Parent Teacher Conferences

I survived my first parent teacher conferences! They actually went really well, and it was great meeting all of my students' parents. It's fun to see where the students get their personalities from.

Like I said before, since we only have 8 students, our conferences were 30 minutes long. All of the parents are very involved with their children's education, and that is extremely helpful. Some of the things that we talked about with the parents included report cards and IEPs. The students had just gotten their report cards so my teacher made sure that the parents understood everything that was on it. We also talked about any changes or amendments that needed to be made on the students' IEPs. We talked about the students' goals and present levels of performance. IEPs can be very overwhelming and confusing, especially for the parents, but my teacher did a great job simplifying all of the information. This was very really helpful for the parents, and I'm sure they appreciated it. 

Another thing that we talked about was behaviors in and out of the classroom. With one of our students, we were thinking about starting a check and connect, which is a behavior plan. We discussed the idea with the parents, and they thought it was a great idea. After the conferences, we implemented the check and connect, and it has been working really well. 

It was a great opportunity to get to know the parents and talk about their children's education. I am really glad that I was able to be a part of the conferences because it is great experience for me. Someday I will be having conferences with my students' parents, and I feel that I am more prepared for them now. I have witnessed firsthand how important it is to communicate with parents, and I will definitely make that a major priority in my future classroom. 

Teacher Duties

This week was a lot of Thanksgiving fun! My students do not have school at all next week because parent teacher conferences are Monday and Tuesday, and they get the rest of the week off for Thanksgiving. That means this week was the last of our Thanksgiving festivities. No more turkey projects.. On to the snowmen and Christmas trees! I need to get on Pinterest to look for cute Christmas activities!

Anyways, report cards were due this week which means that IEP updates were also due. I got the opportunity to help my teacher with these things. (Not always the most fun duties, but definitely something I need to learn how to do.) I was able to take one student, and do his present levels for each of his goals. This is always something that we learned how to do in school, and we would practice writing them, but it doesn't mean as much until you actually do it for a real student of yours. My teacher looked over them before she turned them in, and she said they looked great! Guess all that practice paid off, Dr. Powell!

My teacher and I have been getting ready for conferences next week. We only have 8 students, and each conference is 30 minutes long. That means we're going to have a lot of time to get things done, which is what I need! My cooperating teacher likes to plan pretty far in advance, and that helps me to stay on top of my planning. I am also looking forward to the actual conferences because I have never participated in them before. This is definitely something I will be doing so it's good that I am getting the experience.

On Thursday after school, it was Market Day. They asked the teachers to help out with the orders. There were about 6 teachers and our principal along with some other volunteers that went after school. They said it would take about a half hour. Things didn't run as smoothly as they had hoped, and we didn't leave until 2 hours later. My principal looked over at me and jokingly said, "Welcome to education!"

I have been loving every second of student teaching, and I have been having such a blast! I love being with the students, and it is so rewarding to see them progress. However, there is more to being a teacher than just working with the students. It also includes duties and responsibilities that aren't always as fun as being with the students. I'm glad that I am able to experience everything that teachers need to do, such as report cards, IEPs, and conferences because it is preparing me for my future as a teacher.

Compassion and Prayer

We always learn about how important it is to get to know our students. We need to get to know them so we can understand them on an academic level as well as a personal level. Since I have two placements, I don't get as much time with my students. This means that I need to work hard to get to know each of them in a short amount of time. I have done my best in both placements to get to know my students academically and personally.

My cooperating teacher and I learned something about one of our students this week. We found out that she is having to go through an extreme amount of family issues that no one should ever have to go through, especially as a third grader. My heart breaks for this little girl and her family, and I haven't been able to stop thinking about it. I cannot even imagine going through something like that, and it just isn't fair that she has to. All I want to do is help, but I'm not quite sure how to.

At the faculty meeting, my student and her family were brought up. Not everyone knows exactly what happened so the social worker didn't mention her name, but I knew since she is my student. Everyone was appalled at the situation, and they were more than willing to help. The social worker said that there will be a big jar for donations to the family. When I walked by it a few hours later, there was already quite a bit of money in it. It was really good to know that the teachers and staff that I work with are so caring and helpful.

I want to do my part as well. I am going to donate money to this family just like all the other teachers. Not only will I do that, but as a Christian, I am going to pray for them. This family needs prayer more than anything else right now. I am at a public school and don't know about this family's faith, but I can only hope that they turn to God in this situation because he always provides.

Along with getting to know my students, another responsibility I have is praying for them. I do this for all of my students, and I will continue to pray for my student's family as well. I hope and pray that they are able to get through this, and that they have friends and family to turn to in this rough time. But above all, I hope that they know God is always there for them, and he is on their side.

Unproductive Days

I had another good week of student teaching! It's starting to dawn on me that it is almost over.. And when it's over, I'm done with college! I am also going to start applying for jobs. How crazy is that?!

Halloween was a lot of fun, and the students all looked so cute!! My favorite costumes that I saw the students wearing were a piñata and Mushu from Mulan (my favorite Disney movie). There was a Halloween parade so all of the students could see each other's costumes. All of the teachers dressed up too, and it was so fun! I was Cat in the Hat. (I am really proud of myself because I made pretty much the whole thing!)

Since I've started at Tyler, there has been one or two days where my teacher and I have looked back and thought, "We just did not get much done today." It's not that we just sat around and did nothing. Things came up. There were meltdowns by students, things took longer than expected, and the hours slipped away from us too quickly. 

The scheduling in my classroom is pretty crazy, and we are changing groups every 25-30 minutes. I was teaching math to the first graders, and half way through the lesson I was like, "Ok! First graders: time to go to lunch! Second graders: time for Music! Third graders: bring your Language Arts to the back table!" When I don't finish the whole lesson, I can't continue to teach it because they usually have to go somewhere or it is time to teach another grade. I can't get over how important it is to transition quickly. If the transition from one thing to another takes 10 minutes, then there is only 15 minutes to teach a lesson. 

But anyways, when I have unproductive days with my students, it is important to pinpoint the problem. I need to know why we didn't get much done because that will help to avoid those problems in the future. My cooperating teacher has stressed the importance of reflection, especially on days like those. According to the Illinois Professional Teaching Standards, "The competent teacher understands that reflection is an integral part of professional growth and improvement of instruction" (10A). Reflecting on how the school day went will help me grow as a teacher, and it will greatly benefit my students. 

I think that because I care for my students so much, I want them to get the most out of their time at school, and that is why I don't like to have days where we don't get much done. I have witnessed some teachers being okay with an unproductive day as long as the students stay out of trouble. I think that it is extremely important that my students are constantly learning, and they will continue to learn if I can make the most out of each day I have with them. 

Second Week at Tyler

I finished up my second full week at Tyler, and I have learned so much already. It is a great school, and all the teachers are wonderful. It is very evident that they care so much for the students, and it is just a great environment to be in.

Like I said before, I have first, second, and third graders in my class, and each grade is learning something different. Each day, the students go directly to their general education classes in the morning. Then they come to the instructional classroom about fifteen minutes after the bell rings. For the most part, we do math in the morning and language arts in the afternoon, but sometimes it gets pretty crazy. This is because the students are constantly in and out of the room because they go to lunch, recess, science/social studies, and special (P.E., music, art, computer lab, and library) with their general education class. Each grade level does all of these things at different times so it is rare if all three grade levels are in the room at the same time. Not to mention, they are also individually pulled out for OT, speech, and social work. And if that isn't crazy enough, the language arts groups are not separated by grade level, but by ability level. So there are three groups, but one group has a first grader, three second graders, and one third grader. It is nearly impossible to teach them all at the same time because they are rarely in the room all together. Needless to say, it is kind of a planning nightmare, but there is one aide in the classroom, and she helps tremendously.

Aside from the craziness of planning, the students are a blast! They all have such great personalities, and I am having so much fun with them. They are all so different, and my teacher has taught me so many strategies to use with them. I know we have learned about differentiation in just about every education class in college, but it doesn't mean much until you can apply it in the classroom. And that is what I'm learning to do. Since I have students with such different academic abilities, it is important that I differentiate my lessons to meet the needs of all of them.  According to the Illinois Professional Teaching Standards the competent teacher, "adapts the general curriculum and uses instructional strategies and materials according to characteristics of the learner" (6O). My cooperating teacher has been a special education teacher for a long time so she is pretty much an expert. I am learning so much from her, especially about differentiation.

I taught one math lesson this week, and I have also started planning math on my own. On Monday, I will begin to teach math to the students with the help of my cooperating teacher. I am really looking forward to this week! And I'm also looking forward to dressing up for Halloween at school! I haven't done that in so long. I'll make sure to post pictures :)

Beginning at Tyler Elementary

My first week at Tyler Elementary was a success! I felt so welcomed, and I had a great week! My cooperating teacher is really good, and I know I am going to learn a lot from her. I have eight students in my class: three third graders, three second graders, and two first graders. It is considered an instructional class so they are in the general education classroom, but they are pulled into my classroom for math and language arts. I think it is a great way for the students to get the instruction that they need, but also be a part of the general education class.

As I think about both placements, one thing comes to mind: just about every single thing is different. Not in a good or bad way.. just different. 

Here are some of the major differences:

1. The students are very different. First of all, they are so small!  They are first, second, and third graders, and they are so little! I'm not used to being around teeny tiny 6 year olds, but I'll have to admit, they are too cute, and they say the funniest things! I laugh a lot. I love it. My students have mostly learning disabilities so it is completely different than my students at St. Coletta's. They do not have behaviors like my last students. The worst behaviors that my students have is crying, which I can definitely handle.
   
   
2. TECHNOLOGY! Tyler uses technology, and it is wonderful. There is internet! (Which my last school did not have.) There are projectors and elmos in just about every room. Each class goes to the computer lab once a week, and there are also two computers in each classroom. There are also laptops and iPads that the teachers can rent out for their classrooms. Might I add, all of the computers and laptops are Macs, and I, being an Apple advocate, am loving it!
   
   
3. It is more of a "typical" school. St. Coletta's is a very unique type of school, and it is in an industrial area. Tyler is a regular elementary school surrounded by a neighborhood. At Tyler, I have more of a "real" classroom with fun and cute decorations. It is definitely more of a welcoming environment. I also get a plan period and a lunch break, which I love because I did not have before. 

I have already begun to build relationships with my students, and I know that I am going to have so much fun teaching them. I am really looking forward to the next few weeks, and I know that I am going to learn so much.

Farewell St. Coletta's

My time at St. Coletta's has come to an end. It was really sad to say goodbye to all of my students, and everyone else that I met there. My last day was also my cooperating teacher's last day because she is going to have her baby. The students were a little confused because they thought I was coming back in December when Ms. Kelly was coming back. It was hard to tell them that I actually wouldn't be back to teach them, but I told them that I would come and visit!

We went on another field trip this week! I just love field trips. In honor of Fire Prevention Week, we went to the Tinley Park Fire Station. The theme in class for this week was fire safety so the students learned a lot about what firemen do and what to do if there is a fire. They learned even more about fire safety from going to the fire station.

When we first got there, the firemen explained to us what they do for their job. One of them put on everything that they wear when there is a fire. The kids thought that was really cool!

They also explained that they have to stay overnight at the fire station because there always has to be firemen there. They showed us where they relax and sleep when they stay overnight.

Here are some of the boys sitting in the fire truck! Some of the kids were very excited to go in.. and others were a little skeptical. So we took some pictures inside the fire truck, and some pictures outside the fire truck..

On top of the American Flag is a beam from the World Trade Center. The big picture on the right is made up of smaller pictures of all the firemen and police officers who lost their lives on September 11, 2001. What an awesome tribute to have in their station!

They let the kids go on some of their equipment, which they really enjoyed!








Everyone had a great time at the fire station! They loved their new fire hats! :)







When people ask me how my placement is, I reply with "intense." I think intense is a perfect word for the school that I was in. After being in a placement like this for 7 weeks, I feel like I can conquer the world. Okay, maybe I'm exaggerating a little.. But seriously, I feel like I can teach anywhere now. I have learned an unimaginable amount from my cooperating teacher, my paraprofessionals, and my students. It has been nothing less than a fantastic experience, and I am so thankful that I was placed at St. Coletta's. I am going to miss those kids dearly, and I wish only the best for them.

I start at my new school on Monday, and I am hopeful that it will be another great experience! I just love teaching! :)