Finding the Teacher I Want To Be
I can't imagine having a better clinical experience than what I found in Ms. K's 4th grade class. While I was there, I learned so much about teaching and about myself as a teacher. Reading about methods of teaching and seeing them in the classroom are very different. I am a visual and tactile learner and I like to experience things to develop a clear understanding of them. I am thankful that I was able to see a reader's workshop several times as well as math centers and art education. I had a wonderful cooperative teacher, and I believe I was in the right school for me.
When I first walked through the doors to this school I knew immediately that this was unlike the other schools that I had done clinical hours in. There were children in the halls, and they were talking! The halls were lined with colorful student creations and the doors were not locked to visitors. This school reminded me of the schools in Washington state, where I grew up and where my children went to school before we moved. I mourned for the school that we left behind when my daughter started a school that didn't allow students to talk in the hall or during lunch time. I was sad for my children when they would tell me that they had lost recess because some of the class couldn't follow the rules during the day. I asked about recess on the first day of IMB and learned that they do not take away recess as a punishment, they understand that children need to run and play and be social. During the first part of the day they may even take a 10 minute break to go outside and get some exercise. This school made it clear to me that they know children.
A large amount of time was spent preparing for a Roald Dahl play that had been an integrated reading, writing, and social studies unit. I had read about using drama in reading but couldn't imagine how I would use that in my class. After working with the students to learn their lines, find their voice, and speak clearly and loudly, I could see myself teaching a similar (or the same) play in my own class. The students were very engaged and excited about having a part in the play. In the coming weeks they will be designing the set of the play. Some of the students had used free choice time to create drawings of what they thought the set should look like. I could see them using math integration to measure parts of the set and create the backdrop.
I could write pages and pages of things that I saw, heard, did, read, played or talked about during IMB as my mind races through all of the things that I am taking away from this experience. I am thankful for my daybook and all of the notes and documents I collected in the past two weeks. I will be referring back to them in the coming semesters and in my career as a teacher. I still need to work on how I will call my students attention back. I found that using the echo call that my cooperating teacher was using did not feel natural to me. I did see, in other classrooms, examples of soft tones from wind chimes that are used to get attention. I think that bells of wind chimes are something that I would like to experiment with in the future. I also want to keep reading about creating a classroom community. If I didn't take anything else away from this experience, this would be the one that I wouldn't want to forget. The class worked so well together in small groups and independently. They were attentive to the teacher and respectful towards each other. I want that for my classroom, I want my students to feel secure and encouraged so that they can focus on learning. I am excited about my future in teaching, and anxious to begin my career.
When I first walked through the doors to this school I knew immediately that this was unlike the other schools that I had done clinical hours in. There were children in the halls, and they were talking! The halls were lined with colorful student creations and the doors were not locked to visitors. This school reminded me of the schools in Washington state, where I grew up and where my children went to school before we moved. I mourned for the school that we left behind when my daughter started a school that didn't allow students to talk in the hall or during lunch time. I was sad for my children when they would tell me that they had lost recess because some of the class couldn't follow the rules during the day. I asked about recess on the first day of IMB and learned that they do not take away recess as a punishment, they understand that children need to run and play and be social. During the first part of the day they may even take a 10 minute break to go outside and get some exercise. This school made it clear to me that they know children.
A large amount of time was spent preparing for a Roald Dahl play that had been an integrated reading, writing, and social studies unit. I had read about using drama in reading but couldn't imagine how I would use that in my class. After working with the students to learn their lines, find their voice, and speak clearly and loudly, I could see myself teaching a similar (or the same) play in my own class. The students were very engaged and excited about having a part in the play. In the coming weeks they will be designing the set of the play. Some of the students had used free choice time to create drawings of what they thought the set should look like. I could see them using math integration to measure parts of the set and create the backdrop.
I could write pages and pages of things that I saw, heard, did, read, played or talked about during IMB as my mind races through all of the things that I am taking away from this experience. I am thankful for my daybook and all of the notes and documents I collected in the past two weeks. I will be referring back to them in the coming semesters and in my career as a teacher. I still need to work on how I will call my students attention back. I found that using the echo call that my cooperating teacher was using did not feel natural to me. I did see, in other classrooms, examples of soft tones from wind chimes that are used to get attention. I think that bells of wind chimes are something that I would like to experiment with in the future. I also want to keep reading about creating a classroom community. If I didn't take anything else away from this experience, this would be the one that I wouldn't want to forget. The class worked so well together in small groups and independently. They were attentive to the teacher and respectful towards each other. I want that for my classroom, I want my students to feel secure and encouraged so that they can focus on learning. I am excited about my future in teaching, and anxious to begin my career.