Gaelic: Ta athas orm. (taw ah-hus uh-rum)
English: There is joy upon me.
I have no image of God other than an undeniable truth and as love. I was told my God may be growing up.
The Corpse Bride is a good movie. I enjoyed it a lot.
I was around a smoker and didn't crave or cringe.
I am in a pretty awesome place in my life right now.
Sunday, September 25, 2005
week 3 reflection
On Thursday of this last week I substitued for my CT. I had my first instance (of this semester) of being extremely frustrated while teaching. The math lesson was introducing rulers. The kids were supposed to practice drawing lines with rulers, then use the rulers to make a star on a worksheet. Half of the students simply did not understand what I was showing them. They would draw lines without the rulers or put the ruler on the paper and draw without their pencil against the edge of the ruler. I think that I did not explain to them well enough how to do this. Using a ruler is something that most adults don't think about so I don't think I explained it step-by-step. I just assumed that it was something that would come naturally. The next day my CT retaught the lesson and I saw the differences in the way she showed the kids how to use the ruler and the way I showed them. She was much more specific in her directions. Next time I have to introduce a new tool to the kids I'm going to write down step-by-step what you do beforehand and try to think about how it would be if you'd never used the tool before.
That same day I think I applied some important philosophies that I had been taught. That morning all the kids came to school talking about the hurricane. It was quite obvious that all the kids were thinking about it. At the beginning of calendar time I took about 10 minutes and we talked about hurricanes. I think it kept us from having a lot of interruptions throughout the day about it. Later that afternoon I was reading a book to the kids and they simply could not focus. I was getting frustrated and was feeling like I wanted to give the entire class a write-up. Instead, I put the book down and told the kids that they had two minutes to talk. I explained to them that the class seemed to be having trouble focusing and not talking, so I was going to give them two minutes to stay at their spot on the carpet and talk so they could get it out of their system. After that we would re-focus and try again. I've had professors teach that these are good things to do and I know that they are, this is just the first time I have actually put it into practice and it seemed to be a worthwhile use of time.
That same day I think I applied some important philosophies that I had been taught. That morning all the kids came to school talking about the hurricane. It was quite obvious that all the kids were thinking about it. At the beginning of calendar time I took about 10 minutes and we talked about hurricanes. I think it kept us from having a lot of interruptions throughout the day about it. Later that afternoon I was reading a book to the kids and they simply could not focus. I was getting frustrated and was feeling like I wanted to give the entire class a write-up. Instead, I put the book down and told the kids that they had two minutes to talk. I explained to them that the class seemed to be having trouble focusing and not talking, so I was going to give them two minutes to stay at their spot on the carpet and talk so they could get it out of their system. After that we would re-focus and try again. I've had professors teach that these are good things to do and I know that they are, this is just the first time I have actually put it into practice and it seemed to be a worthwhile use of time.
Saturday, September 24, 2005
relaxation
Tonight was a wonderfully relaxing evening. We got out of school early because of the hurricane so I had extra time. My evening was filled with napping, reading, chicken tortilla soup with the fam, ice cream and looking at photos with Kathy, and a dash of insanity provided by children. Now I'm off to bed at the late hour of 10:30. :)
Sunday, September 18, 2005
week 2 reflection
For some reason I understand students with autism. I can usually tell the difference between being stubborn and autism and I'm able to be straightforward with them. I think this comes from both of my parents having a background of working with people who have special needs. This last week I feel like I really made a connection with our FOCUS student, he is autistic. I have talked with the FOCUS staff members and they've told me the steps that they use when trying to help a student de-escalate. My cooperating teacher and I are now using the same technique because consistency is always good. On Wednesday he got in trouble and became very upset when I gave him a write-up. We called the FOCUS staff and they talked about what had happened. The rest of the afternoon he kept telling us that he was happy now. This week he's started engaging my CT and I in conversation, which is huge for a person with autism. They tend to be very inward focused. On two different occasions this week he was working with other students during workstation time. One of those times was even a station that he told me he didn't like and fought against going to it earlier in the week. The peers at his table are usually great with him. They try to offer to help him, but most of the time he just wants one of the teachers to help. A couple of times this week he's accepted the help of the other students at his desk. It is just amazing to see him integrating into the classroom. He still has his difficulties, of course, and he still needs extra attention to stay focused, but I have seen him make progress in the two weeks that I've been in the classroom. I've also seen progress with a couple of other students who have more behavior issues than most. It also makes me feel good to see a student smile at me at the end of the day, even when I've had to discipline them. I am still making a conscious effort to make sure these students don't just get negative attention from me. I'm having a great time working with the students and it is so exciting to see the progress they are making.
Sunday, September 11, 2005
reflections 1,2 and 3
I have weekly reflections that are required for student teaching. I'm gong to be posting them here as well to help keep people who are interested up to date.
Prior to student teaching, Reflection 1
The first meeting for student teaching was extremely stressful for me. As all the requirements for the entire semester were laid out before us, I began to panic. I wondered how I was possibly going to get all this done. There is so much surely I will forget something. I'm still concerned, but not as much as before. I have my calendar where I've laid out some of the more looming projects, I'm going to start making lists so that I know what work is the most pressing, and I'm going to start on the large projects before I think I need to. I think that student teaching will be a fun and valuable experience, I just hope I don't get caught up in the stress.
Prior to student teaching, Reflection 2
After spending two full days with my class and my teacher I am considerably less stressed about student teaching. I quickly remembered how comfortable I am in this setting and how much fun teaching is. I can already tell what some of the challenges in the class are going to be. There is one student who has autism. This student is extremely smart and able to do the work, but he needs extra prompting and attention at times. This is not difficult to do while my CT is teaching, but it will be hard to attend to him as needed when I'm teaching the class. My CT told me to step in, not to feel like I had to sit at the back of the classroom and observe, so I did. I was following her discipline model and gave a student a write-up. The student got mad at me and began to cry. I tried to talk to her about it but it seemed as if she was crying just for attention. There is going to be a bit of a struggle with this student. She seems to feel that the rules don't apply to her like they do to everyone else. I did make an effort later in the day to praise her for promptly starting work and walking quietly in line. Although she may be difficult to deal with, I don't want her to feel that every time a teacher notices her is when she is being difficult.
Week 1
I spent this week getting to know the students, my CT, and the other 1st grade teachers. I spent more time working with the child with autism and had a couple more struggles with the student who cried last week. I stepped in a few times and continued a lesson when there was an unforeseen interruption in the class. One day a student from another class was brought into our classroom because he could not get his work done in his own classroom. My CT had to deal with it immediately. I stepped in and continued the focus poetry lesson. We were spelling out words on the word wall. The students were distracted by the interruption and did not respond immediately to me. I stopped and reminded them that they were to treat me the same way they treated the CT. Just because she had to deal with an interruption did not mean that class stopped and they got to goof off. I feel like the students are trying me, which is perfectly normal. I am not hesitating to discipline or reward them. They get stickers for appropriate behavior and get write-ups from me, just like they do from my CT. I had felt like my CT was giving the students too many chances before she followed through with discipline at the middle of the week, but on Thursday and Friday it didn't seem that way at all. All I can do is try to make sure that I remain consistent with what I do. Overall I like my CT and the students in my class. I think this is going to be a great placement for me.
Prior to student teaching, Reflection 1
The first meeting for student teaching was extremely stressful for me. As all the requirements for the entire semester were laid out before us, I began to panic. I wondered how I was possibly going to get all this done. There is so much surely I will forget something. I'm still concerned, but not as much as before. I have my calendar where I've laid out some of the more looming projects, I'm going to start making lists so that I know what work is the most pressing, and I'm going to start on the large projects before I think I need to. I think that student teaching will be a fun and valuable experience, I just hope I don't get caught up in the stress.
Prior to student teaching, Reflection 2
After spending two full days with my class and my teacher I am considerably less stressed about student teaching. I quickly remembered how comfortable I am in this setting and how much fun teaching is. I can already tell what some of the challenges in the class are going to be. There is one student who has autism. This student is extremely smart and able to do the work, but he needs extra prompting and attention at times. This is not difficult to do while my CT is teaching, but it will be hard to attend to him as needed when I'm teaching the class. My CT told me to step in, not to feel like I had to sit at the back of the classroom and observe, so I did. I was following her discipline model and gave a student a write-up. The student got mad at me and began to cry. I tried to talk to her about it but it seemed as if she was crying just for attention. There is going to be a bit of a struggle with this student. She seems to feel that the rules don't apply to her like they do to everyone else. I did make an effort later in the day to praise her for promptly starting work and walking quietly in line. Although she may be difficult to deal with, I don't want her to feel that every time a teacher notices her is when she is being difficult.
Week 1
I spent this week getting to know the students, my CT, and the other 1st grade teachers. I spent more time working with the child with autism and had a couple more struggles with the student who cried last week. I stepped in a few times and continued a lesson when there was an unforeseen interruption in the class. One day a student from another class was brought into our classroom because he could not get his work done in his own classroom. My CT had to deal with it immediately. I stepped in and continued the focus poetry lesson. We were spelling out words on the word wall. The students were distracted by the interruption and did not respond immediately to me. I stopped and reminded them that they were to treat me the same way they treated the CT. Just because she had to deal with an interruption did not mean that class stopped and they got to goof off. I feel like the students are trying me, which is perfectly normal. I am not hesitating to discipline or reward them. They get stickers for appropriate behavior and get write-ups from me, just like they do from my CT. I had felt like my CT was giving the students too many chances before she followed through with discipline at the middle of the week, but on Thursday and Friday it didn't seem that way at all. All I can do is try to make sure that I remain consistent with what I do. Overall I like my CT and the students in my class. I think this is going to be a great placement for me.
church
Some of you may know that I haven't been to church in awhile, probably around 6 months or so. Last Sunday and today I went to St. Mark's Episcopal Church. I'm very excited about going there. Here are some things that I find inviting...
-focus on individual spirituality (everyone experiences God in a different way)
-learning about different types of prayer (praying the hours, rosary, lectio divinia, etc)
-focusing on the inner transformation in striving to be more like God rather than focusing on how sin has separated us from God and made us horrible, detached beings.
-more awe surrounding God and the Bible
-no set doctrine that you have to follow
I talked with Father Bruce for about an hour after church today and have an appointment to talk with him week after next. I'm looking forward to finding out more about the church and finding ways for me to connect with God. What I grew up with doesn't fit my personality. I'm excited to develop my own rule of life. A rule of life is basically a set of practices that help you regulate your life and keep things in balance.
-focus on individual spirituality (everyone experiences God in a different way)
-learning about different types of prayer (praying the hours, rosary, lectio divinia, etc)
-focusing on the inner transformation in striving to be more like God rather than focusing on how sin has separated us from God and made us horrible, detached beings.
-more awe surrounding God and the Bible
-no set doctrine that you have to follow
I talked with Father Bruce for about an hour after church today and have an appointment to talk with him week after next. I'm looking forward to finding out more about the church and finding ways for me to connect with God. What I grew up with doesn't fit my personality. I'm excited to develop my own rule of life. A rule of life is basically a set of practices that help you regulate your life and keep things in balance.
Sunday, September 04, 2005
New Orleans
I don't watch the news very much. I find it depressing or frustrating most of the time. I knew there was a hurricane heading towards the states but I figured it would be like most other hurricanes. While lives lost are not something we should get used to, hurricanes happen every season. Then on Wednesday people at home group were talking about the devastation that had occurred in New Orleans. I called my friend Eric who lives in New Orleans to make sure he and his wife were okay. They just moved down there at the end of the spring so she could go to grad school and he was going to open his own tattoo shop. They are safe and all of their friends are safe and accounted for. If only every one could be so lucky. I still haven't watched the news because I can't take the heartbreak of watching and not being able to do much. I hear the horrible news through other people because, like 9-11, this is what everyone is talking about. I've been to New Orleans. It was only for a few days, but what a wonderful city. So full of history, incredible traditions, fantastic music, good food, and a wide array of people. I hope that the city can be rebuilt to represent all of this again. If you pray, please pray for all the people affected by the devastation. The people of New Orleans, of Alabama, the schools and families taking in those that have been displaced, and the people in government whose responsibility it is to clean up and provide care. If you want to do something, donate money. I have added a link to the Red Cross on the sidebar.
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