Today was a very short day for me. This whole week the second graders have had MAP testing, which usually begins at 9:20 after I leave. Today, however, testing began at eight o’clock. I did not know this until I got to the school. I started my day at placement by creating a chart for Mrs. Catoe. I had to write down all of the students’ names and then put them into columns for their testing scores. After that, the kids left to go to the computer lab for testing. Mrs. Catoe gave me some candy canes and letters from “the Grinch” to lay on every students’ desk while they are out of the classroom. I finished with that and then did not know what to do because I ride with Jo. So, I sent a text message to Mrs. Sutusky and asked her if I could ride back with her since she was observing today. I am so glad she was there because I would have had to stay there for another forty-five minutes.
Today Mrs. Mathis was absent. This bothered me because I didn't have anything to do. The students got to redo their test, so they were very quiet and independently working. I did get to help go over the test and what they needed to do. The substitute was Mrs. Lyon. I knew her because she was my 7th grade teacher. She was telling me that she retired, but she loves being a substitute. She said that she loves being a substitute because she gets to be with students, but without all the stress. After the kids finished their test they got to work on their classwork. I was able to help the kids on this. Near the end of the class I began to ask the students if I could take pictures for my portfolio. I tried to take a group photo, but you know how 8th graders are. Some students did not want to be in the picture, and others wanted to be complicated. I am going to miss my students though. Very Very much. Also, I missed Mrs. Mathis a lot today. I am ready for her to be back on Monday.
I did my lesson today. I felt like it went well. I got to the school right after the bus left. My kids were unpacking when I walked in and right after I got there, Mrs. Sutusky walked in. I just was setting up my vin diagram. Mrs. Gandy was helping me set up. We started out with the calendar. I got to do the calendar today, and I loved it. I was doing everything I possibly could in order to ensure I kept my voice loud enough. I finished up the calendar and moved the kids over to the rug. They sat down and I asked them to tell me about what story I read them yesterday. They all could tell me exactly what happened. I even had one boy tell me about the very last page with mama jumping on the bed. After we finished reviewing the story, I read them “Five Little Monkeys Sitting in a Tree”. I read with as much enthusiasm as I could muster. I was a lot of fun because I told them to make alligator jaws with their little arms and SNAP down. They are too cute. After I read, I introduced the Vin diagram. They seemed to get it very quickly because anytime I asked them where things went they told me without a problem. Once I finished Mrs. Gandy handed out little magazines about living things. The class looked at them for a bit and moved on to group time while I passed out brag tags and that’s how my placement day ended.
Dec. 13/2013 Today during Mrs. Mason’s class I came a little early. Once we were finished with the announcements and the pledge we began silently reading. I took up everyone’s paper and she asked me to take up any Candy Cane money that they had. Once I got all the kids signed up for it she got me to give them their vocabulary test. Once I read all of the questions and then got the kids paper, I began grading them. Once I was finished grading the kid’s paper, I had to help a couple of the kids who were outside the class. I read them the test and they finished it pretty fast. I took their paper and graded it. I then read with a couple of the kids. She asked me to help a couple with their AR tests, and then she gave out the math test. We got halfway through it before I had to leave to return to class.
Today was a very slow day. Normally, that is how Fridays feel though. The students were anxious to get out of school for the weekend. On Fridays, students normally go to the restroom and to the prize room for their bucks and then back to the classroom for their morning work. This morning was switched up a little bit. The students went over their morning work, had reading time, went to the bathroom and then had to leave for MAP testing. I was kind of upset this was my last Friday with them and I did not get to see the excited expression on their faces when they get to spend their bucks they have earned and saved from the previous week. As I realize my placement is coming to an end, I also am starting to realize how much I will miss the students. Although I do not want to be a teacher, I have enjoyed spending time with the students, helping Ms. Pigg and learning things useful for myself.
After the morning news show was over, Mrs. Kahler had a brief heart-to-heart with her students. Apparently, many of them had been complaining to other teachers about their workload. Although they do have a good deal of work that they must complete, each assignment serves a purpose. Mrs. Kahler does an awesome job at creating worksheets and projects that will greatly benefit her students. At the end of the conversation, I think they all realized that their hard work will pay off in the end. After this, they completed their works cited page from yesterday. I could already tell a difference in their attitude towards their work. This speaks to the classroom management skill that Mrs. Kahler possesses. Most teachers could not have this type of impact on his or her students after just one conversation, but Mrs. Kahler’s students respect her so much and I hope to have the same level of respect from my students if I decide to be a teacher.
Today my placement went very well. To begin with Mrs. Smith had to go home for her sick child, therefore she had a substitute there. Fortunately I taught today. Not only did I have Mrs. Sutusky there to observe me, but my placement teacher was there, along with her substitute. I had a lot of people watching me, and I was very excited along with nervous. The students behaved excellent. They were completely on their best behavior. The participation was also amazing. Every student contributed. There seemed to be some confusion to begin with, however after clarifying the students worked excellent. It was almost too quiet. I did a lesson on the twelve days of Christmas. The students had a worksheet to figure out the cost of the twelve days of Christmas. They were practicing, adding, subtracting, and multiplying decimals. The students seemed to enjoy it!!
Today was another teaching day for me! When I arrived I was super excited to teach the class today. I finished setting everything up when I got there. When the kids arrived they were wound tight! They did a coloring sheet before I taught and it didn’t help calm them down much. One girl started crying during morning work and another little boy did too. It started out sort of rough. Finally I started teaching! I got my class a classic story book for Christmas and I started out by reading the note that I wrote to them inside. After that I read them the story of Peter Pan. After the story I taught them what compare and contrast meant and them I made a compare and contrast chart. In my chart the class helped me compare and contrast Captain Hook and Peter Pan. Then the students went back to their desk and I had them draw Captain Hook and Peter Pan on different flaps. On their different flaps the listed differences of each one and in the middle they listed similarities. After that I would call out a trait and I would pick on a kid to tell me which character it represented. Overall my lesson, I thought, went very well. I did have a girl get sick during it and a boy eat paper. But I learned today that as a teacher you would never have a smooth sailing day or lesson.
Today was another boring day at my placement. I began class by going over two sets of South Carolina facts with the students. They were excited because they will not have to copy down any more facts until they return from break. Once we finished covering the facts, I began grading their tests from yesterday. While I worked on grading all of the tests, Mr. Leininger let them play jeopardy to review the unit they were just tested on. The students enjoyed being able to review although it was obvious by their jeopardy game and their test scores that they did not learn the material. I felt terrible because I taught them part of that unit and they did not do well on their tests. I graded papers the entire class period. When second period came in, I went over two sets of South Carolina facts with them as well. Once I finished that task, I went back to grading papers until I had to leave. Second period’s grades were better than first blocks, but I still did not feel like I taught well enough. I do not know what else I could have done. It was an open note test too which made me wonder how everyone did not make a 100. I am taking the rest of the tests home over the weekend to grade them for Mr. Leininger; I hope they are better than the ones I graded today.
When I arrived at my placement the class was working on their words. Mrs. McFarland had worksheets on the table for me to put together. When I finished putting them together I then had to put them in their bee books for the week when they come back. Mrs. McFarland then wanted me to take the class to the bathroom. When we returned the class wanted me to read them some books. I’m still nervous when they ask me because I don’t want to stutter or anything like that. I read them three books and I didn’t stutter. The class then went back to their seats to get ready for a test. Some of the class was really nervous. By the time they started on their test I had to leave. I can’t believe I only have one more week with these kids. I’m going to miss them so much!
Well my time at middle school is dwindling with every day that goes by, so I have made it a point to enjoy it while it lasts. Also I taught my first lesson today, but first my seventh graders did their normal Friday station day. I thought it would ease my mind off the lesson that afternoon, so I played with my normal “crew” of Markell, James, Blake, etc. Sometimes the kids get into it a little bit too much, and get mad at each other. But I always cool them down, such as Donte (from my last class of the day) got mad at Hunter so Me and Donte had a conversation and I just said “Hey men, don’t do anything crazy, just calm down because I don’t want to see you get in trouble. I came back like I normally do, and the first sixth grade class was also playing basketball. I was trying to get everything set up for my teacher graded lesson the next block, so I had to get the football and flags out. When it was time for me to teach, I started with a football worksheet of eight questions, reviewed them, and started playing Flag Football. I was the quarterback for both teams. It went great, and I really got a valuable insight into the world of a teacher!
Today the students came in and I took attendance and we watched Channel One news and their own morning news show. Mrs. Peake asked me to go run off copies for her lesson today. Today they are going to start working on their infomercials. At the beginning of the year, each student had to write about. The class voted on their favorite and now they are working on their infomercials for the winning inventions. Mrs. Peake went through and explained what was going on to the students and split them into groups. They got to break off and begin working on their game plan for the commercials. I walked around and tried to help as much as I could. When the class was over you could tell a lot didn’t get done, which is surprising because first block is normally the best at coming up with ideas. Mrs. Peake said it may have been her instructions so she reexplained to second block in a different way and it went a little smoother, but I didn’t get to stay very long to see how it all went.
Once I got class I helped Mrs. Holley carry in some new equipment from her car. When we were done the students had already came in and sat down. They read for their fifteen minutes of SSR then proceeded to begin dressing out, which at times is a challenge in itself. While the students were dressing out I opened the boxes that we brought in before class. They were some new agility ladders and this band that wrapped around your ankle to build balance and strength. As the class came out from the locker room they walked around the gym waiting for the rest of the class to come out. Once they did, the class did their group stretches and Mrs. Holley instructed that class what was going to be taking place in class. They were going to do some agilities for the first little bit of class, then play dodge ball for the remaining time in class. They surprisingly got through the agilities pretty fast and got to play for most of the class.
Today was a test day for the students at my placement. The students have been working hard for the past few weeks on fractions. The students happened to be dividing fractions this week. The test given to them had 20 questions on it, and wasn’t the easiest. I was very concerned for some of the students. I didn’t grade the students test after they finished. Me and Mrs. Smith finalized my lesson plans, and settled on a lesson for Monday. I found a very fun activity to do with the students, and I believe they will thoroughly enjoy my lesson. I know the students will also appreciate the break from hard school work. For the most part today was quite. The students finished their test, turned them in, and then began a graph. After class was dismissed, the next class came in and followed the same procedure. I enjoyed my placement today, and I’m anxious yet nervous about my lesson.
Today was a very short day for me. This whole week the second graders have had MAP testing, which usually begins at 9:20 after I leave. Today, however, testing began at eight o’clock. I did not know this until I got to the school. I started my day at placement by creating a chart for Mrs. Catoe. I had to write down all of the students’ names and then put them into columns for their testing scores. After that, the kids left to go to the computer lab for testing. Mrs. Catoe gave me some candy canes and letters from “the Grinch” to lay on every students’ desk while they are out of the classroom. I finished with that and then did not know what to do because I ride with Jo. So, I sent a text message to Mrs. Sutusky and asked her if I could ride back with her since she was observing today. I am so glad she was there because I would have had to stay there for another forty-five minutes.
ReplyDeleteToday Mrs. Mathis was absent. This bothered me because I didn't have anything to do. The students got to redo their test, so they were very quiet and independently working. I did get to help go over the test and what they needed to do. The substitute was Mrs. Lyon. I knew her because she was my 7th grade teacher. She was telling me that she retired, but she loves being a substitute. She said that she loves being a substitute because she gets to be with students, but without all the stress. After the kids finished their test they got to work on their classwork. I was able to help the kids on this. Near the end of the class I began to ask the students if I could take pictures for my portfolio. I tried to take a group photo, but you know how 8th graders are. Some students did not want to be in the picture, and others wanted to be complicated. I am going to miss my students though. Very Very much. Also, I missed Mrs. Mathis a lot today. I am ready for her to be back on Monday.
ReplyDeleteI did my lesson today. I felt like it went well. I got to the school right after the bus left. My kids were unpacking when I walked in and right after I got there, Mrs. Sutusky walked in. I just was setting up my vin diagram. Mrs. Gandy was helping me set up. We started out with the calendar. I got to do the calendar today, and I loved it. I was doing everything I possibly could in order to ensure I kept my voice loud enough. I finished up the calendar and moved the kids over to the rug. They sat down and I asked them to tell me about what story I read them yesterday. They all could tell me exactly what happened. I even had one boy tell me about the very last page with mama jumping on the bed. After we finished reviewing the story, I read them “Five Little Monkeys Sitting in a Tree”. I read with as much enthusiasm as I could muster. I was a lot of fun because I told them to make alligator jaws with their little arms and SNAP down. They are too cute. After I read, I introduced the Vin diagram. They seemed to get it very quickly because anytime I asked them where things went they told me without a problem. Once I finished Mrs. Gandy handed out little magazines about living things. The class looked at them for a bit and moved on to group time while I passed out brag tags and that’s how my placement day ended.
ReplyDeleteDec. 13/2013 Today during Mrs. Mason’s class I came a little early. Once we were finished with the announcements and the pledge we began silently reading. I took up everyone’s paper and she asked me to take up any Candy Cane money that they had. Once I got all the kids signed up for it she got me to give them their vocabulary test. Once I read all of the questions and then got the kids paper, I began grading them. Once I was finished grading the kid’s paper, I had to help a couple of the kids who were outside the class. I read them the test and they finished it pretty fast. I took their paper and graded it. I then read with a couple of the kids. She asked me to help a couple with their AR tests, and then she gave out the math test. We got halfway through it before I had to leave to return to class.
ReplyDeleteToday was a very slow day. Normally, that is how Fridays feel though. The students were anxious to get out of school for the weekend. On Fridays, students normally go to the restroom and to the prize room for their bucks and then back to the classroom for their morning work. This morning was switched up a little bit. The students went over their morning work, had reading time, went to the bathroom and then had to leave for MAP testing. I was kind of upset this was my last Friday with them and I did not get to see the excited expression on their faces when they get to spend their bucks they have earned and saved from the previous week. As I realize my placement is coming to an end, I also am starting to realize how much I will miss the students. Although I do not want to be a teacher, I have enjoyed spending time with the students, helping Ms. Pigg and learning things useful for myself.
ReplyDeleteAfter the morning news show was over, Mrs. Kahler had a brief heart-to-heart with her students. Apparently, many of them had been complaining to other teachers about their workload. Although they do have a good deal of work that they must complete, each assignment serves a purpose. Mrs. Kahler does an awesome job at creating worksheets and projects that will greatly benefit her students. At the end of the conversation, I think they all realized that their hard work will pay off in the end. After this, they completed their works cited page from yesterday. I could already tell a difference in their attitude towards their work. This speaks to the classroom management skill that Mrs. Kahler possesses. Most teachers could not have this type of impact on his or her students after just one conversation, but Mrs. Kahler’s students respect her so much and I hope to have the same level of respect from my students if I decide to be a teacher.
ReplyDeleteToday my placement went very well. To begin with Mrs. Smith had to go home for her sick child, therefore she had a substitute there. Fortunately I taught today. Not only did I have Mrs. Sutusky there to observe me, but my placement teacher was there, along with her substitute. I had a lot of people watching me, and I was very excited along with nervous. The students behaved excellent. They were completely on their best behavior. The participation was also amazing. Every student contributed. There seemed to be some confusion to begin with, however after clarifying the students worked excellent. It was almost too quiet. I did a lesson on the twelve days of Christmas. The students had a worksheet to figure out the cost of the twelve days of Christmas. They were practicing, adding, subtracting, and multiplying decimals. The students seemed to enjoy it!!
ReplyDeleteToday was another teaching day for me! When I arrived I was super excited to teach the class today. I finished setting everything up when I got there. When the kids arrived they were wound tight! They did a coloring sheet before I taught and it didn’t help calm them down much. One girl started crying during morning work and another little boy did too. It started out sort of rough. Finally I started teaching! I got my class a classic story book for Christmas and I started out by reading the note that I wrote to them inside. After that I read them the story of Peter Pan. After the story I taught them what compare and contrast meant and them I made a compare and contrast chart. In my chart the class helped me compare and contrast Captain Hook and Peter Pan. Then the students went back to their desk and I had them draw Captain Hook and Peter Pan on different flaps. On their different flaps the listed differences of each one and in the middle they listed similarities. After that I would call out a trait and I would pick on a kid to tell me which character it represented. Overall my lesson, I thought, went very well. I did have a girl get sick during it and a boy eat paper. But I learned today that as a teacher you would never have a smooth sailing day or lesson.
ReplyDeleteToday was another boring day at my placement. I began class by going over two sets of South Carolina facts with the students. They were excited because they will not have to copy down any more facts until they return from break. Once we finished covering the facts, I began grading their tests from yesterday. While I worked on grading all of the tests, Mr. Leininger let them play jeopardy to review the unit they were just tested on. The students enjoyed being able to review although it was obvious by their jeopardy game and their test scores that they did not learn the material. I felt terrible because I taught them part of that unit and they did not do well on their tests. I graded papers the entire class period. When second period came in, I went over two sets of South Carolina facts with them as well. Once I finished that task, I went back to grading papers until I had to leave. Second period’s grades were better than first blocks, but I still did not feel like I taught well enough. I do not know what else I could have done. It was an open note test too which made me wonder how everyone did not make a 100. I am taking the rest of the tests home over the weekend to grade them for Mr. Leininger; I hope they are better than the ones I graded today.
ReplyDeleteWhen I arrived at my placement the class was working on their words. Mrs. McFarland had worksheets on the table for me to put together. When I finished putting them together I then had to put them in their bee books for the week when they come back. Mrs. McFarland then wanted me to take the class to the bathroom. When we returned the class wanted me to read them some books. I’m still nervous when they ask me because I don’t want to stutter or anything like that. I read them three books and I didn’t stutter. The class then went back to their seats to get ready for a test. Some of the class was really nervous. By the time they started on their test I had to leave. I can’t believe I only have one more week with these kids. I’m going to miss them so much!
ReplyDeleteWell my time at middle school is dwindling with every day that goes by, so I have made it a point to enjoy it while it lasts. Also I taught my first lesson today, but first my seventh graders did their normal Friday station day. I thought it would ease my mind off the lesson that afternoon, so I played with my normal “crew” of Markell, James, Blake, etc. Sometimes the kids get into it a little bit too much, and get mad at each other. But I always cool them down, such as Donte (from my last class of the day) got mad at Hunter so Me and Donte had a conversation and I just said “Hey men, don’t do anything crazy, just calm down because I don’t want to see you get in trouble.
ReplyDeleteI came back like I normally do, and the first sixth grade class was also playing basketball. I was trying to get everything set up for my teacher graded lesson the next block, so I had to get the football and flags out. When it was time for me to teach, I started with a football worksheet of eight questions, reviewed them, and started playing Flag Football. I was the quarterback for both teams. It went great, and I really got a valuable insight into the world of a teacher!
Today the students came in and I took attendance and we watched Channel One news and their own morning news show. Mrs. Peake asked me to go run off copies for her lesson today. Today they are going to start working on their infomercials. At the beginning of the year, each student had to write about. The class voted on their favorite and now they are working on their infomercials for the winning inventions. Mrs. Peake went through and explained what was going on to the students and split them into groups. They got to break off and begin working on their game plan for the commercials. I walked around and tried to help as much as I could. When the class was over you could tell a lot didn’t get done, which is surprising because first block is normally the best at coming up with ideas. Mrs. Peake said it may have been her instructions so she reexplained to second block in a different way and it went a little smoother, but I didn’t get to stay very long to see how it all went.
ReplyDeleteOnce I got class I helped Mrs. Holley carry in some new equipment from her car. When we were done the students had already came in and sat down. They read for their fifteen minutes of SSR then proceeded to begin dressing out, which at times is a challenge in itself. While the students were dressing out I opened the boxes that we brought in before class. They were some new agility ladders and this band that wrapped around your ankle to build balance and strength. As the class came out from the locker room they walked around the gym waiting for the rest of the class to come out. Once they did, the class did their group stretches and Mrs. Holley instructed that class what was going to be taking place in class. They were going to do some agilities for the first little bit of class, then play dodge ball for the remaining time in class. They surprisingly got through the agilities pretty fast and got to play for most of the class.
ReplyDeleteToday was a test day for the students at my placement. The students have been working hard for the past few weeks on fractions. The students happened to be dividing fractions this week. The test given to them had 20 questions on it, and wasn’t the easiest. I was very concerned for some of the students. I didn’t grade the students test after they finished. Me and Mrs. Smith finalized my lesson plans, and settled on a lesson for Monday. I found a very fun activity to do with the students, and I believe they will thoroughly enjoy my lesson. I know the students will also appreciate the break from hard school work. For the most part today was quite. The students finished their test, turned them in, and then began a graph. After class was dismissed, the next class came in and followed the same procedure. I enjoyed my placement today, and I’m anxious yet nervous about my lesson.
ReplyDelete