The only thing I would have wanted to do different is the fact that I didnt get to know students like I would have because I had two different cooperating teachers. One week I was with some students, and the next with different ones. For many reasons that was good however. I saw different teaching styles, different students, things about classroom management I would and would not do, and was allowed the opportunity to see a multitude of lessons that I would take and do differently. It got me thinking as a teacher, and helped me realize ways I could help different students be successful.

Another thing I will always remember is how it seemed that I made things interesting in the classes. I had students participating that rarely ever participated. I had basketball girls respect me and want me to play pick up with them. Had I had more time, I would have loved to join them.

I cannot wait until next semester when I can be with a group of students and get to know them and learn even more about ways I can be an excellent teacher in the future.

Analysis: I feel this was extremely beneficial for me. I learned a lot by doing this activity. I already have one lesson that I can do with my students and I know that they seemed to enjoy this particular lesson. My students were engaged and I asked questions throughout my lesson to check for understanding. For the most part, they could answer my questions with few errors. For my lesson I followed the madeline hunter model. I had a warm-up activity ($5 bill activity), objective ( that my students could show they understand what  I was teaching about short-term effects), Instructional input (powerpoint), Guided Practice ( questions and board race), Independent practice (board race), and closure (went over answers to board race and got students in groups to discuss the next lesson (long-term effects). This was pretty much the first time I have taught in a class (with the exception of sunday school, substitute teaching, and 6 junior achievement lessons at an elementary). It gave me an idea of what it is going to be like in the next fews years as I begin to teach and have a class for myself. It also showed how much preparation is needed; especially for the first couple of years when I don’t have most of my lesson plans already complete, or at least started. 

Reflection: This is going to benefit me tremendously in the future; especially for next semester in my student teaching semester. I think part of what makes me nervous with teaching in someone else’s classroom is what they think is appropriate as opposed to what I deem appropriate. I know one thing I mentioned was students at a party/bar and how the text said one drink has been shown to relax you. However, I also said that one drink is probably not what most people are drink. Then I started to say something about making bad decisions with a significant other, but thought otherwise about going deep into it. Whereas I thought it would be extremely appropriate in that situation, I don’t really know what my cooperating teacher would think. Overall, I feel I was prepared and already having this lesson, as well as already teaching this lesson to a group of high school students, is going to make my future teaching be more comfortable.

Analyze: As a student, I always thought “I can’t wait to be a teacher because I wont have anything that I must do at night. If I dont feel like grading those papers, I can put them off until tomorrow. That was my mentality, until last monday. I learned that this  mentality has got to go. My father use to gripe all the time about how much time my mother (who is also a teacher) spent at her school. I never thought about it, but this only meant that she truly cared about her students. This goes along with building rapport with your students. By doing something like this to go out of your way to help your students shows them that you care. This is a lot of what we have talked about this semester. Building this certain relationship with your students creates a healthy learning environment that your students want to be engaged in. So, I went home and studied genetics and thought of different ways I could take this back to my buddy and help him raise his grade in biology.

Reflection: Already this shows my commitment to students. I am in this profession for a reason, and it is kids. They need people to care about them, and some students have always been left alone, or had people abandon them. I want to be there for them and no matter how long it takes for them to trust me, I am going to do everything I can for my students. The phrase “like mother, like daughter” is going to be true for my mother and me, especially in this career path I have chosen. My goal as a future teacher is to do whatever I can to help each of my students succeed, not only in my class, but in life.

Analysis: There is still a lot to be learned, and many more sessions that I will spend with my buddy. So far I have learned that you can not judge based on appearance. Again, I have heard this over and over in my classes, but sometimes, even if we dont want to, it’s just inevitable. I walked in and I assumed that my buddy was not going to be able to speak english very well, and that he was probably not going to be doing very well in his classes. The opposite is what I found. He told me his lowest grade was an eighty-five, and his english is great, although he does talk slow like he is trying to think hard and not say the wrong things. I am very excited that I am in this block so I will be able to be ahead of the game when I begin my teaching career.

Reflection: In the future, it will be important for me to include culture in my classroom curriculum. I can not minimize their culture, and think that just because they are not academically on the same scale as the other students in my room, that they dont have a lot to offer. There are many different funds of knowledge and teachers cant neglect what students bring to the classroom.

Analysis: I learned many ways that I would like to try and preassess my students. Getting to know your students’ interests can help you with your classroom instruction. Students learn different ways and they like different things. With this information you wont waste time re-teaching objectives your students already know, or if you need to teach on a higher level thinking. This could be different in each class as well. It can also allow you to incorporate cross-curriculum so that you can keep your students focus, even if the topic may not be the most interesting to your students.

Reflection: In the future, it will be important for me to spend time getting to know each one of my students. I say this not only at the beginning of the semester, but all the way throughout it. I would hand out a survey or do a fun activity or both on the first day.  If I notice I have a class full of art students, I will try and incorporate art in my health classes. The same goes for athletes, musicians, etc. Keeping students interested helps them learn and will help them remember the information for a long time, which is critical in health.

Analysis: