Hey Everyone! How are we already at the end of the semester? Time has flown by so fast. I am so excited for student teaching next semester. I have really enjoyed working in the classroom I have been placed in for clinical. I was placed in kindergarten for this semester and student teaching. The students are all very sweet and eager to learn. I have learned so much in science methods thus far. The work I am most proud of for this month would be the lesson I was able to teach for this class. I was able to teach my lesson during the students STEAM day. My lesson included literacy, science, and math. The students were able to read about the mayflower, then they built their very own mayflower out of tin foil. The students predicted if their boat would sink or float and the students counted how many passengers they put on their boat. I really enjoyed teaching this lesson and being able to have the students so interactively involved in the lesson. I have noticed kindergarten students need to be very hands on and have interactive task to stay engaged in the lesson and with the content. I encountered struggle with some of the parts of the unit last week. I was able to ask Dr. Parker for an example of the unit to see exactly what some of the sections were looking for. This has really helped me to understand the unit so much better. I look forward to completing my science unit and using it in my future classroom. I have learned and observed the power of integration of all subjects into one big lesson. The work that brings me the most satisfaction are the lessons I am able to create for the students where they are not sure which subject they are learning. The students are to engaged in the lessons to realize what subject they are own and are having fun learning. My goal for student teaching is to make sure all of my lessons are integrated and engaging for students. I could help my classmates more by creating a group chat to answer and ask any questions we may have.
I was able to find an article expressing why teachers should teach science in kindergarten. It talks about the importance of helping students to build a solid science foundation with the basics to help set them up for success with science in their future grades. The article talks about how kindergarten students are very curious so why not feed off of their curiosity with science. This was a great article to read and I encourage you to check it out when you have a chance. <https://www.science4us.com/why-teach-science-to-kindergarten-1st-grade-and-2nd-grade-students/> My current event is about the Georgia's educational center and aquarium, who had a male octopus in their watch. The octopus ended up being a girl who has 10,000 babies. I could use this current event to help students learn about the life cycle of an organism, in this case it would be an octopus. The students could also compare and contrast the life cycle of the octopus to the life cycle of humans. I like this current event because it has videos students could explore and see first hand. <https://www.popsci.com/male-octopus-thousands-babies>
By preparing my lessons I am following the NCTCS standard three, "Teachers know the content they teach." I am also demonstrating the NCTCS standard four, "Teachers facilitate learning for their students," by using technology and having interactive task for students to collaborate with and learn. In my future classroom I want to have integrated lessons and have my students to be so engaged in their learning that they have to stop and ask me what subject we are working on. I want my students to have interactive task so they are engaged in learning and not bored. I look forward to doing more with science during my student teaching experience. I am researching more strategies to use while teaching kindergarten students science. I look forward to seeing science taught more in classrooms and in my future classroom.
Resources:
https://www.science4us.com/why-teach-science-to-kindergarten-1st-grade-and-2nd-grade-students/
https://www.popsci.com/male-octopus-thousands-babies
http://www.ncpublicschools.org/docs/effectiveness-model/ncees/standards/prof-teach-standards.pdf
Thursday, November 29, 2018
Wednesday, November 28, 2018
EDUC 435 Last Blog
Hello everyone! Welcome to my last blog of the semester!! How are we already at the end of our fall semester before student teaching? This semester has flown by for me. I am excited and nervous for student teaching. I have been using my time in the classroom very wisely. Since, halloween I have been able to teach almost every Wednesday for the whole day. I want to get the feel for how it will be when I am teaching all day in the spring. The students have seemed to enjoy me teaching and are very engaged. I have learned how teachers have to be able to change plans or activities in a short amount of time. For example, some activities planned for the students they either finished early or was too difficult for them. This is when I find an additional task or alternative task for the student or students to do. One of my main goals in the spring semester is to have plenty of activities planned for the whole day so the students are not bored. When the students become bored their brains are not absorbing material and they tend to have more behavioral problems. I really enjoyed completing the clinical checklist for this class. I feel like I was able to gain more knowledge on aspects I may have never even thought about asking my clinical instructor about.
In my clinical placement we have had the students participating in more and more group work activities. I have noticed how some students seem to work together in the groups and how others stay to themselves and sometimes do not even try to work on or take part with the activity at hand. I remember this being an issue when I was in school. I was a very shy person and would end up not being able to take part in the activity or doing the activity by myself because I was not included. I decided to do my research on this specific dilemma. I found a video on edutopia that discusses a way to make sure every student is involved during group work. This teacher gives his students roles/jobs in each group. For example, each group has a speaker, manager, scribe, and an inquirer. The students know their jobs and they all work together to complete the task at hand. This strategy helps all of the students to have a part in the task at hand and everyone is able to work together. I feel like I will need to simplify the terms for my kindergarteners, but I do feel like I could implement this strategy into my placement for group work. I look forward to seeing how this strategy will impact and change group work. Please check the video out when you have a chance! < https://www.edutopia.org/video/60-second-strategy-cooperative-learning-roles>
I have been able to demonstrate standard 1-5 of the NCTCS standards during my clinical time in the classroom. I am a leader to the students by leading them through the content and learning task in the classroom. I have been able to follow standard two, "Teachers establish a respectful environment for a diverse population of students," by creating a relationship with each student, making sure they feel welcomed when they come in every morning, and giving each student a chance to share. I have portrayed standard three, "Teachers know the content they teach," by being prepared and educated on the content before coming to school to teach. This helps me to be knowledgable of the content so I can answer any additional questions from students. I have followed standard four, "Teacher facilitate learning for their students," by using different instructional methods, using technology, having students work together in groups, etc. Lastly, I have been able to demonstrate standard five, "Teachers reflect on their practice," by reviewing over students work, their understandings expressed orally, and assessments. This helps me to see what standards I need to revisit/ reteach to help the class understand the content better.
In my future classroom I will continue to follow the NCTCS standards for my students. I feel like the best and most successful teacher is able to follow all six of the NCTCS standards. I will strive to follow these every single day. I also want to use the strategy for group work form my outside research in my future classroom. I want all of my students to feel included and to be engaged in their group work. I feel like by assigning jobs the students will all be able to take part in the group work assignment. In my future classroom I will also make sure to have plenty of other task and work for students to do when they finish early. I do not want my students to be bored or to become frustrated if a task is too hard. I want to be prepared and have a solution for either one of these dilemmas. I have observed a teacher in the past who had educational games created for students. I feel like this would be a great aspect to add into this classroom. What kindergarten student doesn't love to play games? I think students would enjoy this incentive, leading them to finish their work early and prevent behavior issues. I can't wait to have my own classroom and can see this dream coming true very soon!
Resources:
Person. (2018, November 2). 60 Second-Strategy: Cooperative Learning Roles. Retrieved November, 2018, from https://www.edutopia.org/video/60-second-strategy-cooperative-learning-roles
http://www.ncpublicschools.org/docs/effectiveness-model/ncees/standards/prof-teach-standards.pdf
In my clinical placement we have had the students participating in more and more group work activities. I have noticed how some students seem to work together in the groups and how others stay to themselves and sometimes do not even try to work on or take part with the activity at hand. I remember this being an issue when I was in school. I was a very shy person and would end up not being able to take part in the activity or doing the activity by myself because I was not included. I decided to do my research on this specific dilemma. I found a video on edutopia that discusses a way to make sure every student is involved during group work. This teacher gives his students roles/jobs in each group. For example, each group has a speaker, manager, scribe, and an inquirer. The students know their jobs and they all work together to complete the task at hand. This strategy helps all of the students to have a part in the task at hand and everyone is able to work together. I feel like I will need to simplify the terms for my kindergarteners, but I do feel like I could implement this strategy into my placement for group work. I look forward to seeing how this strategy will impact and change group work. Please check the video out when you have a chance! < https://www.edutopia.org/video/60-second-strategy-cooperative-learning-roles>
I have been able to demonstrate standard 1-5 of the NCTCS standards during my clinical time in the classroom. I am a leader to the students by leading them through the content and learning task in the classroom. I have been able to follow standard two, "Teachers establish a respectful environment for a diverse population of students," by creating a relationship with each student, making sure they feel welcomed when they come in every morning, and giving each student a chance to share. I have portrayed standard three, "Teachers know the content they teach," by being prepared and educated on the content before coming to school to teach. This helps me to be knowledgable of the content so I can answer any additional questions from students. I have followed standard four, "Teacher facilitate learning for their students," by using different instructional methods, using technology, having students work together in groups, etc. Lastly, I have been able to demonstrate standard five, "Teachers reflect on their practice," by reviewing over students work, their understandings expressed orally, and assessments. This helps me to see what standards I need to revisit/ reteach to help the class understand the content better.
In my future classroom I will continue to follow the NCTCS standards for my students. I feel like the best and most successful teacher is able to follow all six of the NCTCS standards. I will strive to follow these every single day. I also want to use the strategy for group work form my outside research in my future classroom. I want all of my students to feel included and to be engaged in their group work. I feel like by assigning jobs the students will all be able to take part in the group work assignment. In my future classroom I will also make sure to have plenty of other task and work for students to do when they finish early. I do not want my students to be bored or to become frustrated if a task is too hard. I want to be prepared and have a solution for either one of these dilemmas. I have observed a teacher in the past who had educational games created for students. I feel like this would be a great aspect to add into this classroom. What kindergarten student doesn't love to play games? I think students would enjoy this incentive, leading them to finish their work early and prevent behavior issues. I can't wait to have my own classroom and can see this dream coming true very soon!
Resources:
Person. (2018, November 2). 60 Second-Strategy: Cooperative Learning Roles. Retrieved November, 2018, from https://www.edutopia.org/video/60-second-strategy-cooperative-learning-roles
http://www.ncpublicschools.org/docs/effectiveness-model/ncees/standards/prof-teach-standards.pdf
Thursday, November 1, 2018
Science Methods Blog 3
Hello Everyone!! Welcome to my blog for the month of October. I can't believe the semester is almost over. This month I have been focusing on the science fair project, water cycle project, the unit, and learning segment. I have been most proud of our science fair project this month. We were able to do a science experiment that was out of our comfort zone. I have always been scared to try certain types of science experiments for fear they wouldn't work. I am glad I decided to take part in this particular experiment and was able to learn a lot about myself and about science. We picked the science experiment where you use lemons as batteries to light an LED bulb. I have been able to take this experiment to my work and let my students take part in this experience for themselves. The students at my job have really enjoyed this experience and are learning science without even realizing it. I am struggling with trying to find more time in the schedule in my placement classroom to teach my science learning segment. The time I am able to have is during the end of the day right after recess when the students are very hyper and ready to go home. Once the students are back in the classroom from recess there is only around 15 to 20 minutes to teach the students their science or social studies topic for the day. This is not enough time to pull the students back into focusing on a topic and making sure the students have time to pack up for dismissal. The kindergarten students are the first to pack up and line up for dismissal, they are out of the classroom before the other grades. I am working with my CE to see if we can incorporate this learning segment into the literacy time instead of teaching it at the end of the day. The students seem to focus more in the morning, which is when they have their literacy lesson, this change would benefit the students. Having my learning segment complete and being able to teach it soon gives me the most satisfaction. Over the next week, I would like to complete our unit so that we can have it done early and can receive as much feedback as possible. I also would like to finish any other group work we may have so that my partner can enjoy her new bundle of joy that is coming very soon!! I do not want her to have to worry about work during this time. I was able to contribute to the class by working with my group on projects and being proactive for upcoming assignments. I can take part with my classmates more through twitter this week.
Outside Research
I found an article related to STEM and The Importance of Teaching Earth Science by Adam Stone. The article talks about how students today will one day have to make choices about resources. Therefore, students need to be educated about what resources we have, how we use it, and what are the consequences from certain resources. Some ideas the article gives teachers to do is to first help the students be able to have an experience with a concept before they teach it. Let the students discover and figure out the concepts for themselves. Teachers can do this by having hands on experiences with concepts available for the students. I am placed in a kindergarten classroom this semester and I have seen how much the students like to use their hands and get messy so I loved the one that talked about digging in dirt. The article talked about letting students dig in a garden. I feel like my students would really enjoy this experience and would absorb so much information and skills by taking part in this experience. The article also talked about going online to find experiences for students with concepts of earth science. I think this is a great idea and would open up the door for more experience than what we can provide in the classroom with more advanced concepts.
Link/Resource: http://teachmag.com/archives/10545
NCTCS
If a teacher is able to use these ideas and strategies in their classroom the students will be well informed and prepared for the choices they will make in their future about the earth they live in. The teacher will be demonstrating the NCTCS standard one, Teachers demonstrate leadership, by taking responsibility for their students learning and providing them with the information they need to be successful in school and in life. The teacher is also portraying the NCTCS standard 3d, Teachers make instruction relevant to students, by incorporating life skills into the content being taught. The third standard the teacher is demonstrating is the NCTCS standard 4d, teachers integrate and utilize technology in their instruction, by using the resources online to show and help students to experience aspects of concepts that they may never have been able to experience in their present setting, community, and classroom.
Resource: http://www.ncpublicschools.org/docs/effectiveness-model/ncees/standards/prof-teach-standards.pdf
Current Event
My clinical placement classroom has been talking about bones and the skeletal system. I was able to find a current event about fossils of animals and humans that are being found at "Saudi Arabia’s Ti’s al Ghadah." I would show the students the picture of the antelope's jaw and teeth. I would discuss how bones can be found years and years later. I feel like the students will really enjoy learning about the aspects of this article. I look forward to sharing this with them next week. I am able to take the concepts they are learning in class and show them real life examples. The students love seeing what they learn in class being discussed in real life.
Link/Resource: https://www.sciencenews.org/article/fossils-hint-hominids-migrated-through-green-arabia-300000-years-ago?tgt=nr
Future Classroom
I look forward to incorporating the ideas and strategies from the article into my future classroom. I will provide hands on experiences with my future students with new concepts. I want my students to be able to discover, question, research, etc on their own. I feel like the students will absorb and dig deeper in their understandings of the material. I also would like to have a classroom where my students are learning every subject throughout the whole day. This way I would not have to only teach certain subjects during certain times of the day and the students would not realize what subject they were learning. I feel like this would help the students to enjoy learning and be strengthened in every subject not just one. I know I use to struggle in reading so I would dread this time of the day. If students do not know what subject they are working on they will no have built up phobias or anxiety to develop during certain parts of the day. This is how I envision my future classroom.
I also will make sure to follow the NCTCS standards discussed above in my future classroom the way the teacher was able to in the article.
Outside Research
I found an article related to STEM and The Importance of Teaching Earth Science by Adam Stone. The article talks about how students today will one day have to make choices about resources. Therefore, students need to be educated about what resources we have, how we use it, and what are the consequences from certain resources. Some ideas the article gives teachers to do is to first help the students be able to have an experience with a concept before they teach it. Let the students discover and figure out the concepts for themselves. Teachers can do this by having hands on experiences with concepts available for the students. I am placed in a kindergarten classroom this semester and I have seen how much the students like to use their hands and get messy so I loved the one that talked about digging in dirt. The article talked about letting students dig in a garden. I feel like my students would really enjoy this experience and would absorb so much information and skills by taking part in this experience. The article also talked about going online to find experiences for students with concepts of earth science. I think this is a great idea and would open up the door for more experience than what we can provide in the classroom with more advanced concepts.
Link/Resource: http://teachmag.com/archives/10545
NCTCS
If a teacher is able to use these ideas and strategies in their classroom the students will be well informed and prepared for the choices they will make in their future about the earth they live in. The teacher will be demonstrating the NCTCS standard one, Teachers demonstrate leadership, by taking responsibility for their students learning and providing them with the information they need to be successful in school and in life. The teacher is also portraying the NCTCS standard 3d, Teachers make instruction relevant to students, by incorporating life skills into the content being taught. The third standard the teacher is demonstrating is the NCTCS standard 4d, teachers integrate and utilize technology in their instruction, by using the resources online to show and help students to experience aspects of concepts that they may never have been able to experience in their present setting, community, and classroom.
Resource: http://www.ncpublicschools.org/docs/effectiveness-model/ncees/standards/prof-teach-standards.pdf
Current Event
My clinical placement classroom has been talking about bones and the skeletal system. I was able to find a current event about fossils of animals and humans that are being found at "Saudi Arabia’s Ti’s al Ghadah." I would show the students the picture of the antelope's jaw and teeth. I would discuss how bones can be found years and years later. I feel like the students will really enjoy learning about the aspects of this article. I look forward to sharing this with them next week. I am able to take the concepts they are learning in class and show them real life examples. The students love seeing what they learn in class being discussed in real life.
Link/Resource: https://www.sciencenews.org/article/fossils-hint-hominids-migrated-through-green-arabia-300000-years-ago?tgt=nr
Future Classroom
I look forward to incorporating the ideas and strategies from the article into my future classroom. I will provide hands on experiences with my future students with new concepts. I want my students to be able to discover, question, research, etc on their own. I feel like the students will absorb and dig deeper in their understandings of the material. I also would like to have a classroom where my students are learning every subject throughout the whole day. This way I would not have to only teach certain subjects during certain times of the day and the students would not realize what subject they were learning. I feel like this would help the students to enjoy learning and be strengthened in every subject not just one. I know I use to struggle in reading so I would dread this time of the day. If students do not know what subject they are working on they will no have built up phobias or anxiety to develop during certain parts of the day. This is how I envision my future classroom.
I also will make sure to follow the NCTCS standards discussed above in my future classroom the way the teacher was able to in the article.
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