March 1, 2018

Learning Experiences this past month:
     This past month has been insane with the amount that we are learning, plus the work load. I must say, I have a clearer picture now of edTPA than I ever have because of how much we have been talking about it in class!
     I am really enjoying my learning experience this semester in the 5th grade class at the elementary school that we have a partnership with this semester. I always said that I wanted to teach 2nd or 3rd grade, and this hasn't really changed, but I do know that 5th grade is such a crucial time in a child's academic and social life. In a nutshell, 5th grade is awesome!
     This week I completed my edTPA Context for Learning, lesson plan, and planning commentary and it was an insane amount of hard work, but worth every bit of it. I am going to be teaching my lesson on Community Helpers to my kindergarten babies in my clinical placement this coming week while everyone is in D.C., and I am so excited! This will officially be my first time teaching to a group other than my school of ed friends here at GWU, and I cannot wait. I'm so ready.

Outside Learning & Research:
     There is one thing that I came across the other day that I want to share with my audience for this blog, and it's a research-based literacy strategy, because who doesn't need more of those, right?
So here it is: it's called the “Collaborative Community of Writers” strategy. The “Collaborative Community of Writers” strategy is based on the analysis of research whose evidence shows that “Because well-structured collaborative writing activities allow students to learn from each other, compositional quality improves significantly.”

• Santangelo, T., & Olinghouse, N. G. (2009). Effective Writing Instruction for Students Who Have Writing Difficulties. Focus On Exceptional Children, 42(4), 1-20.

In this strategy, students write with their peers, and they become stronger writers as a result!

NCTCS:
     This semester is started to get crazy busy with our SSED 307 class; there's just no other way to say it. But by working hard and using this time to become better teachers, we are all adhering to Standard 5c, "Teachers function effectively in a complex, dynamic environment." By implementing research-based strategies in our classrooms, we are also adhering to Standard 3d, "Teachers make instruction relevant to students."

What does this mean for my future classroom?
     This means that I will implement research-based strategies in my future classroom because they will help my students. Whatever is going to help my students succeed in their learning, that's exactly what I want to do!