Weekly Update #8 or NEVER EVER EVER EVER USE GLITTER

Highlight:

This...

It's beautiful.

Something that makes me think differently about teaching:

Subs either need to be respected, or they need to learn to take the heat or get out of the kitchen.

A Practice that I wish to Adopt!!!!

Instead of adopting a practice, I think that there is one that I want to avoid. When discussing behavior of students I think it is better to be assertive in expectations, but not accusing or aggressive to past behavior. I tend to like to sandwich things during critiques. (good-bad-good) And reinforce positive behavior and get more student voice on what they understand about respect and their behavior role in class.

Conflicting situations:

The subsitute situation was ok for her, but my behind the scenes spy actions discovered a lot of inappropriate behavior. A few female students were playing a game that involves daring each other to try and say a certain part of a male's anatomy as loud as they could before getting in trouble. Others were taking advantage that their strict teacher was not present and decided to ignore class rules and use the glitter in the art box. (I was unaware of this rule, but put an end to the glitter use after the first class decided to have a Ke$ha rave) The glitter was everywhere! 

M

 

Weekly Update #7

Highlight:

I had my first supervised lesson this week and according to my supervisor: I WAS AWWWWESOOOME! Our lesson was on Irony and different kinds of irony in the texts that they have read before. 

The students got to work in groups which usually does not happen. They really surprised me =)

Something that makes me think differently about teaching:

The curriculum is always a changing element. I just learned that next year they are having a new focus on grammar instruction that usually is put on the back burner. 

A Practice that I wish to Adopt!!!!

A better attention-getter to bring the students back and focus back up to the front.

Conflicting situations:

There is going to be a sub this Friday who did not have the best experience with my particular class. I am going to be the "behind-the-scenes" observer for my master teacher for behavior. Hopefully it will go well.

M

Educational Pin of the Day: Very Punny

m

Direct Instruction Presentation: Can you fill in the chart?

m

Weekly Update 6

Highlight:

This week I was able to sit in on a student teacher conference. The student was struggling with simple tasks like turning in their work and even remembering to bring a pencil to class. With the help of the mother, counselor, and the teachers of the student, they were able to put together an action plan. The plan included consequences (lunch detention) if the student could not complete the action plan. This was a really interesting experience and something that I was glad to witness and possibly be using in the future.

Something that makes me think differently about teaching:

Teachers love gossip. Especially English teachers.

A Practice that I wish to Adopt!!!!

My teacher has a role that the students earn for good work. He calls it "royalty." Each week a student is recognized for their in class achievement and receive special privileges.

Conflicting situations:

I am having a hard time getting my students to turn in their release of information forms. There are a select few who seem to always need a new copy.

m

Weekly Update 5

Highlight:

This week I was allowed to sit in on MSP testing. It was an interesting experience! I keep trying to compare the MSP to my experience with the WASL, but the differences are much more apparent than the similarities.

Similarities: It is a high stakes and stressful test for the students.

Differences: Most of the tests are taken online and are graded by computer. The students are restricted to a character count on short and in depth responses.  Students also have longer overall testing time, the WASL was a max of two weeks before the schedule returned to normal and MSP is basically the while month of May.

Something that makes me think differently about teaching:

Does the MSP really benefit the students? I don't see it. I would like to see how these test benefit the student instead of how it effects the teaching.

A Practice that I wish to Adopt!!!!

I want to be able to showcase my students' work. Some of what they have created is amazing and they should have the opportunity to share that work and be recognized for it.

Conflicting situations:

I came across a possible bulling situation. Though nothing was concrete, it was a big eye opener for me to have to be the one that takes control to break it up and take action.

m

Educational Pin of the Day: Chemistry

M

Weekly Update 3

Highlights!!

This last week was crazy, but I have had a wonderful time engaging with the students. They seem to know me now as a real person, instead of the stranger who sits in the back of the room and takes notes. I love helping out and I feel so grown up being called Miss Murphy. My favorite part about this week was getting responses from students who normally are quiet in the class. (mostly the girls) My mentor teacher hypothesizes that this maybe because I am a female teacher and the shy students see compassion from my gender stereotype. I don't know how to feel about this, but it is interesting to think about how different students will act with different teachers.

Something that makes me think differently about teaching:

GRADING!!! IT TAKES WAY LONGER THAN I THOUGHT IT WOULD!

A Practice that I wish to Adopt!!!!

My teacher really makes connections for the students when concepts are new or difficult to understand. He does this by telling funny stories that are entertaining and useful to the students. He brings them up in different contexts and they can use these stories to connect new information.

Conflicting situations:

The students I have found really like to do whatever they can to not do work. My favorite way that they choose to not do work, is to keep asking for clarification to every single aspect.

M 

Educational Pin of the Day: Grammar

Educational Pin of the Day: History

Educational Pin of the Day: Animal Science

M

Assessment Strategies Article Response: Formative Assessment in Higher Education: Moves Towords Theory and the Enhancement of Pedagogic Practice By Mantez Yorke

Formative Assessment in Higher Education: Moves Towords Theory and the Enhancement of Pedagogic Practice By Mantez Yorke


"Formative assessment is a concept that is more complex than it might appear at first sight. The basic Idea seems simple enough - the central purpose of formative assessment is to contribute to students learning through the provision of information about performance" (479)

What I liked about this article is the approach and the attention that the research had on using formative assessments. A few of the main points in the first page are quite interesting especially the section that distinguishes between formative and summative assessment.

"Formative because the student is expected to learn from whatever feedback is provided, and summative because the grade awarded contributes to the overall grade at the end of the study unit." (480)

I have had trouble trying to understand the difference. I always thought that assessments are just one or the other, but why can't there be both? You need both to accurately judge if you and the students are hitting the objectives and the goals set for the lesson.

Another interesting thing about this article is the effect that formative assessment and how “formative assessment  works – it is effective in promoting student learning across a wide range of educational settings.”  It gives direct and quality feedback that supports any type, kind, socio-economic status, etc. of schools because formative assessment adjusts to the students. This feedback can be used by the students to reflect and grow with a long term impact.

TPA Lesson Plan: Onomatopoeia!!!

I am super proud of this lesson plan! So I am posting it here to share it =)
Power Point
Work Sheet
Lesson Plan

Weekly Update 2

WEEKLY UPDATE 2!!!

Highlights!!

I am really excited to get back the poetry books that were a part of the lesson last week. Right now I am grading them using the assigned rubric and responding to each section that is being graded. I loved how excited some of the students got when they turned in their copy of the poem flip book. I want to really take the time to grade and respond to each and every one of them.

Something that makes me think differently about teaching:

the students are preparing for the MPS next week. I can already see the intense anxiety from the students and the teachers. From my experience with the WASL I know exactly how they feel. What I find Interesting is how much my class's curriculum focuses on strategies to pass the writing MSP and not the real development of writing to share your thoughts with another person.

A Practice that I wish to Adopt!!!!

My master teacher is the pro of lesson flow! The lessons are seamless and transitions are almost unnoticeable. It leaves no room for distraction and optimizes the time spent on actual learning. I believe that it is not something that I can do right away, but come with practice.

Conflicting situations:

Because I am the YOUNG new student teacher, many of the students find many things they want to chat about that is off topic. I really would love to hear what they have to say, but I am learning where I need to stand firm and where to make those personal connections.

Weekly Update 1

Weekly Update!

Context for Learning

My school is a middle school of 7th and 8th grade. While talking to my Master Teacher, he mentioned that this middle school is feeded by a demographic mix of elementary schools.

I was lucky enough that my placement was with a teacher who taught not only an accelerated English class, but also classes that have students who are struggling with meeting the standards. For the first couple weeks I got to observe both classes and interact with the students during busy time. Each class has about 25 to 30 kids and every desk has a student. This English class is a required for the year, but they do have shifts of content and focus in each semester. Last quarter I was at the school for about four hours a week, and now I have shifted into nine hours plus a bit more with an extra planning period to plan and reflect with my cooperating teacher.

His class is set up differently that the other classes in the building. Walking by the classrooms you see that most of them have individual desks in rows. My placement classroom has large tables that form spacious groups of five or six students. I really like this set up because it lets the student’s engage learning with each other and it fits my teacher’s teaching-style well.

Lately, the students have been working on their skills in essay writing. (Mostly this is due to the MSP test that will be coming up soon.) BUT, they also have been working out of a big blue literature text book that has a collection of stories with review questions and quick-write prompts. The students also have been involved in the AR reading program. Where the students read a book according to a specific level and then take a test online to show their understanding of the book. My placement classroom has three computers specifically for this program, but they are also available for word processing.

My teacher uses his room to the fullest, everyday there is an entry task on the smart board and directions for important tasks for the day on the white board. He also uses his window as a surface to write on and leaves important information up for students to look and recall details of writing.

I really enjoy the students in the two of the seventh grade classes that I am now a part of. They are very engaging with the subject matter and really love to create rather than reproduce required learning. (Some would rather create metaphors that involve inevitable crashing meteors and life of a middle school student than write a persuasive essay on school uniforms.) =) They all show a definite want to do better and show their work off. I loved having the students come up and show me how clever they can be through their poetry. The classes are evenly about 50/50 boys and girls. I am pretty sure that many of the students can speak more than one language, but I am not aware of any of them being involved in ESL programs.

TPA Review and Response

The Teacher Performance Assessment, the TPA, or the thing you will use to become a teacher. Whatever you decided to call it, this assessment for new teachers of Washington State is a well put together framework that gives candidates and teachers the tools to develop well written, standard based, and goal oriented lesson plans.

At first glance this handout that EWU has created seems like a bunch of rhetorical questions. The kinds of things that make me think, “Well, no duh!” Example: Who are the students in this class? Or What kind of assessments will you use in the lesson plan? I think at this stage in the game that I should have a grasp on these things, but it is nice to have a bit of clarity and depth into each section of the lesson plan.

What I like the most about the TPA, is the details that each section asks for in the lesson plan. Though I am a book nerd and like narratives as much as the next person, I find that the outline form of the TPA and the divided section are easier to read and follow. Anyone who picks up the lesson plan should be able to know what the objectives for the lesson, how to run/teach the lesson, the big idea and essential question of the lesson, and finally how to asses student learning in the lesson.

Another thing that is interesting about this lesson plan is that it is being used by many of my peers. In a way it connects us to each other in a way so we can share and understand our lesson plans. We can give advice on a level we all understand and perhaps barrow lesson plans from each other and know exactly how to deliver them to our future students.

One thing that I am not particularly fond of this lesson plan is that it is a requirement for the teacher candidates to know, but there isn't any real knowledge of the TPA until we are right in the middle of producing them. I wish I had a specific class that could take the time to develop writing lesson plans. I mean I have had management classes and assessment classes, but they needed to combine many other things and lesson plans were just a small part of it.

Other than hesitation of my knowledge of lesson plan writing, I like the TPA. It’s easy to understand once you get it down. It also covers many areas that are important to think of before you actually hit the lesson itself. I also appreciate how we can use our lesson plans to share with or get critiques from colleagues.

Welcome to my Blog!!

This my first time starting a blog! I hope that it will become beneficial to me and to other teacher candidates. =)

- Mindy