Five Insights

I agree with all of the insights from Meggie and Julie as well, but here are some other things I have learned as well.

1. Worry Less, Enjoy More: I think if I could go back and tell myself (on day one) some advice it would be worry less and enjoy more. I would tell myself to not feel so overwhelmed. That things will come together, you will be ready to teach, and you will feel successful by the end.  Student teaching is so fun and so much is to be enjoyed and learned everyday.

2. During lessons, be flexible and read the students: Have a well planned lesson ahead of time to ensure valuable use of time and that students are meeting objectives, but don't be afraid to change things during the lesson. Read the students, if they are getting restless you may have to move ahead in the lesson plan or change plans. Don't be afraid to stray from the plan or any script you may have had. It will keep students more engaged and they will probably learn more. If you are feeling defeated during a lesson, try to power through the lesson and do the best you can.

3. Don't be afraid to try new things (activities/lessons) and make mistakes: If you have a new idea that may work with the content you are teaching don't be afraid to try it. It may end up being a great lesson or you may make some mistakes and then learn from them for next time. Each time you teach you have an opportunity to reflect on what went well and what did not work. This will make the next lesson better. I have gotten ideas in middle school math that I just wanted to try for the fun of it. I didn't know if things would work out, but the experience was so valuable.

4. Be Organized: Teachers have to deal with so many student papers and materials it really helps to have some organization in the room for supplies and a way to manage all of the student papers.  Also, have lesson materials ready ahead of time so they are easily accessible while teaching. Students can get off task if the teacher has to stop and find the materials/supplies.

5. Be flexible with noise in the room under certain circumstances: I have learned that the room does not always have to be completely quiet for it to mean that students are on task. Students can be talking during parts of a lesson and it can still be going well and they can still be on task.

five insights

Well, Julie you set the bar so high with your catchy taglines, I hope I can keep up!  Here goes...

1.  Come with a plan, and plan to change it.  I have been constantly amazed over the last few months by the number of interruptions a classroom teacher must juggle.  A well planned day always makes me feel at ease (and I think the students as well) but I have also learned not to be too tied to the plan, because inevitably, it will have to change.

2.  Trust the students to lead the learning.  Some of the most interesting and successful lessons are the ones where I really relinquish control of the lesson to the students.  I allow their questions and curiosity to drive the lesson and ask more questions than I answer.  While it sometimes feels scary to put the control in the students' hands, I think this allows them agency over their own learning and gives them the opportunity to experience the joy of learning/discovering something new.  These always seem to be the lessons with the most "lightbulb" moments.

3.  Be energized by the kids.  In a classroom of 30 noisy fourth graders, it is easy to be overwhelmed and exhausted by the children.  I have learned that I can either feed off their energy and let it build mine up, or I can be annoyed by their energy and become exhausted trying to calm it down.  Obviously, the students' energy sometimes has to be channeled into an academic task, but the days where I can match their level are always the most successful and more enjoyable.

4.  Grading, record keeping and form filling out isn't always fun, but it is worth it.  I haven't had the best model of record keeping and grading in my mentor teacher, but when I took the initiative to grade the assessments and homework myself, I got a much better idea of where my students were meeting our learning goals and where more work was needed.  I hope in my future classroom, to take this a step further and build targeted small groups to address specific needs.

5.  To quote Diane, "if the teacher ain't happy, ain't nobody happy."  One thing I have learned from Diane is that it really is important to take care of yourself, and keep the duty free lunch holy.  You have to give yourself time to relax or you won't make it through the long haul.  Taking care of yourself really does make you a better teacher, because it means you are ready to give the kids the time and energy they need.

Five Insights

My 5 Insights:

1. Lean into the craziness.  When my students are really rambunctious I used to try to get them to control their bodies and voices, now I just turn on a funny song and go with it.  I have found that getting goofy (so long as we don't have serious work to get done) can be more helpful when it's time to refocus instead of trying to fight through it.
2. Don't investigate every concern.  In first grade, there are a lot of times where students would like you to intervene, but there simply isn't enough time and often the students can handle it themselves.  
3. When I get flustered as a teacher, take "time out" to solve the problem.  Acknowledging that the Promethean board isn't working at the moment and asking the kids to turn to their neighbor and tell them about a specific prompt while I take a moment to get my baring has worked much better than not directing the students in this fashion- they will always talk, but at least I can get them on a topic that increases learning while I sort out the situation.
4. Come in early.  I have realized that I am not nearly as productive in the  afternoon as I am in the morning.  I find that if I get a day ahead in the morning versus prepping afternoon before, I enjoy my day much better.
5. Be a team player.  I often times see where work has been reduced (or could be) because of teamwork.  The teachers often plan things together and print things off as a group.  I can only imagine if a full grade could commit to one type of homework packet how effective it could be.  

monitoring lessons

One way that I monitor my lessons is to ask my students whenever there is some confusion if they understand.  I ALWAYS ask for non-verbal responses to yes and no questions so using this technique is a quick way for me to gauge is I should move forward or continue explaining.  This way I can keep the lesson at the pace the students need it to be.  Recently I have experimented with allowing students who understand the instructions to return to their desk and begin working and the students who need further explanation to remain on the carpet.  This has worked really well.  The only downside is that not everyone finishes at the same time.  The positive side is that students who understand aren't getting restless on the carpet causing interruptions and that I can give these students additional assignments occasionally.   I would use this strategy again, but that choice would be made on a case by case basis.

Best Teaching Skills

I think one thing I am good at is planning lessons. I try to think through my lessons in-depth and identify a purpose for the different parts. I also like to plan lessons with a variety of parts so I am not just doing direct instruction the entire time or just group work the entire time. I look to the standards and plan lessons according to the material that students need to know. I also try to be very organized. I prepare my materials a head of time and make sure I have everything needed for the day. I have gotten better about being flexible during lessons and reading my students as well. In middle school I get to teach the same lesson most of the day so if something didn't work well in one hour I change it and do something different the next time. If I learn something new during one hour, I add it in to the next lesson if it will be valuable for the students to know. I have gotten a lot better about giving directions as well and making things clear to students when explaining information.

skills

One teaching skill I feel very confident about is the ability to be flexible and adapt my plans as I go.  One thing that we have definitely learned is that, no matter how well planned out the lesson is, something outside your control may and likely will happen to derail your plans.  Perhaps this will be a good distraction as students become engrossed in something that was only supposed to take, and perhaps it will be a less productive distraction, like a code red drill, or a technology mishap.  I have experienced many distractions this fall, and feel very good about my ability to roll with the punches and adapt my plan as needed.

Another thing that I feel really good about, is that I have a solid idea about how much time I need to prepare a lesson.  I began student teaching terrified because I had been spending 6 hours last spring on each ECOstars lesson I taught.  I was convinced that there was no way I would be able to plan a whole day everyday.  Now I have a good sense of how to manage my time and energy so that I can still deliver quality lessons, without giving up my whole night to planning.  Knowing this goes a long way in making me confident that I can be a teacher for the long haul.

purpose for learning

This seems to be a very hot topic at Lake Harriet right now.  Today the associate superintendent came for a learning walk at our school.  Diane had volunteered to have her and her team visit/observe our room.  They only stayed for about 15 minutes but the most important thing for the district people was did we have our learning target posted (I can statement) and were the students able to explain to the visitors what they were learning.  

I think often the I can statements do a good job of framing the purpose for the lesson and activities, but don't always go far enough in helping students understand WHY this is a valuable thing to learn.  I often say somewhere in my lesson, "I bet you are wondering why Ms. Morrow is making you learn this, who cares?"  I sometimes even ask students to raise thier hands if they felt that way.  I try then to explain why this skill is important.  I think this is especially important with some of the literacy strategies we teach.  By fourth grade, a lot of our kids have heard about inferring a hundred times already, they have probably sat through almost the exact same lesson in a earlier grade, just with a simpler text.  Most of our students are also such strong readers, that they feel it is a waste of time to stop and write out/ask questions as they read, because it takes away from enjoying the story.  I try to explain that even the best readers end up reading something that is difficult to comprehend, and all readers will eventually use some strategies.  I try to make explicit that many of us are already doing this, but today we are trying to slow our brains down and notice how we comprehend.