Wednesday, February 9, 2011
Language Arts Take Over
Over the last week or so, I have started to take over language and spelling. I thought that this would be an easy challenge because language and spelling were always my strengths as a student. However, I'm finding that just because I know something doesn't necessarily mean I can teach it well. I've been really putting a lot of effort into my grammar lessons as far as scripting and finding examples because my mind seems to go blank when I'm in front of the class. And because of that, yesterday's lesson on linking verbs went extremely well. Students seemed to actually get it! We'll see if that is still the case today.
Wednesday, February 2, 2011
AHHH!!! GRAMMAR!!
This week we decided that it was time to have a review of capitalization rules. I had taught this lesson last semester, but for whatever reason, several of them were still struggling with the idea that they actually needed to APPLY what they had learned. When asked, they can all recite when and how to capitalize, but when they go to their writing, it doesn't seem to click. So, we started over. After the lesson and the assessment, it seemed like most of them understood. However, a few of them still seemed completely lost so I am planning on doing a small group lesson for them on Thursday. I've created a checklist that they will tape to their desks in order to remind them of what they need to check for.
We also decided that it was time for them to have a lesson on adjectives. That started on Monday and did not go well at all. They could all give me a definition but when it came to finding and providing examples, I kept getting verbs! Grammar is something that I'm finding I struggle to teach but I need to come up with an interesting and meaningful way to do it because these kids just aren't getting it. I'm hoping to come up with a writing assignment that will allow them to explore both of these skills in their own writing. Hopefully that will create more meaning for them because this is definitely getting to the point where it is frustrating me!
We also decided that it was time for them to have a lesson on adjectives. That started on Monday and did not go well at all. They could all give me a definition but when it came to finding and providing examples, I kept getting verbs! Grammar is something that I'm finding I struggle to teach but I need to come up with an interesting and meaningful way to do it because these kids just aren't getting it. I'm hoping to come up with a writing assignment that will allow them to explore both of these skills in their own writing. Hopefully that will create more meaning for them because this is definitely getting to the point where it is frustrating me!
Tuesday, January 25, 2011
My Last First Day Back
It's hard to believe but this is my last first day as an undergraduate! It was great to get back and see all the kids. I was pleasantly surprised to see how excited they were that I was back. Of course, they were full of questions. Apparently there was a rumor going around that I had spent the break in China so they were dying to know about my trip.
I met with my mentor and communicated a lot of the concerns I had about this upcoming semester. How am I going to be taking over the different subjects? Are we going to be able to set up a planning routine? Can we get some more formal feedback for the portfolios? It actually went really well and I feel a lot better about what's coming at me. I will be changing classes with my students every day and I will be taking over science and social studies first because of MSAs. The only lingering fear/concern I have is going to be how to make decisions about what to teach in Language Arts. She doesn't follow the curriculum guide to the letter because she has so much experience with it that she's rearranged a lot of it. Am I going to be able to pick up where she left off with that? I'm not sure that I'm ever going to be able to fully take over with that kind of decision making because I don't know what's already been taught, what students know, etc. I'm sure it will be fine but I like to go into things knowing that I'll be successful. Or at least knowing that I have the tools I need to be successful. I'm not quite at that place yet.
I met with my mentor and communicated a lot of the concerns I had about this upcoming semester. How am I going to be taking over the different subjects? Are we going to be able to set up a planning routine? Can we get some more formal feedback for the portfolios? It actually went really well and I feel a lot better about what's coming at me. I will be changing classes with my students every day and I will be taking over science and social studies first because of MSAs. The only lingering fear/concern I have is going to be how to make decisions about what to teach in Language Arts. She doesn't follow the curriculum guide to the letter because she has so much experience with it that she's rearranged a lot of it. Am I going to be able to pick up where she left off with that? I'm not sure that I'm ever going to be able to fully take over with that kind of decision making because I don't know what's already been taught, what students know, etc. I'm sure it will be fine but I like to go into things knowing that I'll be successful. Or at least knowing that I have the tools I need to be successful. I'm not quite at that place yet.