Final Reflection on Middle School Post

Debate Lesson Plan on All Summer In A Day The question they debated was-Should people conform/adapt to new cultures or not? It felt GREAT to be in charge of the classroom!!! I am a control freak, so why not!?# No, in all seriousness, I loved it. The kids had shown excitement for this lesson yesterday, and they did not disappoint their adult audience today. This advanced class is such a privilege. In my time substituting I've been in more Inclusion classes so I'm not concerned about having culture shock when I get back to that, I just appreciate when I get a chance to see this type of engagement. I was surprised at how concerned they were that they had gotten too far off the topic question in the debate process, but we reassured them that it was good mental exercise for the many debates ahead of them. I discovered that it helps me to look up definitions of words still, especially because of the many layers of meaning in words in our language-the example I'm thinking of is culture.

RIWP Conference Reflection I added many tools to my teaching toolbox at the RIWP conference yesterday. I’m convinced my attendance gave me facts about teaching that will sustain me as I continue my studies in class, my work as a preservice teacher, and beyond into my own classroom. As I expected, Tom Newkirk raised my awareness on a number of levels. The thought that stuck to me from his mention of Common Core was to do some high level thinking about them, just like we ask our students to do with the text we expose them to. He challenged me to think about the words, the phrases and sentence structure. He asked us to consider words like aliignment and compliance as they relate to the Common Core. I suppose I will not hesitate to be ready and willing to adhere to them, after all I will have a boss! What I will do, though, is reflect on my teaching practice in an effort to use them to my students’ benefits. He convinced me that it is not important to make students read more complex text, but rather to have them relate the text to their own lives through narrative writing. The introduction to this keynote speaker was very telling. He took the works of a frazzled doctoral student and sent her on her way with renewed vigor with two simple statements: “Here’s what I learned” and “So here are my questions” -after he read her work. That tells me he believes he can learn from everyone, he is not the conveyor belt of information to his students. I appreciate his words of encouragement about seeing narrative as the basis for all writing. I was a “reluctant writer” (an expression I heard yesterday) and I will meet them in my students, so using narrative to build a love for writing is something that worked on me and will work with my students. The two workshops I attended were about the Summer Institute and the use of Shakespeare in middle school curriculum. The institute is clearly for teachers who are already practicing and who wish to step back and rejuvenate their work through summer study in new areas. I appreciated that middle school teachers were running it and it was not lost on me that that subculture can drain a teacher-one of the participants was just two years into his practice! But then I met up with him again in the Shakespeare workshop and I realized why he did the summer study-he is simply charged by his work and opens himself up to new avenues of study. He was nearly breathless, trying to share with us all that he does with the bard and his sixth graders. He has found infinite entry points for this complex, yet incredibly appealing text. Another tool that I added came from seeing the work that the RIC archives librarian did (and does) and how I can tap into this when I do units which include living history. Using this activity may be especially effective if i teach in a setting where students’ families are from other cultures where the role of narrative in the home is larger than written communication.

Week Two Reflection

Week Two Reflection So, this week I had the honor of watching how a teacher layers her units. I feel this teacher uses time wisely, in this sense. It seems to come from a combination of what is stated daily/weekly on the board and constant communication with students about these ongoing assignments. This class is student-driven, so they are learning the crucial skill of self-regulation at an early age, it seems to me. She is always there to answer questions, reinforce points, and manage students' behavior. But so much is left to them to decide how to manage their time with each assignment. The groups vary, obviously. Her two higher levels groups do better with this. All the groups work hard and respect her. The Socratic Seminar was fascinating. They love to argue at this age, so they are being given reminders to say I agree with . . . (the idea, not the name)or I disagree with . . .so that it does not become personal. Some students are clearly more argumentative than others. My overall feeling about the exercise and her students is that they are working very well at critical thinking. I kept resisting the urge to jump in and say "this event in history (Greensboro Sit-In)is like so many in that it was a perfect storm" and by this I mean the events and people converged at the exact right moment to change things. They want to play the "what ifs" until they are exhausted. I'm glad I resist because I realize they need to do this, it's higher order thinking! I was glad to get the opportunity to proofread students papers-"Text to Talk-Greensboro", since it gave me a chance correct and give suggestions that were clear and I spoke with each student as I went. There will be so many times in my teaching career where I won't be able to talk directly as I proof, so I took full advantage of it and didn't rush.

Student Views of Writing Audiences

Student Views of Writing Audiences

week one reflection

great first week at Birchwood! engaged students and teacher who loves to see them excel!