The third grade teacher team is hosting a Read To Achieve night in order to set aside time to explain this process to the parents.  I you would like to look more into what Read To Achieve is and learn more about how it is implemented into third grade, feel free to check out this PDF put out by the North Carolina Department of Instruction: http://www.dpi.state.nc.us/docs/k-3literacy/resources/guidebook.pdf.

This blog post ties in with teacher leadership because it is our responsibility to teach the students, but also make sure the parents have an understanding of what their students are learning too.  Progress monitoring ties in with the NCTCS number four because in order to see growth in a student, you have to meet them where they are.  Every student is on a different level and it is our job to assist and see every child grow.

Teacher Talk

I cannot believe we are already in week seven of the semester!  The amount of assignments and the number of hours spent in class on and off campus are making the weeks fly by.  As I continue to spend time in my classroom, I feel as if my CE is getting more and more comfortable with handing me more responsibilities.  My dreams and reality of being a teacher collided when I got the opportunity to take over the class and give the students their spelling test on Friday.  I got to read their words aloud and then make a sentence using each word before repeating the word once more.  I also continued to teach my small groups of students before lunch break, and then after their double specials, the students return to the classroom for thirty minutes before dismissal.  My CE ran their classroom store, which is a part of their positive behavior reward system and while she did that, I got to monitor the whole class, direct AR testing, and pack the students up after I circulated the room signing agendas.   The day definitely went by faster when I got to pretend I was their teacher for parts of the day!

An article I found on Edutopia.com was focusing on teacher burn outs.  It listed some of the reasons mainly new teachers face burnouts during the school year.  I found this article really interesting and connected to it because juggling on campus life and classroom life has gotten easier, but exhausting as the semester has progressed.  This article gave five helpful tips that were refreshing to me.

1) Maintain Your "Other" Life

2) Be a Stakeholder When Changes Are Made

3) Find Lessons and Opportunities in Everything

4) Nurture Peer Connections

5) Keep It Light

Here is the link: http://www.edutopia.org/blog/5-tips-avoiding-teacher-burnout-mary-beth-hertz

These tips really stood out to me and made me realize it is okay to take a step back from it all, every once in a while and breathe.  There is life outside of the classroom (at your clinical site or on campus).  I also read some of the comments left by other educators to see how their schools counteract teacher burnouts.  Strive to be the best teacher you can be, but don't let your career swallow your entire life.  Your students will sometimes better relate to you because of your life outside of the classroom, and that is okay because it may spark interest for their life inside your classroom.  For an example, this week when I facilitated their spelling test, I had connected with a student discussing sports and his love for baseball.  He told me he was pitching that upcoming weekend.  One of their spelling words was "strike".  To make the spelling word fit in a sentence, I used "When (So and so) pitches this weekend, he will throw a strike".  It got the whole class' attention and his face lit up with excitement because I remembered something about him. 

I think this article ties in best with NCTCS number one because teachers should understand the healthy balance of life and career.  They should continue their learning, but should also keep it fresh. A good teacher leader should not only give advice and take leadership with their words, but their actions should also model it.    

Lights, Camera, Action

Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays you will no longer find me on campus, you can find me in my classroom at the back, kidney shaped table, teaching and working with various groups of students.  My CE is beginning to expose me to more and more responsibilities in and out of the classroom that come along with the profession of teaching.  I was really excited when I got to observe the TRC testing of some of my students!  My CE also asked me to sign their agendas and help them pack up at the end of the day, so I was able to practice that routine with them as well.  This past week I was able to stay my first full day and eat with the kids, they loved me sitting down with them and having normal conversation.  All of them were asking me questions and telling me stories all at once, and I barely could hear myself think, but that was the best lunch break I ever had!  This week I started to record my lessons, or at least attempt to, and the students were infatuated with the iPad setup.  I had to warn them to be on their best behavior because if they caused me to get a bad grade, I was not going to be happy with them.  They took it serious, and like my CE always says, she loves third grade because you can be direct with them and they understand.  My third graders knew my expectations for while I was recording, and we had no problems... at least for day 1!

I found another article on Edutopia.org that was about letting students take brain breaks and doing focused attention practices.  This first caught my attention because my CE does brain breaks quite often in her class.  However, some of their ideas for these activities and techniques did not line up to what I have been seeing in my classroom, so I decided to read further into it.  During my experience, I got to do a read aloud with my students, but in the article, it was more of student lead activities.  I am just going to tell you my top two brain break activities from the article, which were: Squiggle Story and Opposite Sides.  Squiggle Story is where one person, or the teacher draws a squiggle line, and then the student has one minute to draw with their opposite hand and complete a figure or picture out of the squiggly line.  Opposite sides is a movement activity where the students, for an example, will blink their right eye, while snapping their left hand.  These are just fun, relaxer activities to break up the routine when needed sometimes.  The second half of the article talked about focused-attention practices and how to calm the students before instruction.  These activities will allow students to disregard any thoughts that may be causing them distraction.  My favorite two from this list of suggestions was: Colors and Sound.  The colors activity is a breathing activity where the students breathe in a brighter color, such as green and breathe out a duller color like a darker gray.  The other activity, sound is calming music that is supposed to help one focus and stimulate the brain.  As a matter of fact, I am listening to a piece while I write this blog post.

If you would like to check out some of these different activities to boost your students' interest in your classroom, or calm them before your instruction click here.

Here is the sound piece that I listened to while writing this blog post https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BYG0a7NOW_E

This blog post correlated with NCTCS number four.  The teacher is responsible for facilitating learning by allowing the students to complete activities that engage the students and expand their thinking skills.    

Ready for the Real World

As we are continuing to familiarize ourselves with our clinical placements, I have been spending more and more time in my classroom observing, assisting, and teaching.  Today, I spent my first full day at my clinical site and loved every minute of it.  It was a typical Monday, so the students were a little drowsy coming through the doors; however, my teacher found a quick fix to that when she allowed them to turn and talk with a partner during their morning work time.  The students got to discuss what they did over the weekend.  She used this exercise to improve their active listening skills, and to get them engaged and excited to start their day.  I also started my small group instruction today and I was very pleased with the effort and participation from all of my students!  I look forward to continuing to work with them throughout the semester.

This week, the principal at my school actually sent us an article from Edutopia.com bragging about how great it was and she encouraged us to check it out.  The article is called "9 Ways To Plan Transformational Lessons: Planning The Best Curriculum Unit Ever" After reading this article, I was able to gain some great tips on how to make my lesson plans stronger and more meaningful.  This article did a great job of explaining the importance of the 9 ways to plan the best curriculum unit.  Some of the tips were common sense, but it always nice to have a refresher that emphasizes the importance of teaching the standards by being creative, using different technological resources, and working together to share ideas on how to teach a particular concept.  The 9 Ways that this article lists to plan great curriculum unit are as follows:

1. Know the Standards, Curriculum, Core Concepts, and Strategies

2. Shift From Solo to Collaborative Lesson Design

3. Create the Assessment Before Developing Content

4. Write Objectives for Students (Not an Administrator) to Read

5. Create Presentations That Do More Showing and Less Telling

6. Don't Forget the Introverts

7. Provide More Opportunities for Students to Choose How They Accomplish Tasks

8. Plan Ahead

9. Integrate Productive Struggle Into the Curriculum

Here is the article if you would also like to check it out: http://www.edutopia.org/blog/9-ways-plan-transformational-lessons-todd-finley

 

I love that this situation my principal took the initiative to share a resource that helps to better the professional development aspect of her school.  I think this resource can tie in with NCTCS 1 because a teacher leader shares their ideas with others.  It also correlates with NCTCS 3 because the article clearly states several times, teacher should know the curriculum they teach.  Also, when applying these 9 ways to plan a great unit, NCTCS 2 and 4 are addressed because the teacher should recognize the differences in among the students and be able to differentiate instruction to cater to their strengths.   

 

1,2,3.... EYES ON ME!

As I have been completing my Learning Experience 4 and starting on Learning Experience 5, I have been observing and researching different classroom management techniques.  I just find this topic so intriguing because every teacher has their own style in how they go about handling the procedures in their classroom.  Learning from m observations I have seen that  my Clinical Educator is very direct with how she handles communicating her expectations for the students.  If the students do not follow her instruction, or do not obey the rules, she either uses nonverbal or verbal reminders to get the student back on track without allowing it to disrupt class.

This week I found an article that gave 5 priorities of classroom management for beginning teachers.  I thought this article was very helpful because it listed out and elaborated on each item that was listed, as well as incorporating other resources that supported each point.

The 5 Priorities that this article covered are as follows:

1. Developing effective working relationships with students
2. Training students on how learning takes place in your classroom
3. Protecting and leveraging time
4. Anticipating student behaviors in well-written lesson plans
5. Establishing standards of behavior that promote student learning.

I agree with each of these points that are listed because I have witnessed the importance of building a relationship with each student in the class, and how it affects their perspective of learning in your classroom for the rest of the year.  Also, as I am observing in my clinical placement and the school year has just begun, it is very important to train the students how the learning procedures take place in the classroom.  This will help save time, which is the third on the list and will make things more comfortable and time efficient for all.  As the teacher learns and builds those relationships with their students, it is important to implement things like the students' behavioral patterns, attention span, interests, etc. in your lessons to make the best learning experience for the students.  Lastly, students need to know the expectations and standards that are set for them to meet and how to achieve them up front.  Don't expect your students to know how they are supposed to behave in a certain situation, if you have never taught them.  These are just five things to keep in mind as you begin to design your own classroom management plan and I hope you enjoyed reading over these priorities!

Classroom management can really relate to NCTCS 1,2,4.  It address teacher leadership, by the teacher establishing authority in the classroom and demanding the students' respect.  Classroom management can also tie in with teaching standard two, because the teacher should treat each student as an individual and should really invest in every student.  Lastly, facilitating learning for students can be used along with classroom management because lesson planning is key to success in the classroom, and planning lessons that are appropriate for their students can make or break a learning experience.  

Here is the link of the article if you would like to read for further information:

http://www.edutopia.org/blog/5-priorities-classroom-management-ben-johnson

         

Create, Conduct, Critique

This week, everything has turned around for me!  I am going to my classroom multiple times a week now and my communication with my CE has became more stable.  Last week, I decided to put together a calendar list of everything that was due for the semester.  With a pretty lengthy document, it was easy for me to become overwhelmed.  However, I keep telling myself that I will tackle one assignment at a time and will be successful as if I prioritize my time.  Time management and routine are starting to mesh together, which is making my week go by faster and smoother.

I found a really interesting article on Edutopia that presented an awesome idea called "Change It Up With Integrated Learning Day".  This article got my attention because it was about something I had never heard of before.  To break it down for you in a quick manner, basically the entire school day is centered around one theme.  Teachers are supposed to collaborate and pair up to create hands on workshops for the students to become engaged in and learn something out of them.  During the article, it provides step by step how to build an integrated learning day. The steps are, as follows: Step 1. Create a buy-in
Step 2. Plan, collaborate, and plan some more
Step 3. Make it work
Step 4. Reflect on your accomplishments.

This idea actually was presented at an EdCamp, but if you would like to know more about how to "Change It Up With Integrated Learning Day", I really suggest you check out this article for more details!

http://www.edutopia.org/blog/change-it-up-integrated-learning-day-samantha-pack

The teaching standard that immediately popped into my head while reading this article was standard 1.  Teachers demonstrate leadership.  The ideas and actions that this article talks about models everything this standard emphasizes beautifully!  Also, teaching standard number 5, reflect on one's practice; recognize the pros and cons of how the integrated day went.  Reflect and remember what to change or improve for the next integrated day that is planned,

 Do you think this would be something you would want to try in your school, or grade level?!!

On Your Mark...... Get Set......

This week in 435, is when it is all starting!  During class, we went over Learning Experiences 4 and 5.  These Learning Experiences are going to allow us to gain insight on how our schools and teachers handle behavior.  When I first met my teacher, she told me that this was North Elementary's first year of  being a PBIS school.  She had said that she has always done positive reinforcement in her classroom, but they are just now adopting it for the whole school.  I learned that for Learning Experience number 4, we are supposed to write it like a reporter.  We are not supposed to state our opinions or give our thoughts on this document.  However, Learning Experience number 5, we are supposed to create a classroom management plan for our future classroom.  Learning Experience number 4 is going to serve as a stepping stone for Learning Experience number 5.  I think I am going to get a lot of great ideas from my Clinical Educator on this project!  Classroom management is one of her strengths, and as I shared with her, this area is one that I have the least amount of experience.

I have been in communication with my teacher via text.  I sent her a message letting her know that I had been thinking about her and the students during their first few pays of school.  I have yet to go and introduce myself to the students, but am eager to meet them soon!!  I think my CE and me are going to make a great team!  She said this year wasn't just going to be her classroom, but it was going to be OUR classroom and that made me really excited to begin this wonderful year!!!

For my research portion of my blog this week, I found a blog post from an experienced teacher specifically writing to new teachers.  I loved this post because it was all about establishing routines and that is right up my alley.  I see myself as being very structured and I love following routines, and knowing what to expect.  She gave advise on how to open and close lessons without wasting time, and allowing the students time to jump start their brains, or reflect on their learning experience. My favorite opening activity from the post actually came from a comment that someone had left.  The teacher said she begins each class with upbeat music and has her class to clap and chant.  She says this allows them to collaborate and come together, and have her class in all in sync, ready to start the day.  My favorite closing activity was the scale rating feedback from the students.  I think it is very important for the teacher to know how their students felt and what they thought about the curriculum and how the lesson went. Feedback often times direct which way the class is going to continue to go.

Here is the link to the blog if you would like to check it out, I definitely encourage you to do so!!

http://www.edutopia.org/blog/6-opening-and-closing-routines-new-teachers-rebecca-alber

The NCTCS that I can implement with this blog are number one and number four.  I think it is important to share our ideas with other colleagues and gain great advice from one another.  A teacher leader is eager to share their teacher tips and is open about accepting new ideas to add to their collection.  Teachers facilitating learning for students is also very important, because at the end of the day, it is the student's best interest that is our main goal.  Gaining feedback from them and deciding on how to conduct the rest of the class is crucial for a success classroom.  Teachers should know the best way their students learn and should incorporate that into all of their lessons!    

The Beginning of the End!!!

I am extremely excited about my last year here at GWU!!  I finally got my placement and went and met with my teacher today!!  She seems pretty awesome ad I already just adore her.  I loved how the classroom was set up; she had it arranged to where it felt cozy in there and the theme was a beach.  As I was driving to meet my teacher, I had a thousand thoughts and questions running through my head.  When I got there, she met me at the door and greeted me with the biggest smile, and that is when I knew I would like her.  From the second I met her she made me feel welcome!  After a decent conversation, she took me under her wing, and showed me around the school, and she introduced me to every staff member in the school building!  I was greeted with a lot of "Welcome to the family" and "I'm here, if you ever need anything".  I couldn't have asked for a better a better day at my school!

Today, was also the first day of classes, and it is slowly but surely sinking in that I am a part time college student, and part time teacher.  As we went over the syllabus and course calendar this week, I thought about just how much I am going to accomplish, as well as grow in such a short time period.  My life is going to change completely when I meet my students and I cannot contain my excitement.  I think this year, I will be more motivated and determined to produce my best work, not just for the letter grade I want, but also because I will see how it effects my students.  I have already got some of the items on the Clinical Experience Checklist checked off and am ready to see how the rest of the semester unfolds!!!!

This week I chose to research how to keep an open line of communication between the teacher and the parents.  It is proven that in most cases, if the teacher has a strong relationship with the parents, then the student is more likely to succeed in the classroom.  I read an article written from a mom's perspective, but she is also a teacher as well.  It was nice to see what she had to say about how to best and most effectively communicate with parents these days.  I was interested to read four items that she recommended for open communication, not only for teacher to parent, but also school to community.  Student blogs was the first listed, and I absolutely love this idea!!  I think it allows the student to express what is going on in the classroom and how they feel about it.  Next, which I was shocked to see, was social media (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, etc.).  This allows the community to see through the windows of the school and be aware of what is going on in the schools.  Third, was the Remind app, which I am actually very familiar with, and this helps keep parents on the same page.  Lastly, Class Dojo, which is used in my clinical placement, and this lets parents know how their child is doing behavioral wise and emotionally/socially in the classroom.  Feel free to check out more details from the article!!!

https://www.teachingchannel.org/blog/2015/04/15/improve-communication-between-home-and-school/

 
The two NCPTS that I thought fit best during this first week were: 1. Teachers demonstrate leadership, and 5. Teachers reflect on their practice.  I chose these two because my teacher is one of the most  respected teachers in the school, and she demonstrates all of the characteristics of a teacher leader.  I hope to become her mini me and adopt some of those same characteristics.  Also, number five, teachers should always reflect and see what they can improve.  After reflecting on meeting my teacher today, I want to better our communication and continue to build that bond with her and her students.  

Week 14: This semester has been 1 4 the books

Lessons plans, clinical experiences, homework, studying, and prepping for finals are all of the things that we are trying to cram in and get finished before the end of the semester!  This week I am trying to get back readjusted to the work flow and catch up on any assignments that I missed while in DC.  I am also trying to work ahead in order to relieve some of the stress that comes along with the expiring deadlines that all just happen to be during the same week. 

This week we are having a guest speaker in Social Studies Methods and I am excited to hear what she has to share.  I think it will be cool to hear from her perspective about different educational topics that may benefit us in the near future.  I am also excited to just hear about her experience working with all different grade levels and being able to use literacy skills across all disciplines. I have attended and lead some sessions on this topic as well, so I am interested to see what all is covered in this session tomorrow! 

For my research portion of my blog for this week, I found an article that introduces and models what an EdCamp looks like.  I chose this article because earlier in the semester, Gardner-Webb University hosted an EdCamp and it was a great success!  I really enjoyed this EdCamp and gained a lot from my first professional development experience.  I was able to listen in and contribute to discussion sessions that a variety of educators attended which provided me with the opportunity to gain great insight about the responsibilities, frustrations, and rewards that all come along with being an educator.  EdCamp is solely based off of the audience's participation and topic preference, and that is what makes it such a unique experience!    I am super excited about the EdCamp coming up and traveling to Western Carolina University for another opportunity to complete a professional development session.  This article is great for introducing and breaking down the reasoning and ideas behind EdCamp.

Here is the link to the article:  http://www.edutopia.org/blog/film-festival-edcamps-PD-resources

Feel free to check out the article itself, along with the videos and TED talks that are on there.

The teaching standard that relates most to this article is NCPTS 5, which states "teachers link their professional growth to their professional goals".  This means that teachers should always be involved in professional development.  They should be putting what they have learned from these workshops, meetings, conferences, etc. into practice for the benefit of their students' academic experience and success.

Expanding The Class Outside The Classroom Walls

This week was an amazing experience!!  A group of us made a trip up to Washington, DC and it was the first time I had ever been.  Going into the trip, I had no idea what to expect.  I didn't really know the group of students outside of class and was curious to see how well the group would interact with one another.  Although we encountered a couple of bumps in the road along the way, this ended up being one of the best trips I had ever been on!

My favorite part of the trip was touring the Library of Congress.  I never thought this place would have been my favorite site to see, but surprisingly it took my breath away with how beautiful this place was! I learned so much about the artists and people who contributed to the creation of this incredible national library.  I learned that the Library of Congress is the largest library in the United States and has over 170 million resources.  I also learned that any book that wants to be published in the United States, at least two copies of that book have to be stored in the Library of Congress.  This helped the expansion of resources offered at the Library of Congress. 

The paintings, tile and floor work, as well as the layout of the library was unreal!  The four corridors represent the ends of earth.  There are paintings on one of the ceilings in the corridor that represent the five different senses, other paintings have different subject areas, but somehow they all relate back to the of knowledge.  It was amazing to see all of the details that were incorporated all throughout the building.  The tour guide encouraged us to look on their website for further information and for us to also take a virtual tour, I encourage you all to do the same because this place will blow your mind! 

https://loc.gov/

This relates back to the fourth NCPTS that states teachers should facilitate student learning.  A field trip allows a teacher to introduce and show the students something they don't get to see or experience in the everyday classroom.   However, the students are able to have their own experience and will take something different from what they all have learned.       

Week 12!

Continuing this week the traditional lesson plan presentations, I also have a lot of other assignments that need to be completed as well.  I am having to manage my time very carefully and keep everything organized for each class.  I am teaching a lesson in PHED 300 this week as well.  For Social Studies Methods, I am having to tie everything together and finalize my unit plan and then complete my virtual field trip, which I am excited to see how well that turns out to be!

This week, I found an interesting article that talks about how to incorporate literacy and technology into your everyday lessons within your classroom.  I found this automatically interesting because I presented on this same topic in the LOTS conference that was held at Gardner-Webb University last weekend.  The author discusses how his school district is a Chrome Book district, which means each student is provided with a Chrome Book.  He discusses how it makes it easier to integrate technology within his lessons.  He also provides a list of five resources that he uses technology to enhance literacy skills.  These resources also help to give formative assessments and immediate feedback for the instructor, which is a plus too!  I thought these resources were very helpful in the fact that the students are able to personalize their work and demonstrate their skills.  Also, a lot of them allow the students to work collaboratively on the same document.  I encourage you to check out these sites/ apps for yourself because I think your students would enjoy and benefit from using them in the classroom!

List of resources from the article:
http://www.scrible.com/
https://ant.umn.edu/
https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/kaizena-shortcut/kfcmpbkmmdlcnepmeojihblcllopielg
https://edpuzzle.com/

This article ties in with NCPTS number four, the teacher should facilitate learning and they can do this by integrating technology and having the students to work at their own pace, and on their own level.  Differentiation is key and these resources allow for differentiation! 

My Class, My Community

Week eleven: The week reality is back in full swing, and you are just dragging to make it to Easter break.  This week has been so crazy with all kinds of lessons and other assignments being due, as well as adding onto the long list of assignments due at the end of the semester.  I am currently writing this blog on break because this break for me is going to be playing catch up.  As, the end of the semester approaches and we are rounding third base, heading for home, just remember to finish strong! 

This week in Social Studies Methods, we completed and submitted our traditional learning plans and then combined with Dr. Clark's class and taught our lessons.  I got the opportunity to go right after the lunch break on Tuesday.  I liked teaching with other people in the class that I did not know all that well.  I am excited to get feedback from others who have never seen me teach before!

An article I found this week off of Edutopia was very helpful in the fact that it listed five ways to make your classroom a community.  The first on the list was giving your students the opportunity to share multiple parts of their lives.  This will establish a sense of community because the students can learn more about one another, and allows them to relate easier to one another.  The next is to acknowledge what is good and praise your students when it is appropriate.  The students will be more motivated to impress you, if you acknowledge their good work.  Third, provide time for student to student interaction.  Collaboration is key when building a strong community.  Next, check in and monitor groups, make sure everyone's ideas are being heard and everyone is working together.  Last, but not least, set the tone and be the host.  Have the expectations for your students set and give them the appropriate amount of responsibility for their task, but make sure they still know who runs the show.  These tips were very helpful for me and if you have a great community in your class, classroom management won't be such an issue. 

Building a strong community in my classroom and becoming a better teacher for my students are two very important goals for me.  This article relates to teaching standards one and four.  One, to be a teacher leader, and four is to facilitate student learning.  Find the perfect balance and your students will be the most successful!!!

Flip or Flop?

...And just like that, spring break has come and gone! Now it is crunch time during the semester for most of the education classes and a lot of lesson planning is heading my way.  This week in Social Studies methods, we are putting into practice the flipped lesson plans that we created before we left for break.  I find this to be really exciting because I also get to experience what everyone else in my class came up with and get to participate in some great learning experiences. 

This week I found an article that explains and breaks down the reasoning for flipped classrooms and flipped lessons.  The article described how the learning in a flipped lesson is reversed from the traditional ways of teaching.  The teacher instruction occurs outside of the classroom, usually by an online video that the students will watch before class.  This benefits the students by allowing them time to ask questions that they may have about the material, and allows the teacher to work more one on one with students and help to explain the material more in depth.  It also helps when students miss class, they are still able to watch the videos and stay on track.  This article was intended for the parental audience, but it gives great background information about flipped lessons and gives tips as to how parents can support the flipped classroom.  However, I think everyone can benefit from reading this article and learn how to make their flipped lessons more effective. 

On Thursday, I will be presenting my flipped lesson to my classroom peers and I am interested to see how well it goes.  The students are to watch the instructional video and then are going to be assessed at the beginning of the lesson to see how well they comprehended the information from the video.  Depending on how well they do, it will determine where we go from there, and how intensive our review session will be.  I think the flipped classroom is an awesome idea if everyone will participate.  It is going to be my self challenge to get my students excited and interested in the flipped classroom routine. 

This ties into the fourth North Carolina Professional Teaching Standard, which states that teachers should facilitate learning for their students.  During class time, students should be the ones guiding their learning experience.  Based on the questions and discussion generated by the students will determine how the class goes.  The idea is that the teacher is just there for additional help and guidance if need be.    

"Without Teachers, Life Would Have No Class"

Week 9 has hit me hard with all of the assignments and lessons being due before break, along with the struggle of Spring Fever!  It has been thought to stay motivated and keep a positive attitude these past couple of weeks.  However, I know as a future teacher, a good attitude is an essential quality for our job.   This week I read an article that discussed ways in which teachers can have resilience throughout the year and it listed five ways in which you can bounce back.

I specifically enjoyed this article that helped with professional development because it took the time to list out the five ways, and it also made it relevant to the reader by explaining what you can do to implement these in your daily life.  I want to list them out for you because I think they are important to keep in mind as we progress throughout our career and may be a nice refresher as we endure the rest of the semester. 

1. Strengthen your school relationships

2. Emphasize the positive

3. Take the initiative

4. Keep priorities in focus

5. Keep emotions in check

This list may seem simple and that is because it is!  If you go back to the basics and remember the significance you have on these kids' lives, it will quickly remind you that the challenges you are facing in that moment are not only making you are stronger and better teacher, but also a stronger and better person.  I just strongly encourage you to check out this article and read about what you can do to make your life simpler and read about how to react and bounce back when things don't go as expected, because let's face it, teachers HAVE to be able to embrace the unexpected!!!

This article ties into the first NCPCS, which talks about demonstrating teacher leadership skills.  The list of 5 ways to nurture your resilience as a teacher infers that you have the capability to take action and move beyond the temporary challenges.  Are you prepared to hit the curveballs that teaching throws at you out of the park?!

http://www.weareteachers.com/blogs/post/2015/04/02/ways-to-nurture-your-resilience-as-a-teacher

Teacher Talk

TPACK and SAMR are two more acronyms that we can add to our teacher vocabulary!  TPACK stands for Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge and this combines all three of the elements to make the information being taught more relevant to the students.  Content knowledge covers the what part of the lesson; what is being taught.  The pedagogical knowledge is the how; how can this information going to be more accessible to our students.  The technological knowledge needs to incorporate technology to enhance the content.  The three should intertwine to meet the students' needs.  SAMR stands for substitution, augmentation, modification, and redefinition.  Substitution means that the new technology piece replaces the old, but the task still remains the same.  Augmentation is when the technology makes the task easier for the students.  Modification and redefinition allow students to create new ideas, and things that you would not be able to do without the integration of technology.  As you progress through the acronym for SAMR, the benefits from the use of technology should become more complex.  It is important to try to push to the R level of the SAMR in your lessons.  By working in the higher levels of SAMR you enable your students to enhance their 21st century skills!   

For my research portion of this week's blog, I found an article that discussed different ways to increase students' attention spans. Research has proven that the more physical activity incorporated into the classroom, the better the students perform academically. The main emphasis of this article is increasing physical activity and decreasing instructional time.  I know what you may be thinking, how will decreasing the amount of instruction time help improve testing and academic scores?  However, this article also talks about if the students get breaks every so often, or are active while learning, their attention spans will increase and performance levels will also increase.  This is because students are able to refresh and refocus when it comes time to actually concentrate.  A mistake that teachers often make is trying to rely on recess or physical education class to make sure that students are active.   

There are many NCPTS that fit in with this week's blog.  The standards are 1, 3, and 4.  It is important for teachers to take leadership and responsibility for the well-being of their students: physically, emotionally, mentally.  Also, teachers have to know the content they are teaching, this is a huge factor and key component in the TPACK acronym.  Lastly, standard 4, teachers should facilitate student learning by providing them with the correct resources and allowing them to build their 21st century skills, which is a key component in the SAMR acronym as well. 

Do You Believe in Second Chances?

As I was reflecting on my past week, and continuing to look forward to what is expected this week, I wanted to research a topic that would give me some encouragement.  It is almost mid semester, and I am starting to burn out from all the stressors and demands that hit right before Spring Break. With that being said, I came across a blog post that was post on the Education Week website.  The quote at the beginning is what caught my eye, which states: "Learning requires multiple opportunities. So get rid of your justice mindset and remember, kids need practice." 

This article takes the time to explain the reasoning and benefits behind giving students the opportunity to "re-do" their assigned task.  Learning is a progress that requires collaboration, feedback, and finalizing a task.  Students should have more than one chance to show their mastery of a skill or concept.  Re-dos allow students to show their understanding from more than one perspective and increases their depth of knowledge when they can review the concept over again.  Allowing students to have second chances on their work can be very beneficial for increasing their comprehension levels; however, a lot of teachers are against it because they either don't have the time to go over the concept again, or they don't have the patience.  The justice mindset that most teachers have is to penalize the students who did not demonstrate mastery on their first attempt.  Learning is a continuous process.  To tie this in with our class, I greatly appreciate my professors that allow me to submit my assignments for feedback, and then provide me with the chance to strengthen my understanding and performance on that particular task. 

The North Carolina Teaching Standard that best fits with allowing students to have multiple chances to demonstrate their understanding is standard 4: Teachers Facilitate Learning for their students.  Teachers should be responsible for working collaboratively with their students and providing them with fair opportunities to achieve their goals. 

Feel free to check out the blog post ---- http://blogs.edweek.org/teachers/work_in_progress/2016/02/students_need_multiple_opportu.html?cmp=eml-contshr-shr      

Learning is a Lifelong Process

Wow, it is already week six in the semester and time just keeps flying by!  I'm surprised at just how much knowledge I am gaining as I tackle on task after another.  This semester, there are things that I should constantly be working on, and at first this was extremely stressful for me, but now I have established a routine and can manage everything in an orderly fashion.  Time management has really been emphasized this semester, and is the skill that has needed the most work.  I am sure one day, I will look back on this semester and be grateful that I learned this skill now and that it helped prepare me for the crazy schedule and work load I will have in the future. 

The Keep Learning Alive conference was phenomenal this weekend!!  I loved being surrounded by current teachers willing to take time out of their weekend to not only better themselves, but also look out for the best interest of their students. The collaboration and enthusiasm got me excited even more about one day working in the school system and having my own classroom.  I gained so much insight on all different aspects of teaching, not just in the classroom, but all of the duties that come from outside of the classroom as well.  To kick off the KLA conference, Mr. Steve Lassiter, the N.C. Principal of the Year spoke and it was so inspiring to hear his school's success story.  In my opinion, he holds every attribute it takes to be an influential and encouraging principal.  I would absolutely love to work for someone like him in the near future!  I also attended 3 great breakout sessions before having lunch that day, but the one that really stuck out to me was "The Power of an Hour: Building Culture of Innovation through Genius Hour".  I seriously love everything about this idea and think that it can really motivate and benefit students throughout their educational journey.  The basics of this idea is to empower the students to create an appropriately challenging project, dealing with something that interest them, and allowing them time during the week to research, create, and construct their own project. I think this idea expands the educational horizons and allows students to learn from all kinds of different perspectives.  This also keys in on the student's intrinsic motivation and gets them excited for learning about their particular project.  Ms. Moore was an awesome speaker and brought great energy to the session.  I even thought to myself, I want to be a student in her fourth grade class, she seems like a fun and knowledgeable teacher!  This conference definitely had an impact on me, as a future teacher and I took away so many ideas that I want to implement in my classroom!  I appreciated the opportunity to attend this conference and will look for more to attend in the near future! 

This blog really connects to all of the N.C. Teaching Standards in my opinion, but to narrow it down, I would choose the first one and the fourth one.  Teachers need to demonstrate leadership in their classroom, and teachers should facilitate the learning of their students.  Teachers should show leadership by modeling "learning is a life long process" and then allowing the students to take responsibility for their learning as well. 

DOK

DOK (Depth of Knowledge) was an acronym that sounded so foreign to me when I first heard of it during our discussion this week; however, the relationship between DOK and performance tasks intrigued me to research a little more about it.  Dr. Parker had suggested to look up Alice Keekler and her explanation of DOK, so that is exactly what I did, and I found an awesome resource called her website that broke down the difference between the DOK levels and it also gave some tips as to how to differentiate the difference between a DOK task and one that is not. 

While reading this article, I learned that most assignments or tasks that are assigned most often in the classroom are DOK level 2 tasks.  Level 2 tasks are usually when students can provide the same answers and can have their answers checked against an answer key to see if they are correct.  Assessments are usually the main focus when it comes to DOK level 2.  Alice Keekler, being a math teacher admitted that she struggled with assigning DOK level 2 tasks most of the time.  She referenced a cool resource called www.quia.com/web that she uses for assessment in her class.  She explained the many advantages that it provides for the students, but then she quickly realized this website does not make her students think critically about the concepts being taught, which does not make it a higher DOK level task.  There is a difference between DOK level 2 and DOK level 3.  DOK level 3 tasks make the students go beyond the point of just providing an answer, it makes the student explain their reasoning for providing that answer.  Strategic thinking and critiquing the reasoning of others, which would allow the students to participate in peer evaluation; these are just some ways to apply DOK level 3 tasks to any subject area.  DOK level 4 tasks expands students' critical thinking skills even further!  Level 4 requires students to be able to apply their knowledge of the particular concept and to invent or create something new.  This evidence allows one to prove that they have mastered it and can model their understanding by transferring their knowledge from the thing being taught to this new idea.  Alice emphasizes that DOK is more than just a verb chart, and teachers should be responsible for checking their assignments against these guidelines instead of the DOK verb chart to see more affective results.  At the end of the article, Alice challenges upcoming and present teachers to keep a tally chart of what kind of assignments they are using in their classroom. 

Furthermore, I am connecting this article with my progression of creating my unit by following these DOK guidelines when designing my performance tasks. My two concepts for my unit are Leadership and Society, and my grade level is second.  I have an idea for my first performance task, which is to have the students pick a historical figure and create an infomercial/ election commercial about that particular figure.  They will have to explain how the contributions of this person has affected society and how it still affects them today.  Then, they will post their video to SchoolTube, and their videos will be broadcasted for the whole school to watch.  The school will then vote on who they think was the most influential and who is their favorite historical figure.  Judging the task on these DOK guidelines stated above, this would be a DOK level 4 assignment.  However, this is just brainstorming about this activity, so if you have any ideas or suggestions feel free to share!!!

This concept of the DOK goes along with the fourth NCPTS, which is teachers facilitate learning for their students.  Teachers are responsible for planning instruction that is appropriate for their students. 

~P.s. This article was an awesome read and if you want to check it out for yourself, here it is:
http://www.alicekeeler.com/teachertech/2015/02/13/dok-levels-students-critically-thinking/   

What's all the hype about homework?!

Homework always seems to be a topic that students tend to cringe when it is brought up in conversation.  After being in the classroom for 7 hours out of the day, when that dismissal bell rings, homework is the last thing on students' minds.  This week I read an article that drew out all of the pros and cons that homework creates.  Although most students have a negative connotation about homework, there are many academic and life lessons that are associated with it as well.  A big challenge that many educators face is how much homework is really appropriate for each grade level.  I have always heard that the rule of thumb for the amount of homework assigned is 10 minutes times the grade level.  For example, if you are teaching a fourth grade class, it is acceptable to assign 40 minutes of homework.  However, research is now showing that homework doesn't really have an impact at the elementary level, it has a low beneficial impact for middle grades, and a subtle impact for high school students.
A goal of mine as a future teacher is to make sure my students understand the value of homework and not let them get bogged down with busy assignments, which could result in frustration and poor performance.  I could really relate to some of the issues that were emphasized in this article caused by homework. Throughout my educational experience, I always seemed to get the teachers who loved to assign loads of homework each night.  In high school, I was an AP student, a fall sport athlete, and being involved in the community, with family, and my church, I can attest that having loads of homework only adds frustration and stress.   I personally experienced the sleep deprivation from having to stay up late and finish homework, loss of quality family time, and not performing to the best of my abilities on assignments in order to check everything off of my to do list.  Today, I tell people that high school was more challenging for me than college, and people look at me weird.  I challenged myself academically in order to prepare myself for college, and looking back in return, I just feel like I signed up to occupy all of my time to completing school assignments.  I do, however, think it is important that students are able to learn not only the academic skills from completing their homework assignments, but also the life lessons as well.  Students should learn time management, the importance of parental involvement, and have a deeper understanding of the concept that they are working on. 
I also found it interesting that this study took a global perspective, as to how much time students around the world spend doing homework.  The students in the U.S. spend almost double the amount of time each week doing homework than students in Finland and Singapore.  However, it is important to keep in mind, and refer back to my personal experience that the main focus of homework should be about quality instead of quantity.  I like how the article concluded stating; " The question isn't about homework vs. no homework; instead, we should be asking ourselves, "How can we transform homework so that it's engaging, relevant, and supports learning?" My mission is to find the right balance and allow my students to have the right attitude towards having homework. 

This challenge of assigning the appropriate amount of homework to a class ties in with standard 4, which is teachers facilitate learning for their students.  Teachers should be familiar with the capabilities of their students and attempt to strengthen the skills necessary for them to be successful.

http://www.edutopia.org/blog/research-trends-is-homework-effective-youki-terada

Ready, Set, Conquer!!!!

...And just like that, it's week 3 of the semester!  I have always heard people say that Junior year in college is one of the most difficult years and now I can attest to that!  Social Studies Methods and the flipped classroom teaching technique has made me feel like a productive college student. I feel like this class is the appropriate stepping stone to successfully get me from relying on my professors to provide all of the information, to letting myself explore different resources and research the information myself.  I am already starting to appreciate how this class (and all of the crazy assignments) is teaching me to be an independent, resourceful, and successful future teacher.

Creating my Professional Development Plan (PDP) and analyzing two professional goals that I want to achieve this semester, really made me stop and think about real this is getting.  I often times think that student teaching is still a couple of semesters away, and that I will have time to get it all together before then.  However, this class has been a wake up call for me, in the fact that this class is specifically preparing me to student teach, which will be here before you know it!  Part of me is intimidated by that realization and part of me is ready to takeover a classroom tomorrow! 

As I reviewed the Teacher Standards, I chose two that I think are relevant to where I am on my educational journey.  The first one I chose, dealt with knowing the content  that I will be teaching (3), and making the NCSCOS standards align with my lesson plan and assessments (3a).  When I first started glancing over the standards, I thought this was an easier one to master; however, as I looked for standards for my concept based unit, I realized, I don't recall much about what is being stated in those particular standards.  Going through school, especially in Social Studies, I would just memorize the facts and spit them back out for the test.  Now, I am personally experiencing the danger of that learning method because I am not familiar with the subject area.  As I prepare my lessons, I want to become confident with the content I will be teaching and create a level of understanding for myself as well.  The second standard I chose was teacher facilitate learning for their students (4),  integrating and utilizing technology within instruction (4d).  I am going to challenge myself to learn one technology tool per week and learn how to incorporate it in my lessons. 

If you were wondering, I have already gotten started on my PDP goals! (:

I learned about this really cool website called https://getkahoot.com/ and it is a free multiple choice, interactive, quiz game.  The questions along with the answer choices are projected on the screen, while the students select their answers from their own internet connected devices.  The website goes into detail about how it works and it's purpose, but I seriously love it!!  I have already created my free account and have taken some quizzes just to play around.  It is so much fun and your students would love the competitive aspect it has, as well as the cool music in the background as the questions and answers are revealed.  I hope you take the time to check it out and have some fun with learning and assessment! 

Accept the CHAlleNGE and Embrace the Change

The Common Core standards tend to be a controversial topic of conversation.  I thought it would be interesting to read an article titled  "The Common Core Explained".  This piece provided me with great insight about the background, purpose, and reasons for the backlash against the Common Core.  As I am getting deeper into my studies and my major classes, I keep hearing my professors say that it is essential for teachers to be able to cope with change.  Since education is usually a political issue, changes for education could be passed into law at any given time and it is teachers' responsibility to adapt and incorporate the new methods. 

In 2009, North Carolina was one of several states to adopt this curriculum.  The purpose of it was to get all of the states on the same page, as far as what they were teaching the students in the classroom.  Common Core was designed to have an appropriate list of expectations for the students at every grade level and to keep the states accountable for what they were teaching in their schools.  However, Common Core challenges not only the students to think on a deeper level, but the educators to integrate other subjects into their core lessons as well.  As a couple years passed, states started to back out of their agreement of adoption for this curriculum because the primary grade level teachers were complaining that the students were not developmentally ready to learn these standards at the depth that the Common Core expected.  Also, from a political point of view, since the federal government had gotten involved when developing the Common Core, many states thought that was a violation of their rights.  Fast forwarding to today, politicians and education activists are discussing whether or not to be a Common Core state in the coming future.  As a future teacher, I have to acknowledge the fact that education will always be a major political issue and because of that I have to be innovative with my perceptions and teaching techniques for education.   

During the introduction to all of my education classes, we discussed the traits that a good teacher must possess.  A couple that I found most important were, teachers have to be caring, knowledgeable about the content, approachable, enthusiastic, and flexible with their schedule. A powerful quote that I found by Nelson Mandela says "Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world." Although this takes on a different context to change as I was discussing before, this quote is very motivational for me as I pursue my future career.  Change is inevitable, it is how you handle it that will make a difference. 

Do what you love, Love what you do

Hi folks!

Since this is my first blog post, and the semester is just beginning, I wanted to take the time to introduce myself and allow you all to get to know me a little better.

I am a Junior studying Elementary Education at Gardner-Webb University.  I am from Winston-Salem, North Carolina and am the oldest of three children.  My family is very important to me and because of them, I am able to pursue my dreams.

I chose to attend Gardner-Webb University knowing that they had a strong School of Education and knowing I would be able to form those personal relationships with my professors.  I am confident that I will be equipped with the proper knowledge and skills to be a great teacher because Gardner-Webb University School of Education instills what they believe.  My goal is to be an inspiring teacher and this TEACHERS acronym outlines what it takes to master the art of being an educator:  T.E.A.C.H.E.R.S. (Transformative educators who are Engaging, Adaptable, Content-Driven experts that are Holistic, Experience based, and Reflective practitioners prepared for a successful career).  

An article that I found on educationnews.org simply proved the point that teachers are more than just teachers.  This article was discussing how a principle, who was also a committed Restorative Practitioner, from a middle school challenged her staff to really reach out to their troubled students.  Then, the article specifically focused on a student that was causing disruption in the classroom, Leon, and was one of the school's most troubled students.  After contacting his mother several times and trying to piece together the reasons for his misbehavior, they finally realized he needed glasses.  Leon had not been doing any of his school work because he couldn't see the board, or the fine print in his textbooks.  The RP team figured out a way to make purchasing glasses possible for Leon and his family.  From reading this article, I gained that it is important to know your students and understand what they are going through outside of the classroom because it will affect how they perform in the classroom.  Yesterday, one of my professors was introducing herself to the class and told us when she was teaching, she was once asked to give a job description and she started naming off "I'm a doctor, lawyer, teacher, etc.", and her point was that teaching is a profession that encompasses everything.  A great teacher goes out of their way to help their students succeed not only in the classroom, but in whatever they are involved in.

Teaching is so special to me because I once heard this quote and it has stuck with me ever since: "Teaching is the one profession that creates all other professions."  This is such a powerful quote because it reminds me how influential a teacher can be in one's life.  I know without a doubt that I am meant to be a teacher, and I accept the challenge to help as many students as possible succeed in following their dreams.  For me, there is no backup plan, teaching is where my heart is and that is what drives my performance and success!!