Final Reflection

The last week of my internship made me step back and realize how lucky I was to be apart of this classroom.  Since I observed and assisted this week, I had a lot of time to watch my students be engaged in their work.  I did not realize how much my students grew over the sixteen weeks I had been there.  I noticed such a change from the initial time we met that I could not believe how far they had come.  I realize that this is what teaching is all about.  This is the part that is so incredibly rewarding.  Even when students struggle, it is rewarding to see them try so hard.
This internship has certainly been one of the most rewarding times of my life.  Watching the students grow was wonderful, but I also enjoyed watching myself grow as a teacher.  I have verified how I want to teach.  I love to watch the students figure many things out for themselves.  I have gained more of an effective wait time and allowed the students to take the necessary steps to "connect the dots" and figure out exactly what is causing misconceptions.  I enjoyed seeing the students retrace their steps to see how they might approach something differently.
Using practical life activities and lessons is something I thoroughly enjoyed in this classroom, as well.  Having students tell time, count money, check thermometers, and add and subtract daily showed the importance of what they will encounter in the real world.  In this setting, I was able to have one on one time with each student to see where they needed strengthening to succeed in life, as well as find their strengths and encourage them.
I am so proud of my class and could not think of a better way to spend 16 weeks.  They have showed me the importance of school.  They have showed me how to make learning fun.  They have brought me to be the teacher I want to be.

Week 16 Reflection

I have waited to write my reflection for last week to look at my weekly evaluation for suggestions.  After 6 weeks of full time teaching, it was time for me to give back the subjects to my teacher.   While doing this, I realized that I was not as organized throughout the semester as I thought I had been! My mentor teacher gave me the papers the students had stored inside of their desks while I was full time teaching and I did not realize all of the work that they started and did not complete.  I made sure my students were working and not just sitting there, although there were times they were off task.  However, what I did not enforce or make sure of was finishing what they started.  I feel that if something became too difficult or they became bored of it, it was tossed aside in their desks.  Who can blame them? Because of my disorganization, they were able to do this.  In the future, when I chose to incorporate stations, I will be sure to start out with "Finish what is in your desk first!" I feel that I will also incorporate a folder to turn everything that students have worked on at the end of the week to be able to start a fresh new week on Mondays.  Although I was disappointed that I let this slide, there was something to be learned from.  I tried my best, so I was not disappointed in that aspect, but I learned from this experience.  I learned that even if I feel I have accomplished something, there is always room for improvement.  Organization is a skill of mine that needs to be built upon, and I plan to do this.

Internship Week 15 Reflection

Today was one of those days where I reflected on the semester.  There are SO many things I would have changed, but it made me realize how much I have learned in such a short amount of time.  There are so many ways I would have changed my demeanor.  The student that gave me the hardest times, I realized if I would have just walked about and given her a couple minutes to cool off, she would have been fine.  The student that I allowed to whine, I should have immediately addressed because now I have to be much more stern with her and she is complaining even more because she is not used to me addressing this.  I should have found more ways to address the issue and encourage her to do her best and be positive.  Perhaps rewards would have worked, and that is something I am going to try these next two weeks with my students.  I have realized that I started the year more lenient than what I wish I would have, but I know you live and you learn.  If there is one thing I have learned, it is that you grow as a teacher through all of these experiences.  I am very grateful that my mentor allowed me to figure my teaching style out on my own.  She gave me feedback and encouragement all the time, but never once told me what to do.  I feel that because of that, I was able to grow as a teacher and learn how I want to be as well as what I will change for future implications. 

In my future classroom, I will establish the rules and go over them daily for at least the first month so the students get well accommodated to them.  I have noticed in my videotapes the students are constantly shouting out my name rather than raising their hand.  Now, this isn’t to say that I am not okay with them talking, but when they are interrupting others and it is independent work time, they need to be respectful of their peers.  Perhaps this is something I did not stress enough at the beginning of the semester.  We were taught by one of our teachers that she takes the first 6 weeks of school to get her students adjusted to the rules and the routine.  I remember thinking- 6 weeks! That’s crazy.  However, I retract that statement.  The importance of a routine in Elementary classrooms is so great that the year will not go smoothly unless all students adopt it.  One thing I must remember- patience is key. 

Internship Week 14 Reflection

Today, I experienced a true loss for one of my students.  I was sad to learn his grandfather passed away and he was extremely close to him.  This was very unexpected, as his grandfather passed away in his sleep.  I just told him how sorry I was and if he needed to talk throughout the day I was there for him.  He turned to my mentor and told her what had happened and she told him how sorry she was and how he can find comfort in the fact that he went peacefully.  My mentor teacher has a way of making you feel very loved and comforted.  I could tell she calmed the student down and was able to help him feel better.  It is this quality that I want to possess.  

I want my students to feel secure and to feel that they can tell me anything.  She has the maternal instinct that I long for, which I’m sure comes from being a mother herself.  Her caring actions are reflected in every aspect of her classroom.  The students come to her for good news, bad news, and news that they might not tell others.  This leads me to my point- teachers are not there solely to teach.   Teachers are there to provide support to our students, be mindful of what is going on at home, and make our classroom inviting, so that students feel comfortable.  Comfort makes us open to many things- students need to feel comfortable in order to learn and function in our classroom.  It is up to use to provide this environment and always be there for our students to feel that way.  The last three weeks of my teaching, I will make it my goal to show my support to students.  

Internship Week 13 Reflection

Practice makes perfect.  That's what they always say! This is something that I have learned throughout the internship, but this is something I would like to reflect on in particular this week.  I admire my mentor teacher for the routine she has created within her classroom.  I can't help but wonder how long it will take me to establish my own classroom routine.

Each day at my internship, the students work on individual work stations for reading.  I really love this idea, but I find myself struggling to balance my time in between all of my students.  All students are on a different level and I feel that individual work is extremely important, so I have tried to accommodate all learner needs.  I feel that the further along I have taught, the better I have become at balancing my time.  However, I think that when I get my own classroom, I will have to start out by doing a lot of the group work with accommodations and modifications initially because I will not have anyone there to help me ease into it. Once my students and I have adapted to the classroom atmosphere and schedule, then I can go to individual station work.

Creating a routine is something that must be practiced constantly.  As I observed my classroom teachers in the early weeks of the semester, I saw how well the students responded to her and everything was so organized.  I want that to be reflected in my student teaching, as well.  The only way that will happen is for me to continue practicing dividing my time where needed and enforcing a set schedule and routine for the students to abide by.  This will be something I will strive for in order to make my classroom an effective learning environment.

Internship Week 12

I realized that there are many things that I have no control over when it comes to schedule interruptions.  This week was certainly a week that I had to adjust my plans in order to accommodate the new schedule that was going on in the school.  

This week, there was a two-hour early dismissal, two assemblies, and a Career Day party.  I only get my students a limited amount of time as it is, so working with the new schedule seemed to really put me behind.  However, this was good practice for me.  I was able to adjust my schedule so my students were receiving the most important instruction that was needed for the week.  

I tried to focus on writing during the reading and writing time so the students had an adequate amount of practice in something I noticed I didn’t incorporate enough the previous weeks (during the first 9 weeks).  I sectioned off my guided reading accordingly so each student got the chance to at least read their book, even if that meant they have yet to finish their comprehension questions.  I made sure to get in as much of my action research in as I could, but could not get the final read in, which is a key part to my study.  However, I have learned to adjust.  I can complete that Monday.  What hasn’t been done I will incorporate into the new week.  

I know I have done the best I can with the amount of time I had last week, and for that I feel accomplished.  I have taken time to reflect on this topic because I know there will be many times that my weeks will be altered.  Through this week, I have learned to prioritize.  What NEEDS done will be completed.  What can be extended will wait until the next week.  As long as I put my students' needs first, then I have done my job.  

Internship Week 11

There are a couple things I would like to reflect on this week.  One of them being my action research project and the other being planning for a substitute teacher.
First, I will reflect on my action research project.  I have to say that I am so pleased with the way things are going! It brings me such joy to see the progress of my student, as well as his boost of confidence at the end of the week when we are finished with his guided reading story.  Even if I see one aspect of improvement, such as three more words being identified allowing the fluency to be more smooth, it brings an instant smile to my face.  I know my student is taking my project seriously, and I know he sees his own improvement.  I have thought about it and I think the next few weeks of my implementation I am going to show him his weekly progress.  I was going to wait to show him at the very end, but I think by showing him at the end of each week, it might motivate him even more! I am really happy that I decided to go with repeated reading strategies.  If there is one thing I could change, it would be to implement it with another one of my students that is on the same guided reading level as the student I did my AR with.  This would have been beneficial because they are already partner reading together, so they would have been working on the same story, as well as the same strategies.  Also, it would have given me more to analyze to see if the strategies would have worked on more than one student.  I will remember this when I do research in my own classroom.
The second thing I am reflecting on is preparation for a substitute.  This took A LOT of time to do.  In a special needs resource room, no two students are working on the same thing, or if they are it's on a different level.  I realized the importance of detail.  You are always on your toes in my classroom! I had to prepare my substitute for the spelling test day- which is certainly the most hectic of them all.  I wanted to give a detailed description so this would run as smoothly as possible for her.  I literally gave her a step by step instruction manual that will aide her throughout the day (hopefully).  I asked her to leave me a note to see what went well and what I could have done to better prepare her so I am looking forward to the outcome on Monday morning.  Overall, I feel that I prepared the sub well, but it is up to them to implement everything I laid out for them.