First Week Student Teaching

I just had my first week student teaching. It was a three day week but I was thankful since I was so tired. I'm in second grade and those kids take a lot of energy! Despite having some interesting weather- on Tuesday during planning we had an earthquake at 2pm, followed by several aftershocks during the nights to follow. Then we had a hurricane on the coast (which thankfully didn't effect us). The first day of school Wed. was hectic but good. The class was very talkative but I knew they would have a lot of energy the first day. My principal is amazing and great. I can see why teachers like it at my school. I felt like a total nerd when I got my ID badge with my picture on it and it said "faculty/staff"!! I was hoping that meant an automatic job in January. Wishful thinking!!

I'm glad my parents and brother are coming to visit next weekend for labor day. A little taste of home is always good. :) More to come later!

Getting back to blogging!

Well, it's been a while since I've blogged. I just read a friend's blog that I saw on facebook and decided to get back to mine. Things have changed quite a bit. School's out for summer and I'm nannying. I'm also preparing for my first big move. I've lived in the same area for my entire life but now I'm moving to Virginia with my husband Roger. We are both super excited about the opportunity there. Roger will be the new pastor of a church in Nellysford. It's interesting because I'm excited yet really scared all at the same time. I think I try to focus on the fun and exciting times ahead and not the unknown. I'll be student teaching in a new state, county, district, and all the rest. I'm also not the best history buff and now I have to learn all of Virginia's history. I hope to be mostly learning as I teach my students. I also have to prepare to take the Praxis certification test for Virginia. Wow, that's a lot! I guess this is good therapy. I sigh and take a deep breath. Knowing that I can't do ANY of this in my own strength but only God's. I know He knows the future and He would never give me more than I can handle.

Just to add to everything, yesterday one of the two children I babysit took a really hard fall off his bike. I've never had an accident while babysitting so I was really scared. He busted his face, arms, and left leg on the sidewalk at the bottom of a hill. Thankfully we were near a friend of mine's house so I went there with him and she helped get him all cleaned up. Then I had to take him to an urgent care place because of the huge goose egg on his face under the eye. It was ugly. He turned out to be okay, just really banged up and bruised. Today he looks like he's had a big fight. His eye is almost swollen shot. He's been a tough guy and great patient. I felt so bad about everything, but accidents to happen- especially on bicycles!

Final Blog: TAKE TWO

Well, I'm pretty sure I've already done this blog. But I guess I will write it again! I'm so excited that this semester is almost over. I'm ready to move to the next phase of my education- taking the GACE and student teaching. I've been lining up babysitting jobs for the summer.
I've learned a lot about myself this semester. I've learned more about my teaching styles, what I like and don't like in the class, and things I want to incorporate in my classroom. I've also learned about the struggle to juggle personal life and school life. I've had a lot of distractions this semester but still managed to focus on what I need to do.

Wordle

http://www.wordle.net/show/wrdl/3486789/Future_Teacher

Children's Posts

These are some of the students' posts I found on teacher's blogs. It was interesting to read what they had to say. I even watched an inspirational video on one about "famous failures." The final quote in the movie was "If you've never failed, you've never lived."

http://hungryforlearning.blogspot.com/2011/04/if-youve-never-failed.html?showComment=1302036744770#c5237821402604598369

http://kidblog.org/MrsSalernosClass/rachelf11/the-wax-museum/#comment-132

http://kidblog.org/MrsSalernosClass/ethan670/homework-blog-1-11/#comment-133

Teaching Fun!

Well, where do I begin? It's been hard getting back into the swing of classes since our two week break for field experience and spring break. I really love being in second grade. Most weeks those are the days I look forward to the most. At this point in my college career I am ready to be done and move on. I'm ready to be in the classroom teaching. I was so proud of myself last week on Friday because I came up with a lesson on short notice (during specials) and the kids loved it and had a lot of fun. I taught them about the life cycle of plants and let me draw (and color!!) their own plant life cycle. This week each student is going to put a lima bean in a sandwich baggie to watch it sprout at school. I'm also going to let me plant some flower seeds to take home and watch grow. The students are going to make biodegradable planter pots with newspaper with a nifty pot maker my science teacher is letting me borrow. Needless to say, I'm ready to be finished with school and start teaching.

Ch. 12 and Field Experience

I had a fabulous time during my field experience for the full week. I taught a unit on Georgia's regions and incorporated a reader's theater that the kids absolutely loved. I also divided the students into five groups and gave them children's informational books on GA to find their information. This relates to Ray's book because of the unit of study on geography. I think units are a great way to keep kids focused and for them to know what is expected. Units are also a great way to integrate subjects like I did with geography. I also did a science lesson on energy and had my students write an imaginative piece.
I really liked Ray's idea to do a unit on a topic I absolutely love as a teacher. This will bring a lot of enthusiasm and creativity in the classroom. It also gives me something to build on every year. Also at the beginning of the year the class could come up with a unit they want to study and write about. This allows students to be involved and have a voice/choice.