Field+Experience+1

= Field Experience 1﻿﻿ =

﻿Observation Week
I was really excited about watching the classes start up but also very nervous about observation week. My AT teaches a grade 8 core class and all grade 8 science. I was very excited to see that I was placed as close to my subject area as one can get in middle school. The first week consisted of mainly administrative duties since money for planners was collected as were several permission forms and a couple forms students have to sign to borrow their various textbooks for the year. I was disappointed that my AT already knew most of her students and they mostly knew each other. They didn’t do any ice-breakers or energizers or anything like that. They did, however, fill out a “Getting to Know You” form for their teacher but this information hasn’t been used in any activities that I’ve seen so far. I didn’t feel that there were any good classroom behavior techniques, activities or minds on problems this week. I was telling my AT about some of the stuff that we did in Math Camp and she like some of the ideas so I put “Four 4s” on the board as some Bell Work. Most of the students really liked it and decided to enter it into their planner as homework even though I told them that it isn’t homework. My AT agreed that it went over well and decided that she will probably start doing one Bell Work/Minds On problem each week. The very first lesson in the grade 8 math text book happened to be a math lesson that we went over in Math Camp which I told my AT about. She asked me if I would do it with the students so I did my very first lesson ever on Friday! I felt that there were a lot of improvements to be made and I didn’t think there was enough consolidation. I really would have liked to be able to finish the lesson on Monday because I left them with a challenge problem to get them thinking about the next part and I wanted to have a chance to consolidate the information. I did notice how important the transitions were because I felt that the improvements I needed were mainly related to that type of stuff and not the content of the lesson. I’m really glad that we’re going over this stuff in class because it’s very nice to not have to learn this stuff by messing it up in front of a class!

FE I Weeks
** On my second last day of practicum a student decided to show me a pen launcher he designed. Imagining the disastrous outcome when he accidentally hits someone in the eye with it I told him that I didn't want to see it come out again and he replied, Oh come on! Put the student in student teacher!!! ** = Back  =