It's the end of week four and we are already closing in on the end of September. I can't believe how fast time is flying, but I am so ready to get this last semester of coursework over. I am spending more and more time in my clinical experience, observing what's going on, and getting to know the students. The closer we get, the more excited, and nervous, I get to take over the classroom in January.
Each week, I spend two full days in my clinical, usually Tuesdays and Friday's. Last Friday my CE did "break out boxes" with her Math 1 class. If you are like me and have not heard about break out boxes or seen them in action, I suggest you do! They are a great hands-on and fun activity that can be used in any subject area. The students absolutely loved it! Break out boxes start with a simple tool box that is locked on top of locks, on top of locks, on top of locks...Students begin with a QR code they have to scan to get their first problem. The solution to that problem opens a separate box that contains a key, a flashlight that will read invisible ink, and more problems. Students then use those materials to open the other locks. Once they "break out" there is a prize inside the box. Breaking out can be as easy or as hard as the teacher decides to make it. This is a wonderful way for teachers to facilitate learning for their students. During this time students are thinking mathematically and critically, they are exercising problem solving skills, and they are building their collaboration skills while working in teams (NCTCS 4). So much is going on here, and again the students love it! Here is a link to Breakout EDU so you can learn more about it.
My CE goes above and beyond the expectations set on her to use a variety of instructional methods (NCTCS 4). She refuses to teach from a textbook. Instead, she looks for ways to keep her students engaged and focused. She prints out guided notes for the students everyday and the students have an interactive notebook which they tape their notes into. She's also doing small activities almost everyday and a larger activity at least once a week. These activities always build on the students understanding of what they have been learning. I honestly wonder how she does all the planning she must need to prepare for all that she does. She has offered me access to her notebooks from previous years, I know they will be a huge help to me next semester.
As for outside research, after hearing Dr. Clark talk about the 8 mathematical practices, I knew I needed to refresh my memory on these. I have heard of them in the past, but I didn't know them off
the top of my head. I found a very helpful Scholastic article on this topic. Here is a link: 8 Mathematical Practices. This article lists the 8 mathematical practices, describes what each one means, tells you how you can "own" each one, and gives some great resources.
Friday, September 15, 2017
Thursday, September 7, 2017
Settling In
It's the third week of classes and I'm just starting to settle in and get into my "groove." I've got my class schedule memorized, I've found a set time to be in my clinical each week, and I'm staying on top of course work. Now, I'm just counting down the weeks to December, and then May. Can you say senioritis?
On the topic of clinicals, this was my first week actually being in the classroom with the students. I have scheduled it with my CE to come on Tuesdays and Fridays each week and stay all day. This week, on Tuesday, I mostly observed what was going on to get a feel of the classroom. Tomorrow, though, my CE has asked that I help her with some activities she has planned for her classes. One of the first things I picked up about my CE is that she is not a "textbook teacher." The only time she even cracks open a textbook is if she is sending work for a student to do in ISS. This may seem hard for a math teacher to do, but she tries her very best to keep the students engaged and entertained while learning. She is GREAT at facilitating learning for all of her students (NCTCS 4).
To give you an idea of what a typical day may look like in her classroom, I'm going to quickly describe how one of her classes went on Tuesday...Before students can even enter her room they must greet her at the door. Sometimes she simply requires a hi-five or a hello, but other days she may ask them a quick mental math question that reviews something from the day before. As students come in they grab their printed, guided notes and any other sheets and take a seat. My CE is very creative in the way she designs her guided notes. They are specifically set up in a way that helps the students memorize whatever notes they are taking, therefore the setup changes day-to-day. From there, my CE goes over announcements and then jumps into the lesson. She has everything she needs already pulled up so she can walk around while she teaches. After taking a few notes, she has everyone stand up and they play a quick game to help further their understanding of what they just learned. Then, she continues teaching and the students continue taking notes. To end, they play a matching game, this time working in groups.
I really liked how my CE organized her lesson in the order of "notes, game/activity, notes, game/activity. I think it really helped keep the students engaged and focused. It also helped her teach towards a diverse population of students (NCTCS 2). Those who learn from taking notes and listening were reached, as well as those who prefer to be hands on or active.
With there being so much to absorb during my time in my clinical, I got to thinking about how I can organize my thoughts and ideas. So, I ended up purchasing a simple daily planner with plenty of space for me to write in. Each day I spend in my clinical, I can jot my observations down on that specific day. This also allows me to keep track of any methods, teaching strategies, games, classroom management strategies, etc...that I observe and don't want to forget. I also glued sticky notes to the inside of the front cover in case I need more writing space. Since it's already a calendar, its also great for keeping track of the school system's important dates, events, early release... This planner is separate from my usually planner. This one has sort of become my "all inclusive clinical notebook."
I think that about catches me up on the events of my week so far. As I've been settling in, I've become more and more excited to see what all this semester holds and how much I learn.
I'm praying you all stay safe in the event Irma makes her way to us this weekend/next week. We may get a crash course in how to keep our classrooms and students on track with chaos going on around us.
On the topic of clinicals, this was my first week actually being in the classroom with the students. I have scheduled it with my CE to come on Tuesdays and Fridays each week and stay all day. This week, on Tuesday, I mostly observed what was going on to get a feel of the classroom. Tomorrow, though, my CE has asked that I help her with some activities she has planned for her classes. One of the first things I picked up about my CE is that she is not a "textbook teacher." The only time she even cracks open a textbook is if she is sending work for a student to do in ISS. This may seem hard for a math teacher to do, but she tries her very best to keep the students engaged and entertained while learning. She is GREAT at facilitating learning for all of her students (NCTCS 4).
To give you an idea of what a typical day may look like in her classroom, I'm going to quickly describe how one of her classes went on Tuesday...Before students can even enter her room they must greet her at the door. Sometimes she simply requires a hi-five or a hello, but other days she may ask them a quick mental math question that reviews something from the day before. As students come in they grab their printed, guided notes and any other sheets and take a seat. My CE is very creative in the way she designs her guided notes. They are specifically set up in a way that helps the students memorize whatever notes they are taking, therefore the setup changes day-to-day. From there, my CE goes over announcements and then jumps into the lesson. She has everything she needs already pulled up so she can walk around while she teaches. After taking a few notes, she has everyone stand up and they play a quick game to help further their understanding of what they just learned. Then, she continues teaching and the students continue taking notes. To end, they play a matching game, this time working in groups.
I really liked how my CE organized her lesson in the order of "notes, game/activity, notes, game/activity. I think it really helped keep the students engaged and focused. It also helped her teach towards a diverse population of students (NCTCS 2). Those who learn from taking notes and listening were reached, as well as those who prefer to be hands on or active.
With there being so much to absorb during my time in my clinical, I got to thinking about how I can organize my thoughts and ideas. So, I ended up purchasing a simple daily planner with plenty of space for me to write in. Each day I spend in my clinical, I can jot my observations down on that specific day. This also allows me to keep track of any methods, teaching strategies, games, classroom management strategies, etc...that I observe and don't want to forget. I also glued sticky notes to the inside of the front cover in case I need more writing space. Since it's already a calendar, its also great for keeping track of the school system's important dates, events, early release... This planner is separate from my usually planner. This one has sort of become my "all inclusive clinical notebook."
I think that about catches me up on the events of my week so far. As I've been settling in, I've become more and more excited to see what all this semester holds and how much I learn.
I'm praying you all stay safe in the event Irma makes her way to us this weekend/next week. We may get a crash course in how to keep our classrooms and students on track with chaos going on around us.
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