For my final blog post, I want to use a recent lesson which I videotaped that provided a glimpse into some Japanese culture; both the lesson plan and videotape will serve as my artifacts. While I am very proud of the entire lesson and how well it went, I am going to focus solely on the introduction to the lesson (which I critiqued for my videotape analysis). During this introduction, I presented a new form of classroom management, oriented the students to some of the lesson's activities/plans, and gave them my ground rules for the lesson. I really feel that I did a great job communicating my intentions and expectations for the students during this time. My classroom management strategy consisted of signs which my mentor teacher suggested; I made these with color, picture, and word reinforcement so that students would know what I expected of them (red with zipped mouth for quiet work, yellow with a hand raised for being called on, and green with an open mouth for choral response). I introduced these, provided example questions, and referred back to them for behavior throughout the lesson. Also, by presenting my intentions at the beginning of the lesson, I was able to tell the students what would happen for the next half hour and my expectations for their behavior throughout all the parts. They understood that we had to go through a process before they could enjoy the ending of the lesson (they saw me carrying in a bowl for food, and I told them that they had to pay attention to my lesson to see what was in the bowl).
I feel that this fulfills Characteristic #2, the effective communicator. I feel that my communication and classroom management have improved drastically over the years, and this was a prime example. The classroom management strategy and explanation of the day's events worked extremely well to make sure the students stayed on task and appreciated each part of the lesson.
Friday, February 5, 2010
Artifacts and Characteristics of the Novice Teacher #8
When reading over the Characteristics of a Novice Teacher, I was struck by the description for Characteristic #8: a reflective practitioner. This is something we have been told over and over in our teacher education classes, and I have recently been able to REALLY see classroom situations that have been altered based on reflection and discovery. This may be a little odd (and hopefully allowed), but I would like to analyze two artifacts for this characteristic; truthfully, I would like to analyze how the reflection in one lesson affected another lesson.
The lessons I want to analyze for Characteristic 8 include one on caring (which was the first lesson I taught my students this semester) and one on the census. The first day I taught a lesson in my new class, I had many contributing factors that combined to cause a very tough environment. There was a substitute, the room was exceptionally warm, the students had completed a number of independent and silent worksheets while sitting at their desks, it was half an hour until they went home, and this was the first day they had me as the leader of lessons. I read aloud Corduroy, discussed the idea of caring both in the book and in their lives, and had them write ways they showed they cared on a sheet that they could color. Unfortunately, I had a difficult time keeping them awake and on task. Many were either sleepy or antsy from the long day, and just about all of them were playing in their desks. The census lesson on the other hand went better in these respects because I had learned some strategies to control my environment. To begin, I had the students stand up and stretch to wake themselves up. Then, I had them clear off their desk tops and put their hands on top of the desks so that they would not be tempted to play with anything. Before the lesson started, I waited until all students had their eyes on me (and verbally stated so). As the lesson progressed, I used strategies to ensure on-task behavior and understanding, such as asking students to raise their hand if they were still confused and asking periodic questions to reinforce the facts presented. Also, I told them not to comment on the time remaining until they could leave because that was rude to me as a teacher. I did write formal reflections for these lessons after I taught them, so I have physical artifacts that can reinforce my identification with this characteristic.
I feel that this most definitely fits under Characteristic 8 because these two lessons show the essence of teaching. If teaching was simply presenting facts under ideal conditions, we certainly would not need 5 years to be proficient. We, as educators, must learn to identify a problem, brainstorm any possible solutions, attempt the most logical ones, and reflect on the (if any) impact that they had. I had many problems that I needed to attempt to alleviate regarding classroom management. I had tried a few strategies in the past, and I am still fine-tuning some of the most pertinent methods for the class at hand (classes are all different, so some strategies may not work for some students). This reflection did empower me as a teacher and improve the quality of learning for my students because I feel that I have more control to guide the learning environment.
The lessons I want to analyze for Characteristic 8 include one on caring (which was the first lesson I taught my students this semester) and one on the census. The first day I taught a lesson in my new class, I had many contributing factors that combined to cause a very tough environment. There was a substitute, the room was exceptionally warm, the students had completed a number of independent and silent worksheets while sitting at their desks, it was half an hour until they went home, and this was the first day they had me as the leader of lessons. I read aloud Corduroy, discussed the idea of caring both in the book and in their lives, and had them write ways they showed they cared on a sheet that they could color. Unfortunately, I had a difficult time keeping them awake and on task. Many were either sleepy or antsy from the long day, and just about all of them were playing in their desks. The census lesson on the other hand went better in these respects because I had learned some strategies to control my environment. To begin, I had the students stand up and stretch to wake themselves up. Then, I had them clear off their desk tops and put their hands on top of the desks so that they would not be tempted to play with anything. Before the lesson started, I waited until all students had their eyes on me (and verbally stated so). As the lesson progressed, I used strategies to ensure on-task behavior and understanding, such as asking students to raise their hand if they were still confused and asking periodic questions to reinforce the facts presented. Also, I told them not to comment on the time remaining until they could leave because that was rude to me as a teacher. I did write formal reflections for these lessons after I taught them, so I have physical artifacts that can reinforce my identification with this characteristic.
I feel that this most definitely fits under Characteristic 8 because these two lessons show the essence of teaching. If teaching was simply presenting facts under ideal conditions, we certainly would not need 5 years to be proficient. We, as educators, must learn to identify a problem, brainstorm any possible solutions, attempt the most logical ones, and reflect on the (if any) impact that they had. I had many problems that I needed to attempt to alleviate regarding classroom management. I had tried a few strategies in the past, and I am still fine-tuning some of the most pertinent methods for the class at hand (classes are all different, so some strategies may not work for some students). This reflection did empower me as a teacher and improve the quality of learning for my students because I feel that I have more control to guide the learning environment.
Artifacts and Characteristics of the Novice Teacher #4
I am particularly proud of my learning cycle from science methods class (EDUC 440). I used the opportunity to teach my then 4th grade students all about adaptations. I enjoyed implementing the learning cycle to see the content come alive to my students at different times. I taught it over the course of 3 class periods and used diverse teaching methods in each period. The first day was a kinesthetic lesson: the students took materials I gave them in prepared packets to help a plant or animal adapt based on the problem it had in its environment. All of the students seemed to enjoy this and really came to life. At the end, they presented what they had done and why; I found this especially important because it gave them a friendly way to verbalize what they did not know they knew about adaptations and because my students had remarked to me before that they "liked being the teacher". The second day was more traditional with discussion and PowerPoint images (although the technology became an issue, so the lesson had to be adapted minutes before). The final day was computer exploration; I had created a safe search engine to allow them to search any animal or plant they wanted to find out how it has adapted to its environment/lifestyle. While there were a few issues, many of the students seemed to enjoy this.
I believe this learning cycle fits with Characteristic #4, the teacher is a facilitator of learning for all students. I loved that this was a multi-modal learning experience. I took some of the past feedback they had given me about lessons to create a custom-tailored set of lessons to address their interests. They had kinesthetic/creative outlets, traditional visual and auditory instruction, discussion to facilitate discovery, and self-exploration based on interest. Also, the teacher made a point to tell me how amazingly the students performed on their chapter/unit test including the material I covered. The students may not have been 100% excited for every activity, but I feel that I covered many of the bases of the learning needs of the classroom.
I believe this learning cycle fits with Characteristic #4, the teacher is a facilitator of learning for all students. I loved that this was a multi-modal learning experience. I took some of the past feedback they had given me about lessons to create a custom-tailored set of lessons to address their interests. They had kinesthetic/creative outlets, traditional visual and auditory instruction, discussion to facilitate discovery, and self-exploration based on interest. Also, the teacher made a point to tell me how amazingly the students performed on their chapter/unit test including the material I covered. The students may not have been 100% excited for every activity, but I feel that I covered many of the bases of the learning needs of the classroom.
Artifacts and Characteristics of the Notice Teacher #7
The artifact I choose today is a unit plan from my Community Health Promotion class. It is on nutrition and spans 12 lessons plus a review lesson. The lessons provide an overview of digestion, an overview of the Food Guide Pyramid, a breakdown of every food group, physical activity, serving sizes, an online game for healthy choices, foods from around the world, and a review/summary. It is aimed at a 1st grade level and is worth 130 points.
I believe it fits under Characteristic 7: effectively integrate content and pedagogy. I think this because my unit plan teaches the Food Guide Pyramid through science, math, language arts, art, drama, physical exercise, technology, and diversity. This allows the instruction to be eclectic and diverse: students are doing new activities everyday. This allows the content of other subjects to easily flow through lessons. Also, it shows that a teacher understands the in's and out's of the multiple subjects well enough that they do not have to be taught in isolation.
Additionally, this could fit under Characteristic 2 (effective communicator) or Characteristic 10 (liberally educated). These are true because the unit integrates many subjects and must be thoroughly communicated.
I believe it fits under Characteristic 7: effectively integrate content and pedagogy. I think this because my unit plan teaches the Food Guide Pyramid through science, math, language arts, art, drama, physical exercise, technology, and diversity. This allows the instruction to be eclectic and diverse: students are doing new activities everyday. This allows the content of other subjects to easily flow through lessons. Also, it shows that a teacher understands the in's and out's of the multiple subjects well enough that they do not have to be taught in isolation.
Additionally, this could fit under Characteristic 2 (effective communicator) or Characteristic 10 (liberally educated). These are true because the unit integrates many subjects and must be thoroughly communicated.
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