Exciting news! Today I found a blog from a teacher who is just as excited about using music for transitions as I am! For those of you who have no idea what I'm so excited about, let me digress. One of my teacher idols, who has many fabulous ideas, had one particularly fabulous idea to use music as a signal to students to transition to another activity or subject. She chose a few songs (lots of Creedence Clearwater Revival. I was a fan.) and when students heard the song, they knew it was either time to put things away and move to the carpet, to clean up for lunch, to get ready for the day, etc.
One of my least favorite things in my main placement is our transitions during the day. We usually do a count down and by the time we get to 1, students should be seated at the carpet, or wherever our next lesson will take place. It actually takes a lot of effort that I, as a student teacher, could use that time getting set up for my next big lesson. Every second counts! So I've been doing a lot of reflecting on how I could make this better and improve on what method we already have for transitions throughout the school day.
So I am ridiculously excited that I found this blog from a teacher who uses music in her class transitions- oh, and did I mention she uses her SMART BOARD to do all this?
I am just downright impressed. This is going on my list of things to do when I get my own classroom. With the exception of the song list. Maybe I could have students help me choose the songs and we could have a collective class list of music. I'll admit though, I will draw the line at any Miley Cyrus songs because 1) Copyright infringement, and 2) those songs are way too catchy and they would get stuck in my head immediately. This idea is a work in progress!
Sunday, January 27, 2013
Sunday, January 20, 2013
Be The Person Your Dog Thinks You Are
"I'll allow myself to be myself, because ultimately that's what students need- a teacher with a thirst for learning and a heart for wisdom."
This is my mantra for the week!
I am really diggin John Spencer's book. I think the first few chapters are especially pertinent to us, as student teachers, because we are in another person's classroom. It's a struggle to model your own teaching practices after your cooperating teacher's, while discovering yourself as a teacher. We had a guest teacher on Thursday, and it was a helpful reminder that there are so many ways to lead a classroom (and it's okay to be quirky!).
Spencer's book is helping me to analyze my own personality and to figure out how it could be a strength and a weakness in teaching. He says, "for example, I'm funny. This can help me motivate students. However, this can also lead the class off-task if I'm not careful." I wrote down a few of my own, and for the sake of being candid in my blog, I'll share one. I'm a "softie". This can help me build a caring relationship with all of my students, but it could also mean that I wont be as hard on my students as they might need. This is a part of the important reflection of who I am and who I am becoming as an educator.
In chapter 2 that Spencer writes, "find someone who knows you well who will affirm your identity as a teacher even during the hardest parts of the year." This was a helpful reminder to thank the people in my life who have been encouraging me and putting up with my stress fueled antics since last March! They are amazing and supportive and wonderful. And, it really helps to be a part of such a tight knit cohort. I think we should take this time to pat ourselves on the back... and just because this reading has been inspirational, and this blog post has been reflective and focused on appreciating others, I think it is only fitting to leave you with an inspirational picture.
This is my mantra for the week!
I am really diggin John Spencer's book. I think the first few chapters are especially pertinent to us, as student teachers, because we are in another person's classroom. It's a struggle to model your own teaching practices after your cooperating teacher's, while discovering yourself as a teacher. We had a guest teacher on Thursday, and it was a helpful reminder that there are so many ways to lead a classroom (and it's okay to be quirky!).
Spencer's book is helping me to analyze my own personality and to figure out how it could be a strength and a weakness in teaching. He says, "for example, I'm funny. This can help me motivate students. However, this can also lead the class off-task if I'm not careful." I wrote down a few of my own, and for the sake of being candid in my blog, I'll share one. I'm a "softie". This can help me build a caring relationship with all of my students, but it could also mean that I wont be as hard on my students as they might need. This is a part of the important reflection of who I am and who I am becoming as an educator.
In chapter 2 that Spencer writes, "find someone who knows you well who will affirm your identity as a teacher even during the hardest parts of the year." This was a helpful reminder to thank the people in my life who have been encouraging me and putting up with my stress fueled antics since last March! They are amazing and supportive and wonderful. And, it really helps to be a part of such a tight knit cohort. I think we should take this time to pat ourselves on the back... and just because this reading has been inspirational, and this blog post has been reflective and focused on appreciating others, I think it is only fitting to leave you with an inspirational picture.
Sunday, January 13, 2013
First Week Back!
It's the first week back, and I have the energy, inspiration, and that extra "oomph" that I will need this quarter. Yes!
The perfect book for my current frame of mind? A Sustainable Start.
John Spencer shares from his life and experiences and asks the reader to think of their own story. If I could write my own story for going into teaching thus far, what would that look like? Spencer talked about his own experiences in school, which sounded mostly negative, and his desire to want to change the system. My experiences in school were resoundingly good, and I have a desire to work in a school like the one I attended. It was a small, poor school with a group of brilliant teachers who had autonomy in their classrooms. I remember lots of projects, music, art, science, "field trips" (for a poor school, this means walking the 10 blocks to a small lake to take soil samples. It sounds boring, but it was fabulous.) This is similar to what I dream my career will look like. Student focused and a plethora of subjects and creative freedom! I have big hopes and dreams, and I look forward to my student teaching where I can help shape my classroom and give a positive learning experience for all of my students.
I've only had Spencer's book for a few days, but I'm delving into it. He shares some of my same insecurities, questions, and struggles. Right now I'm thinking about how inexperienced I truly am- how much time I've really had in my main placement, compared to the years of rich experience my cooperating teacher has had. I have so much to learn. One thing I've taken away from this week, which was my mantra for Allison's class Friday, is to value taking risks. This will be the quarter of taking risks, and trying, and being appreciative of feedback. My first observation is in a few days, and so this mantra will continue on!
Also, for anyone else who would like to add Mr. Spencer to their blogroll, here it is.
The perfect book for my current frame of mind? A Sustainable Start.
John Spencer shares from his life and experiences and asks the reader to think of their own story. If I could write my own story for going into teaching thus far, what would that look like? Spencer talked about his own experiences in school, which sounded mostly negative, and his desire to want to change the system. My experiences in school were resoundingly good, and I have a desire to work in a school like the one I attended. It was a small, poor school with a group of brilliant teachers who had autonomy in their classrooms. I remember lots of projects, music, art, science, "field trips" (for a poor school, this means walking the 10 blocks to a small lake to take soil samples. It sounds boring, but it was fabulous.) This is similar to what I dream my career will look like. Student focused and a plethora of subjects and creative freedom! I have big hopes and dreams, and I look forward to my student teaching where I can help shape my classroom and give a positive learning experience for all of my students.
I've only had Spencer's book for a few days, but I'm delving into it. He shares some of my same insecurities, questions, and struggles. Right now I'm thinking about how inexperienced I truly am- how much time I've really had in my main placement, compared to the years of rich experience my cooperating teacher has had. I have so much to learn. One thing I've taken away from this week, which was my mantra for Allison's class Friday, is to value taking risks. This will be the quarter of taking risks, and trying, and being appreciative of feedback. My first observation is in a few days, and so this mantra will continue on!
Also, for anyone else who would like to add Mr. Spencer to their blogroll, here it is.
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