Student Teaching Week 5 Reflection

February 1, 2019

Week of Reflection: (list the date of the Friday for week just completed)
 

• Rate your overall experience of the week: 1-Very difficult | 5 – Great week

      This week was a 4 for week 1 of student teaching. I can’t complain-- Monday was my first observation and it went well!! The only thing that I can say affected my teaching performance this week was that we had a death in the family and it kind of threw me for a loop. I was staying up late at night to finish lesson plans so that I could go home and be with family, so this week I was a little tired and not my normal happy self. It’s all good though-- next week I’ll come back prepared and ready for a fresh start.

Seven questions to end your week:

• Observe: What pleasant surprises / accomplishments did I achieve this week?

This week I had my first observation, and I was really happy with how it went! My kids were behaving pretty well, my lesson with activity went well, and I was overall just happy with how it went.

• Reflect: What lessons did my work/experiences teach me that I will build upon next week?

This week I really learned that even when life gets a little crazy, it still goes on. There are still lesson plans to write and a class to teach even though I was going home to eat and spend time with grieving family. It was good to experience this now with a C.E. in the classroom with me to help me make instructional decisions, rather than me being by myself.

• Focus:  How are my short-term efforts and my long-term goals still aligned?

I am planning on meeting with Title I teachers next week to start planning my parent event, since this will take place in mid March. This is a part of my PDP and I’m so excited!

• Be Productive: What could I have spent more or less time doing?

I’m not going to lie, this week I didn’t feel like doing anything and although I got all my stuff done and everything went fine, I still lacked in motivation. It was just a challenging week and I could have spent more time prepping for teaching for next week. The main thing is that it’s all fine now.

• Have Courage:  How did apprehension and indecision impact what I did and didn’t do?

This week I was really afraid I was going to have to miss school for a funeral, and I was in a scramble. My C.E. and I were trying to figure out what we would do if I was out for a day, and I was panicking at the thought of missing a day during the first week of student teaching. It all worked out, and I didn’t have to miss a day. My C.E. was so sweet and supportive, and told me that she would just follow my lesson plans on the day I was out so that we could stay on track. Thankfully we didn’t have to do that, but she’s so great about everything!

• Begin Anew: What is the first logical step(s) for next week? What mental clutter can I clear?

Next week is edTPA week for me. Task 1 and re-engagement lesson for Task 4. After I just teach these, it will clear so much mental clutter for me!

Adapted from: Cernoff, M. (2013, August 7). 7 Questions to End Your Week With. . Retrieved July 21, 2014, from http://www.marcandangel.com/2013/08/08/7-questions-to-end-your-week-with/

• What were some data you analyzed this week and how did it help inform your instructional decisions?

This week I noticed my kids were so bored with what we were doing in math, based on formative assessment data. My C.E. and I decided to move my lesson plans up a day, and then on friday, have a review day. This worked out well, because they needed to be challenged more!

• What is one piece of advice you can share with other student teachers?

Don’t forget to breathe and take care of yourself. Take your vitamins, go to bed at a decent time, drink water throughout the day, and take it one day at a time. Don’t expect yourself to be like a teacher that’s been teaching for 10 years during the first 2 weeks of student teaching!

NC Teacher Candidate Standards (be sure to reference activities from your lesson plans to solidify your answer)

• Pick an element from standard one of the evaluation tool and explain some activities/strategies you implemented this week to increase your rating for the element.

1. a. Teachers lead in their classrooms. This week in my placement I took over full time! I am learning how to be a teacher leader all day every day.

• Pick an element from standard two of the evaluation tool and explain some activities/strategies you implemented this week to increase your rating for the element.

Teachers treat students as individuals. This week I have really tried to start differentiating even more. We started my student with an IEP on a behavior plan, due to adding a functional goal to his IEP recently. He is like a different child, but they also increased his meds. It’s amazing!

• Pick an element from standard three of the evaluation tool and explain some activities/strategies you implemented this week to increase your rating for the element.

3. c. Teachers recognize the interconnectedness of content areas/disciplines. This week we had a TON of integration. We learned about character traits, addition, and some blends, including bl-. We had a snack of blueberries in phonics for the bl- blend, read a book in math called A Fair Bear Share by Stuart J. Murphy about bears adding up ingredients for BLueberry Pie, and then talked about the character traits in the book!

• Pick an element from standard four of the evaluation tool and explain some activities/strategies you implemented this week to increase your rating for the element.

4. a. Teachers know the ways in which learning takes place, and they know the appropriate levels of intellectual, physical, social, and emotional development of their students. This week in my placement, the kids were getting frustrated with one of their assignments in groups. The kids that is the best at math in my class was even confused. So we stopped and did something else, we went over the material and reviewed the rest of the week, and then we revisited the activity and it was much easier for them.

• Pick an element from standard five of the evaluation tool and explain some activities/strategies you implemented this week to increase your rating for the element.

5. b. Teachers link professional growth to their professional goals. This week I wrote and got started on my PDP. Next week I am going to meet with Title I to talk about my parent event!

Other:

• What components of your portfolio have you started to complete?

My PDP-- parent event planning is beginning.

• What support does your clinical educator need from your university supervisor?

None that I know of!

• What support do you need from your university supervisor?

None that I know of!