Teaching!

The week before Thanksgiving break I taught and planned a lesson and was observed by my field instructor for the first time. It was definitely a little nerve-wracking, but everything turned out really well! I have taught segments of lessons throughout the Fall and have also been in charge of helping the students review for exams and quizzes, but this was the first time that I was in charge of the entire lesson and was being observed. I was pretty nervous at first, but after a few minutes, I realized that I was totally at ease and having a great time with the students. We were reviewing for test and I had come up with three activities to cover the material and maintain the interest of the students throughout the hour. Each exercise went really well and the students did a great job of participating appeared interested in reviewing for their test. One activity involved a backpack that I carried around the room from student to student and as they pulled an object out, I asked them a question about the item. Because this is a beginner level French class, many of the students are very shy and hesitant to speak. I was so excited when several of them volunteer to participate. They seemed to enjoy digging for something in the backpack and answering the questions! After the lesson was over, I had a chance to talk with my field instructor and discuss various aspects of the hour. I told her that I'd been really nervous beforehand, but the anxiety wore off almost immediately. We talked about some of the reasons that I felt this way and I found that it was really helpful to break down the different parts of my lesson and the way I worked with the students. Malli gave me great advice on what she liked about the lesson, what could work a little better the next time, and suggestions for other activities in the future. I think that I'm so worried about doing everything right and perfect for my students that I forget that I'm still a student too. My experience in the classroom is so important to developing my style as a teacher and every time that I'm at Wayne I'm learning more about what works, what doesn't, how the kids react, classroom management...etc. It can be difficult because there is so much to take in, in such little time!

I do think that the debriefing session was helpful and I appreciate all the feedback that I get from both my field instructor and my mentor. I want their advice and suggestions because I have such little experience in this area. Also, just something that I found interesting....One of Malli's suggestions involved getting the class to quiet down. Instead of saying "Shhhhhhh," she told me to simply stop talking and stand silently. She had noticed that when I said "shhh" some of the kids didn't always stop talking. By standing silently, I'm not trying to talk over them and those who are paying attention will help and try to get their friends to quiet down. I also taught 4th hour that day and at one point they began to get loud and I just stopped talking and stood still. Almost immediately, the class quieted down...I thought that was pretty neat!

Fall Break:)

Well it's about the middle of the semester at this point and it's hard to believe that in two months or so we'll be off on Christmas break! I feel like there are still so many assignments and projects to be completed, and it's strange to think once the first of the year rolls around, we'll already be half-way done with the MAC program. Wow! Anyways, I'd also like to note that I cannot think of a better time for Fall Break. I never thought I'd be so excited to have a couple days off of school to do homework! It really will be so helpful though to have a few extra days to get ahead and work on some of the upcoming projects. Hopefully we can all also get a little bit of rest and enjoy this time of year.

By now I think that many of us have observed other classrooms and teachers, and personally it has been a really neat experience for me. I have observed two classes so far, Communications and an upper level English class, and have enjoyed being able to watch the students and the teacher interact with each other. It's also really useful to see a variety of techniques for classroom management, presenting lessons, dealing with disruptive students etc. I'm also looking forward to observing a former MACer at Pioneer who was actually my mentor's student teacher about 7 seven years ago, which is pretty cool. She is teaching French and I'm excited to see what kind of methods she uses in her classroom. I think that it's a really good idea to explore these resources right now because we have the time and the encouragement to do this, which isn't always the case. Before long we'll be student teaching full-time and any additional ideas or advice that I can take in right now will certainly be useful come Winter! At the moment, though, I'm just enjoying my placement, getting to know my students better, and trying to focus on building my confidence in the classroom!

I <3 French:)

So it's been about a month since our placement began, and I have to say that I'm really enjoying being in the classroom each week. It's a lot of fun to interact with my mentor and the students and involve myself in their lessons. It's been very interesting to observe the different behaviors of my students and my mentor as they work through a lesson or activity. I have noted several good techniques of classroom management that my mentor has used and also the creative ways in which she engages the students. While I know that it's going to be a lot of work in the winter, I'm really looking forward to planning lessons and carrying them out. I am seeing that I can finally apply some of the ideas/concepts/theories we've learned in class to the classroom. However, I wish that I could be spending more of my time concentrating on being at my placement and developing activities that could be used in the winter. This semester so far has been absolutely crammed with work, and it makes me frustrated sometimes when I want to be focusing more on my classroom. There is so much to do in terms of reading, projects, assignments, and simply attending class each night etc. I struggle with knowing that I'm not able to give as much focus to some of the Ed classes as I'd like to because of the serious workload. I know that everyone else is in the same situation, but I guess I'd be interested to know how they're juggling everything?

Yay for Podcasts!

So Brenda, Autumn and I just finished our podcast for this upcoming week, well almost finished it, and I have to say that I really enjoyed doing it. We decided to make our meeting a brunch and incorporated food and beverages into our work session. We had already discussed briefly what we'd like to include, and so we used that as a starting point to the podcast. One topic of discussion that was brought up as we worked dealt group projects and how to do them in a way that is more enjoyable and less tedious. Group projects can often be a big pain for various reasons...i.e. one or more members don't do as much work as the others, points of view clash, one person assumes the role as the leader and won't listen to other opinion...the list goes on and on. I'm sure that we've all had our fair share of bad group projects, but the truth is that they are important and beneficial. We will have to work with other people for the rest of our lives and there will certainly be moments of frustration and anger. As adults though, we must learn how to deal with these situations effectively. Group projects require compromise, good communication, and positive dialogue in order to run smoothly. It is in each person's best interest to take these things into consideration when involved in group projects or even in everyday exchanges. When group projects arise, maybe choose a location that is a bit more comfortable than the library. We opted for our houses or apartments and chose to include food. Little things like this can make a huge difference. It puts everyone at ease and faciliates a more productive atmosphere, well most of the time haha. So while group projects may not always be the most fun thing to do, there are ways to make that time more enjoyable and less stressful, you just have to be creative!

Wow, this break went by realllllly fast!!! I can't believe we're starting back up again this week! I'm definitely excited to see everyone and hear about their mini-vacations, but I'm not quite as pumped for all the homework and chaos that is about to begin again. I know personally that the past three or so weeks have been wonderful and relaxing and have recharged me for the fall. I was out in Boulder, CO for a couple days helping my boyfriend move back to Ann Arbor, which was fun and I also went to Key West for a long weekend, but got stuck in Tropical Storm Fay!! We made the best of the situation though, and despite the freakish weather, I had a lot of fun with my friend and her family. I also went to a wedding this past weekend for two good friends, which was a great time. So, my break was packed pretty full, and unfortunately I did not get as much work done as I would have liked, oh well. I hope I'm not the only one who slacked off a bit:) Anyways, I look forward to seeing everyone this week as we begin round two!

Trying keep with all the fun of 504

This past Friday, during 504, I was sitting in class thinking about the ideas of Podcasts, cellphone scavenger hunts, and some of the other techniques we were discussing, and I became really excited, which is a big deal for me. I am definitely not a technology person, mostly because I don't understand how to do many things tech-related, and so I'm not usually interested in this topic. I am easily confused and frustrated when it comes to computers, ipods...basically all technology. So, it was an interesting moment for me when I recognized that I was thinking about all the different ways that I could incorporate these new ideas into my classroom, instead of just flat out rejecting them. The only problem is that there are soooo many new techniques that are unfamiliar to me, and our 3 hours of class each week isn't enough to make the info stick in my mind. While I'm in class, I can usually follow what is going on, but afterwards, much of the information is lost. I can't remember the how or why once I get home, which is why my blog is still boring and lacking pictures...well I was able to add one picture, but it's small and I don't know how that happened...so case in point. Basically though, this is a big step for me, in that I am admitting to enjoying all the crazy new ideas and tools, but it's going to take me awhile until I actually figure out how to use them:)

My podcast #1

Gabcast! My podcast #1

Prof. Potter's philosophical chat

During Prof Potter's class today, I felt that she brought up an interesting and very relevant topic concerning our feelings towards the MAC program. I think we've discovered by now that the next year is going to be fairly difficult and intensive. SMAC is certainly not for the faint of heart, and there will probably be times that we want to throw our books out the window and quit:) I think that there will also be times when we question our desire and commitment towards becoming teachers. However, I feel that this is normal and to be expected. The life experience that I have up to this point is not extensive and it's difficult for me to say with determination that I want to be a teacher for the rest of my life. There are some things that I know for certain such as: I thoroughly enjoyed teaching French in Colorado at an elementary school, I have a passion for learning languages and hope to learn more in the future, I am excited to share my passion with others, and while this program is a lot of work, I really enjoy being back in school again. But there are also things that I cannot say with certainty such as: I don't know if I will still want to be a teacher in 5 years, 10 years....I may decide that I would like to pursue an alternate career. I don't know if I will enjoy teaching at the Secondary level. These are questions that I contemplate currently, and did so before I chose this program. However, I feel that the "things I know" are fairly significant and I also feel confident in my choice to complete this program, despite some doubts. I want to become a teacher, I want to share my knowledge of languages, but I don't know if this will be my only career, and I'm okay with that. Personally, I think that I will have a couple different careers during my lifetime and that makes me excited. I enjoy learning and and hope to explore various jobs and options once I've obtained this degree. I think that this program is an excellent way to start my career as a French teacher and I know that I will receive a good education at this University. Knowing this, I feel comfortable saying that teaching will be my starting point, but it may not be my ending point.

First Blog:)

I have never done my own blog before, or commented on another person's blog, so this is a new experience for me. Hopefully mine will become more creative and exciting, but for now I'm still just getting used to all these new things, so I'll keep it pretty simple. I thought that the activity we did last Friday was interesting because we were able to create our ideal classroom environment. Although we can't expect to have all this equipment when we begin teaching, we can have a vision for of the classroom we'd like to have one day and work towards achieving that goal. There are so many available technologies today that would certainly aid in teaching students and reaching them on a different level, but I also think it's important to remember that technology is not the only way to make a connection. I really appreciated the comment that Laura S. made about the education she received before the huge wave of technology hit us and how she intends to educate her students. It's strange to think about those times, before cell phones, laptops, WI's ( I don't even know if that's spelled right, which is why this class is an absolute necessity for me:)....), but people did manage to make it through the day without any of these devices. I really admire Laura's point of view, and I think that she is right in feeling this way for several reasons. However, I do think that there are some fun and interesting ways to incorporate technology into the classroom and still form personal relationships with your students, which is what I hope to do. Of course, that means I'll have to figure out how to do all this technology stuff in the first place, which is another issue.....

Test 1

I am really hungry