This was the first week that my teacher left the room, and I actually taught the class. The entire week, all by myself! And it went wonderfully! I have one more week of teaching by myself, and then my teacher starts to take the class over again. That means I am over half way done with my first placement, which seems crazy! I am already in contact with my second cooperating teacher, and we are planning a day when I can go meet her and the students. Wow! Time really does fly when you're having fun teaching, doesn't it?! :)
Like I said, my week went really well! At the beginning of the week, my students kept asking, "Where's Ms. Kelly?" "Is Ms. Kelly here today?" Which is completely understandable because they are so used to having her in the classroom all the time. But they definitely got used to it by the end of the week which was really good. I'm not sure if I have mentioned this, but Ms. Kelly is having a baby, and she is actually due the day before I leave St. Coletta's! She is taking this time to get things ready for the substitute teacher, and it is also good for the students to get used to someone else teaching the class. I'm just hoping she lasts until I leave! She helps me so much! I know, I know.. it's not really up to me, but I can be hopeful right? I am just so thankful for Ms. Kelly and all that she does for me.
On Tuesday, I got the opportunity to sit in on a phone conference about a student that was supposed to come to St. Coletta's at the beginning of the year but ended up not coming. There is a lot to the story, but basically, this student was not asked back to his previous school so his district wanted to send him to St. Coletta's. The parents decided they wanted to home school their son because he has behaviors at school. This boy has not been in school at all this year, and his parents are not home schooling him so he is getting no academic instruction. The parents did not want to come in for a conference so they decided to have a phone conference that I was able to participate in. The people at the conference were the district representative, the principal of St. Coletta's, my cooperating teacher, the two behavior specialists, and then the parents of the student on the phone. It was really interesting to listen to the things being said, and how they went about everything. I have never been a part of an IEP meeting or a conference about a student so I really learned a lot. It was a great experience to see all of these people come together and collaborate with each other. They figured out a plan to try to get the boy back in school, and it was very evident that everyone at this meeting had the student's needs in mind. The Illinois Professional Teaching Standards say that the competent teacher, "understands roles of individuals with disabilities, parents, teachers, and other school and community personnel in planning individualized education programs for students with disabilities" (9G). The people at this meeting understood the concerns of the parents, and they were able to work together to come up with a plan for the student. Collaboration is such a huge part of special education, and it was great that I was able to experience it firsthand.
I had a great week, and I am looking forward to another week with my students! I have already learned so much at this placement, and I know that I will continue to learn a lot from my teacher and other adults as well as my students.
I'm glad your teaching went well and your students adjusted to you as their teacher.
ReplyDeleteYour IEP meeting sounds like it was very interesting - one which you learned so much. I'm glad that you could participate and have learned about the importance of collaboration.
I hope the next week goes as well