...so ends the experience. Overall, this has been a great two weeks. I've learned a lot, and I think I even taught a bit as well! LOL
I'm going home now....so this is as long of an entry as you'll get. Until next time....
Monday, April 27, 2009
Friday, April 24, 2009
Fridays!
Fridays are awesome! Just plain fantastic. I'm still gonna stay here and get a little more prep done for Monday....but to be done a full 3 hours or more before the normal school day is PRICELESS!
I can definitely tell that the whole "honeymoon effect" of being the new teacher in this class is beginning to wear off. Several students are pushing much harder or simply rolling their eyes when I ask them to do things they don't want to do. Were I to be here much longer, I'd have to nip that issue in the bud! I've taken several students aside for little talks this week, and that always helps, but the situation would get more difficult before it resolved. I've seen this happen before, so its not exactly new, but it is always an issue that has to be dealt with, and is rarely ever particularly easy. But hey, thats ok! Its still Friday!
The day went mostly well today. I found out 3 minutes before class started that the music teacher was not coming today. Now that is not exactly a earth shattering problem, but it still gave me 30 minutes of time I had to scramble to fill. But I found a video and website and we discussed and then wrote about what we saw. Turned out to be a great segment of the day!
Having technology in the classroom is Awesome!! It is SOOOOO simple to find a video or pictures etc. and to then throw them up on the screen for the entire class. I LOVE IT!
Well, I'm gonna finish up and take off. One more day!!
I can definitely tell that the whole "honeymoon effect" of being the new teacher in this class is beginning to wear off. Several students are pushing much harder or simply rolling their eyes when I ask them to do things they don't want to do. Were I to be here much longer, I'd have to nip that issue in the bud! I've taken several students aside for little talks this week, and that always helps, but the situation would get more difficult before it resolved. I've seen this happen before, so its not exactly new, but it is always an issue that has to be dealt with, and is rarely ever particularly easy. But hey, thats ok! Its still Friday!
The day went mostly well today. I found out 3 minutes before class started that the music teacher was not coming today. Now that is not exactly a earth shattering problem, but it still gave me 30 minutes of time I had to scramble to fill. But I found a video and website and we discussed and then wrote about what we saw. Turned out to be a great segment of the day!
Having technology in the classroom is Awesome!! It is SOOOOO simple to find a video or pictures etc. and to then throw them up on the screen for the entire class. I LOVE IT!
Well, I'm gonna finish up and take off. One more day!!
Wednesday, April 22, 2009
Thank God For Better Days!
Tuesday was indeed a huge improvement over Monday! I would have to think hard to find a problem with it! Everything went well, I got a lot of grading done, it was nice and sunny.....its hard to find something to complain about!
Today (Wednesday) seems to be following the pattern of Tuesday as well! So far so good! Oh, and the Blazers won, so that has cast a rather rosey tint over the day!!
Until next time....
Today (Wednesday) seems to be following the pattern of Tuesday as well! So far so good! Oh, and the Blazers won, so that has cast a rather rosey tint over the day!!
Until next time....
Tuesday, April 21, 2009
Better!
Well, knock on wood and everything, but today is going better than yesterday did! The student who was gone for the first week came back today! This is a good thing. It has changed the dynamic of the morning classes, and changed it in a very positive way. I've had each of the students push again to see how far I will allow their behavior to slide, but once that was dealt with, things evened out! The students are working better on their own now that there is another student in the class. I'm not sure why this is, but I'm not complaining!!
Another good thing is that my cold seems to be getting better. I'm still a bit congested, but I am feeling much better!
Its really hot out here today. Mid to upper 80's. Its actually kinda nice, really. Especially sitting out on the porch and reading while the sun goes down! Reading on the porch is on the list for today, but it might just get bumped by the Blazer game! Hopefully this one is better than the last one!
Another good thing is that my cold seems to be getting better. I'm still a bit congested, but I am feeling much better!
Its really hot out here today. Mid to upper 80's. Its actually kinda nice, really. Especially sitting out on the porch and reading while the sun goes down! Reading on the porch is on the list for today, but it might just get bumped by the Blazer game! Hopefully this one is better than the last one!
Monday, April 20, 2009
Well, it started out well......
...but what do you when your only 1st grader is bawling her eyes out because her head hurts so bad? Answer: Thank God that it is almost the end of the day and Pray that her mom shows up early to pick her up. Thankfully, her dad DID show up 10 minutes early! Thank You God!!!
This has to be one of the biggest reasons I never want to be the only teacher in a little, one teacher, school like this. There is very little recourse for a teacher when a difficult emergency situation like this happens. What would have happened had this been a real emergency? I'm just not as at ease or ultimately comfortable when I'm the only one to deal with the situation. The good thing about a larger school is that there are always others around to help if a situation gets to problematic.
Yowzers! I'm so so so glad that this day is over! I'm praying that the girl is alright. She had complained earlier in the day of a headache, but it always seemed to go away quickly as soon as she got a little attention from the teacher. It seemed a bit more of an issue in the afternoon, but her complaining again ceased when she had people paying her attention or I was helping her with her math. The real issue started during PE, which is the last class of the day. She complained of her head hurting again and I let her sit on the step in front of the classroom where she could be in the shade. This helped for a bit, but she then started feeling worse. I blocked the door open so I could see into the field where the rest of the kids were playing soccer and got the girl to lay down with her head proped on a coat. This didn't seem to help much as she continued to cry. The crying began to get worse so I assured her that her mom was on the way and would be there soon to take her home. This barely registered with her and she kept asking for her mom or dad. I got a cool damp cloth and put it on her forehead, and while this seemed to help a bit, I could definitally tell that she was in pain. This was far beyond a ploy for attention. Fortunately, shortly after this, maybe a few minutes, her dad arrived and I took her out to him. She was still teary, but most of the crying stopped at this point.
This was very difficult for me to deal with. Other than calling her parents, which I would have done immediatly had I not known they were already on their way, I'm not sure what I would have done. Thankfully its done and she is with her parents!
Anyway, other than that, things went fairly well today. The internet went down this morning. I guess that is news too! I managed to get my computer as well as two student computers back online, but I have no idea what to do to fix the others. We may have to share two student computers for the rest of the week. I really don't know what to do to fix them. At least the two work, we should be able to get by with them.
The day was pretty decent otherwise. Here's hoping that today was the worst! Well, I'm gonna do some grading and then go home again. I'm gonna try to take another nap so I can finally kick this cold hopefully. Till next time......
This has to be one of the biggest reasons I never want to be the only teacher in a little, one teacher, school like this. There is very little recourse for a teacher when a difficult emergency situation like this happens. What would have happened had this been a real emergency? I'm just not as at ease or ultimately comfortable when I'm the only one to deal with the situation. The good thing about a larger school is that there are always others around to help if a situation gets to problematic.
Yowzers! I'm so so so glad that this day is over! I'm praying that the girl is alright. She had complained earlier in the day of a headache, but it always seemed to go away quickly as soon as she got a little attention from the teacher. It seemed a bit more of an issue in the afternoon, but her complaining again ceased when she had people paying her attention or I was helping her with her math. The real issue started during PE, which is the last class of the day. She complained of her head hurting again and I let her sit on the step in front of the classroom where she could be in the shade. This helped for a bit, but she then started feeling worse. I blocked the door open so I could see into the field where the rest of the kids were playing soccer and got the girl to lay down with her head proped on a coat. This didn't seem to help much as she continued to cry. The crying began to get worse so I assured her that her mom was on the way and would be there soon to take her home. This barely registered with her and she kept asking for her mom or dad. I got a cool damp cloth and put it on her forehead, and while this seemed to help a bit, I could definitally tell that she was in pain. This was far beyond a ploy for attention. Fortunately, shortly after this, maybe a few minutes, her dad arrived and I took her out to him. She was still teary, but most of the crying stopped at this point.
This was very difficult for me to deal with. Other than calling her parents, which I would have done immediatly had I not known they were already on their way, I'm not sure what I would have done. Thankfully its done and she is with her parents!
Anyway, other than that, things went fairly well today. The internet went down this morning. I guess that is news too! I managed to get my computer as well as two student computers back online, but I have no idea what to do to fix the others. We may have to share two student computers for the rest of the week. I really don't know what to do to fix them. At least the two work, we should be able to get by with them.
The day was pretty decent otherwise. Here's hoping that today was the worst! Well, I'm gonna do some grading and then go home again. I'm gonna try to take another nap so I can finally kick this cold hopefully. Till next time......
Thursday, April 16, 2009
Late night!!
I continue to remember why it sucks to go to bed at 12:30 and have to get up at 5:30! Its doable, but it is never fun the next morning. The Blazer game was AMAZING. It was totally worth the time, but I can definitely tell that I only slept 5 hours!
The kids are good again so far this morning. It is always a bonus when you can get them going and they get totally immersed in their work! This gives the teacher, oh wait...me!..., the time to catch up and make sure everything is ready for the day. Actually, I arrived at school just after 7:00 this morning and had everything ready to go before the first student walked through the door. I can definitely see a nap in my future as soon as school is over though!
Today is also library day! This means that 1 1/2 hours of the morning require little planning on my part which was a nice bonus for the day after a late night! I will certainly have to be there to follow through and make sure everyone is present and alright, but its a little easier as far as planning goes!
Its nice that its already Thursday!! A nice bonus of subbing at an SDA school is that class gets out at 12:00 on Fridays! I had somehow managed to totally forget about that! Of course that doesn't mean that the teacher goes home then....but its a nice thought!
More to come later!
~Peter
The kids are good again so far this morning. It is always a bonus when you can get them going and they get totally immersed in their work! This gives the teacher, oh wait...me!..., the time to catch up and make sure everything is ready for the day. Actually, I arrived at school just after 7:00 this morning and had everything ready to go before the first student walked through the door. I can definitely see a nap in my future as soon as school is over though!
Today is also library day! This means that 1 1/2 hours of the morning require little planning on my part which was a nice bonus for the day after a late night! I will certainly have to be there to follow through and make sure everyone is present and alright, but its a little easier as far as planning goes!
Its nice that its already Thursday!! A nice bonus of subbing at an SDA school is that class gets out at 12:00 on Fridays! I had somehow managed to totally forget about that! Of course that doesn't mean that the teacher goes home then....but its a nice thought!
More to come later!
~Peter
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
Day three.
This is an interesting day. Things started off going very well again. I have everything lined up, planning wise, and we are right on task. I think we've been able to get a lot done, and the students seemed to really learn a lot during Bible and Math classes. They stayed on task and pretty much finished what they needed to. One student even wanted more work, so I gave him some extra problems, which were fairly difficult, but that he was able to work through very well. (This was an unexpected surprise!)
The second part of the morning is a bit more difficult right now tho. They seem to be a bit irritated and are having a bit more trouble staying on task. I think that a large part of the present difficulty is that they recently got back from recess and are having a harder time adjusting to Reading and English classes. They have gone directly from high activity to more "bookish" work and I think that the change is difficult. I think I'd rather have a more "involved" type of class immediately after recess in order to give the students a chance to "warm down" to a more sedate activity.
30 min later.....
They are getting better as time goes on! This really proves my theory. After they have had time to settle down after recess, they are more and more able to concentrate on reading.
Lunch time
So I made this phenomenal tofu curry last night to go along with brown rice. I specifically made it so I could bring it for lunch today. Of course though, since I went out of my way to cook food for lunch the night before, I promptly forgot to bring it to school this morning!! My beautiful lunch is still sitting peacefully in the refrigerator!!! argh!
The second part of the morning is a bit more difficult right now tho. They seem to be a bit irritated and are having a bit more trouble staying on task. I think that a large part of the present difficulty is that they recently got back from recess and are having a harder time adjusting to Reading and English classes. They have gone directly from high activity to more "bookish" work and I think that the change is difficult. I think I'd rather have a more "involved" type of class immediately after recess in order to give the students a chance to "warm down" to a more sedate activity.
30 min later.....
They are getting better as time goes on! This really proves my theory. After they have had time to settle down after recess, they are more and more able to concentrate on reading.
Lunch time
So I made this phenomenal tofu curry last night to go along with brown rice. I specifically made it so I could bring it for lunch today. Of course though, since I went out of my way to cook food for lunch the night before, I promptly forgot to bring it to school this morning!! My beautiful lunch is still sitting peacefully in the refrigerator!!! argh!
Tuesday, April 14, 2009
Day two.....yes I started it late!
Tuesday it is!
Well, things are rather interesting. I am reminded of some of my previous teaching experiences. I feel a bit overwhelmed but still confident. I feel I have the basics of teaching down, its just figuring out how to put it all into practice. There is a big gap between my knowledge and understanding, and my ability to put it into practice.
On the plus side:
-I have a good grip on discipline. I feel like I have the ability to gain my students respect. They almost always are quick to understand when I have had enough and it is time for them to seriously pay attention. I honestly feel like I have the respect of my students, and that is a very good thing.
-I have a positive report with the students. I am able to relate well to them and can explain and discuss issues that come up during the day.
-I have a fairly good grasp on what Mr. Schmidt expects from the students. There is a lot of "busy work" in this type of teaching, which I don't really like, but I think for a substitute teacher, this is mostly necessary. I have been working on incorporating more dynamic learning strategies into the day. I have been pairing students off to teach the ideas they are learning. This seems to work well, even when pairing two fairly different levels. Both students seem to learn something when this happens, and at the worst the higher level student at least gets a good review!
-I am able to quickly come up with extra things for the students to do when they finish early or don't seem to be challenged enough. This is a big positive.
On the Negative side:
-I am a bit overwhelmed. I stress "a bit", because for the most part I think I have been able to get the students working on what they should be. I do believe that they are learning. This is what I believe to be a major negative of a substitute teacher's job. The teacher has a hard time knowing what level each student is at and whether or not they are really progressing. Each class has incorporated a basic concept, practice, and assessment, so I'm going to call it good!
-I would do many things different if I were the primary teacher. This is really not to say that I disagree with the methods that have been set up by Mr. Schmidt. I just think that I would organize things differently. I'd like to have a specific time during each class for a short "teaching moment" rather than simply handing out a worksheet and answering questions when they come up. I have started incorporating the "teaching moments" much more, even only on the second day, but I feel that there needs to be more of this.
Overall, the second day of teaching has been markedly better. I have seen a lot of improvement in my teaching capability in a 48 hour time span. This is very encouraging!! I was worried that the second day could bring more discipline issues, but this has not been the case. Here's to crossing my fingers that this doesn't catch up to me on day three!
Well, I'm out. Gonna go home and make a book as an example for what the students can make in their free time. Gonna sit in front of the TV and work there for a while. Until tomorrow....Ciao!
~Peter
Well, things are rather interesting. I am reminded of some of my previous teaching experiences. I feel a bit overwhelmed but still confident. I feel I have the basics of teaching down, its just figuring out how to put it all into practice. There is a big gap between my knowledge and understanding, and my ability to put it into practice.
On the plus side:
-I have a good grip on discipline. I feel like I have the ability to gain my students respect. They almost always are quick to understand when I have had enough and it is time for them to seriously pay attention. I honestly feel like I have the respect of my students, and that is a very good thing.
-I have a positive report with the students. I am able to relate well to them and can explain and discuss issues that come up during the day.
-I have a fairly good grasp on what Mr. Schmidt expects from the students. There is a lot of "busy work" in this type of teaching, which I don't really like, but I think for a substitute teacher, this is mostly necessary. I have been working on incorporating more dynamic learning strategies into the day. I have been pairing students off to teach the ideas they are learning. This seems to work well, even when pairing two fairly different levels. Both students seem to learn something when this happens, and at the worst the higher level student at least gets a good review!
-I am able to quickly come up with extra things for the students to do when they finish early or don't seem to be challenged enough. This is a big positive.
On the Negative side:
-I am a bit overwhelmed. I stress "a bit", because for the most part I think I have been able to get the students working on what they should be. I do believe that they are learning. This is what I believe to be a major negative of a substitute teacher's job. The teacher has a hard time knowing what level each student is at and whether or not they are really progressing. Each class has incorporated a basic concept, practice, and assessment, so I'm going to call it good!
-I would do many things different if I were the primary teacher. This is really not to say that I disagree with the methods that have been set up by Mr. Schmidt. I just think that I would organize things differently. I'd like to have a specific time during each class for a short "teaching moment" rather than simply handing out a worksheet and answering questions when they come up. I have started incorporating the "teaching moments" much more, even only on the second day, but I feel that there needs to be more of this.
Overall, the second day of teaching has been markedly better. I have seen a lot of improvement in my teaching capability in a 48 hour time span. This is very encouraging!! I was worried that the second day could bring more discipline issues, but this has not been the case. Here's to crossing my fingers that this doesn't catch up to me on day three!
Well, I'm out. Gonna go home and make a book as an example for what the students can make in their free time. Gonna sit in front of the TV and work there for a while. Until tomorrow....Ciao!
~Peter
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