Friday Afternoon. Driving out of North Providence High School. First thought, "I really hope I'm back here for student teaching."
I can honestly say that I had an amazing experience this semester at NPHS. What I thought was going to be a difficult and daunting experience was exactly the opposite. I learned more in the past four weeks with Mrs. Bachini than any other experience I have had in the field thus far. I learned more about classroom management, how to handle students of different levels in one classroom, and most importantly about myself as a teacher.
Out of all the lessons this week, my mini lesson on thesis statements was by far my favorite. students started the class with a chalk talk where they brainstormed everything that they knew about the word "thesis". Next we created a definition based on the key words students had come up with and then created a general thesis statement that students could use as a guideline to writing their own thesis that fit their paper. Then it was time to let their white board markers fly! Students each had their own whiteboard where they could write a thesis, erase, and change as Mrs. Bachini and I walked around the room. I never thought this would be so affective! Each and every student had a thesis when they walked out of the room that day which made the rest of the week of drafting papers that much easier.
The fact that Mrs. Bachini emulates everything that I want to practice in my classroom is what made us a great pair. She was not the stern, by the book teacher. Instead, she smiled and joked with the students while still maintaining the respect of the students. She managed to have the students get work done while keeping a comfortable environment. This is one of the things I admire most and can not wait to practice in my own classroom!
I am excited to continue on my path to becoming a teacher and I hope there are a few more stops at NPHS along the way.
Megan, I appreciate that you wrote about the lesson that I observed, but I wonder why you haven't mentioned, specifically, any of the things that we discussed that you did really well, like restating directions when they didn't work the first time and knowing students' names and using their names in examples you gave. When you reflect on your own teaching, please remember to give yourself credit for the specific things you are doing well as a novice. It won't always be this way--take credit where you can!
ReplyDeleteAlso--this line: "I never thought this would be so affective" has a couple things going on. First: effective. Second, be more specific and tell us WHY it was effective. What, specifically, was happening in the classroom for you, the teacher, to deem the activity, "effective." By being able to articulate this in your own words, you show us that you do not, indeed, need a stupid rubric to tell you what's what in your own classroom.
Megan, I'm so glad you felt comfortable at NPHS! It's important to feel inspired and confident as a beginning teacher. Noticing your teacher's persona, and seeing its effect on students, is excellent. At this point, you should be like Emerson's "Giant Eyeball" taking in everything around you:)
ReplyDeleteLike Dr. Cook, I'm curious about seeing more specifics from your lesson.