WLE Blog #10

All my final thoughts about my WLE are good ones. I loved my WLE very much and I am very sad to leave it. As I said in my letter, everybody there was so welcoming to me and willing to give me advice. My mentor was willing to give me her classroom for almost entire days at a time and I am so appreciative of her and everybody else there. This WLE experience has solidified my will to become a teacher someday. Any thought I was having against it 10 weeks ago are now gone. I had so much fun at work, which is something very important if you want to be happy with your life. Obviously teaching will not be the highest paying job, and job security has the potential to be minimal in today's economy, however that is what I want to do. I plan to go on to college, get a liberal studies major, get more school internships in various types of school so I can get as much experience possible, and become a teacher as soon as possible after college. This WLE has been the most meaningful experience I have had at Impact and I am so glad I got the chance to do it. 

WLE Blog #9

          I did a lot today at my WLE. In the morning, I did my usual routine of grading papers from the day before and grading the incoming math papers from the day. My mentor, Gina, spent a lot of time teaching math to the 4th graders in her class, so I finally, after 8 weeks of waiting, got an opportunity to teach math. Gina had me teach her 3rd graders about line graphs. I taught it by comparing made up temperatures in 2 US cities over the course of a week. I really enjoyed teaching math. After that, the kids went outside and I stayed in and talked with Gina about my science unit. Next week will be the second science test, and the conclusion of my project. After their recess, I corrected the DLR (Daily Language Review) with them on the overhead, which is also fun to do. I then did even more teaching when I read geography with them and let them answer the questions. We then all sat down to eat our lunches in the classroom and the kids went out to recess again. I went out for a little bit, but I spent most of the time in with Gina. I brought up my test online and showed it to her at this time. We looked over it together and she said that it was really good. I only had to change one question. When the kids came back, Gina had to step out. She instructed me to have the kids read Luke 2, their Bible verses that they need to know for next week, and then to review last weeks lesson before sending them out to PE. At this time, I noticed that Alyssa, the only girl was about to cry. I went and asked her what was wrong and she started actually crying. I was going to go talk to her in private when GIna walked back in and took over. She discovered that some of the boys were being mean to her at recess and trying to get her out at jump rope. Gina kept the boys in from PE and gave them a long talking to and emailed their parents. When the kids all came back , I did my weekly science lesson. This week I taught about the tundra, which was my last lesson before the test. Then I said goodbye to Gina and went home.
          Over the course of the past 9 weeks, I have improved greatly. As time went on, Gina entrusted me with more and more teaching responsibility. When I first started, I was only doing my science unit. Then I moved up to doing reading in the mornings too. Eventually she allowed me to correct the DLR and finally she let me teach a math lesson. As I got more experience, I became more self sufficient in my teaching. In other words, I needed to rely less on Gina to help me with every lesson. I also have learned to handle and resolve minor conflicts between students on my own. Also, with my first test, Gina had a lot of feedback and I had a lot I needed to fix. With the second test, Gina was really impressed with how well written it was, showing my improvement there. 
          My WLE has been an all around great place to work. Everybody was really polite and each staff member I got to know had some sort of advice to give me. I felt really at home there, and even the parents of the students were amazed at my commitment and dedication. Gina gave me just the right amount of work to do. There was not so much that I was overwhelmed, but not too little that I was bored. Gina really went out of her way to give me a holistic experience of being a teacher, which I really appreciate. I don't think I would have gotten a better mentor or a better WLE.

           

 

WLE Blog #8

Looking for my WLE was not all that difficult this time around. I decided to try and intern with my mother's friend, Gina, in her classroom. To get the internship, I had to call Gina and explain to her what I needed, what the program was, and what I would be doing. I had to give her a week to talk to the principal of the school, Jean Busby, and get her approval. Mrs. Busby wanted to see my resume, so I updated it and emailed it to Gina, who printed it out for Mrs. Busby. Mrs. Busby was still sckeptical becasue she had never had an intern before, but had faith in Gina so she allowed me to intern there. I did not have to worry about a cover letter or about going in for an interview. I would still say that the best way top get an internship is to call around and to be prepared. When Mrs. Busby wanted to see my resume, I had it ready to go with only 20 minutes of updating. If I had to spend hours on it, I would have taken longer to get her the resume, which would give her a bad first impression of me. Since I had it ready, I think she was impressed and a little more willing to have an intern. Becasue of this internship, I learned first hand that being a teacher requires a lot of time and commitment. This year, since I was learning more about being an actual teacher, I had to do a lot of work at home. I was constantly thinking about the best way to teach the kids and assess them acurately. Being a teacher is a huge responsibility and is one I feel I can take ok well in the future.

WLE Blog #7

Exempt by Daisy

WLE Blog #6

The most important leadership skill for me is by far communicating powerfully. At my WLE, I actually do almost as much teaching as my mentor when I am there. Since I am in charge of teaching them so much, It is important that I can communicate properly with the students.Today, I had an issue that I think I handled well. While I was teaching, I caught a student writing in his text book, which is a major offense. I could have said something in the middle of class, but that would not have been powerful communication. It would have put him on the spot and made him feel bad. Instead, I called him aside after and asked to see his book. I checked the pages he wrote on, and brought him and the book to Gina. I think that this was the best way to handle the situation, as he has severe ADD, and is very sensitive to being called out. With him more than anybody else, it is important to communicate in a powerful way. I also do a good job on this leadership skill while I am teaching my science unit. I try to plan my teaching so that it is engaging to the students so they will understand it better. I think that this is working, as the results of my first test were, overall, pretty well. Also, the students seem to respond really well to me teaching them and remember everything from the week before. I also do a good job staying in contact with Gina. I contact her though out the week to get revisions on my test and I get her input constantly to what I am planning for my teaching. This skill really helps me because I am able to better convey my ideas to Gina and my lesson to the students. I think that Gina has to use Communicating Powerfully for the same reasons, but she also has to use Complete Projects Effectively. The way her schedule is set up, she has to incorporate grading with teaching and plan all of her lessons weeks ahead of time. If she cannot do this skill, she will be caught with out any thing to teach, and that would be very bad for her and the students. I think that Gina does an amazing job with both of these things.

WLE Blog #5

Today, at my WLE, I did a lot of things. In the morning, as I always do, I graded the student's math homewoek from the night before, their spelling tests, the math work that they were working on as I was grading, and this time I revised the third graders writing. As the kids went into recess, Gina and I were trying to work out measurements for a mobile that the kids will be making later in the week. I figured out the measuremetns, but I could not draw the lines and cut them out straight. To problem solve, I went to Mrs. Eiseman, the 7th grade teacher, and asked politely if I could borrow one of her kids. She said yes, and recommended a boy named Hector, as he is a natural architect. After recess, he came in and I explained to him what I needed and he was happy to oblige. He was a big help and I was appreciative of him and of Mrs. Eiseman. While Hector was working, Gina went over the emergency drills, so that I knew what to do if there was an earthquake, a toxic gas leak, a fire, or a gunman on campus. After the drills, I did reading with the kids, which I have been doing for three weeks now. Next, before lunch, I got a little break with the kids, as today was the ice cream party that the class won by collecting box tops. After the party and lunch, I sat down with Gina and we discussed my project. I proposed that we split the test into two small tests so that it is not so overwhelming to the kids. Gina thought this is a good idea so I showed her what I had made. On a website called easytestmaker.com, I created a 25 question test about habitats, the desert, and the grassland. Gina gave me feedback and the test will be on Monday. After we got the kids back, I went in to teaching about the grasslands until the end of the day. In terms of my project, I am doing well. I will be half way through my teaching by the end of next week and I will be giving the first test on Monday. I am feeling really good about this project and about this internship.

WLE Blog #4

I already know what my project is going to be, actually. I am teaching the class of 11 students a thematic unit about habitats. This unit contains an intro to habitats, lessons on the 6 main biomes, and a final assessment. I came up with this idea with my mentor. This is a lesson she would be teaching otherwise, so she suggested that I teach it instead. When she suggested this, I suggested that I use the book that she had, and also incorporate my own ideas and write my own test to make it project worthy. I am very excited about doing this project. I am already deep into it and it has been very meaningful. I have been practicing with different methods of teaching and learning which is best for me, for the students, and for the teacher. The only thing that I am worried about is that I might not have enough time. The unit is quite long and I may have to go in on my own time to complete it by Christmas. Unfortunately, I do not have much to say about a project brainstorm because I am already implementing my project. I will have more to say as I get further in my project.

WLE Blog #3

I have a lot of responsibilities at my WLE this year. I do a lot of correcting, like last yer, but I also do a lot more teaching this year. At the end of my day, I get an entire hour to teach the class about habitats and biomes. My main responsibility is to teach that curricculum. What I am teaching is very important to Gina, as she would be teaching it herself otherwise. This is a big change from last year, when I only had about 20min each day and what I taught had no real affect on the teachers actual lessons. It is really important that I do a good job with this teaching so they are learning the same ammount as if Gina was teaching it. When I am there, my title is just "intern", I suppose. I do not really have a title. In addition to my science curricculum and correcting, I also have yard duty. I go out at recess and make sure that everything is okay. I also use this time to develop reationships with the kids and the other teacher out on the playground supervising. This week, I got to know Mrs. Eisman, the 7th grade teacher. Gina also surprises me sometimes. This week, I was revising a students book report, when Gina called me to do reading with the kids. She taught me how to teach an actual curricculum, since my sciene is a mix of the school curricculum and my own ideas. She showed me what to do, then let me go with it. I really appreciate this, as it keeps me on my toes and prepared at all times. My day starts with a little down time. I get there at 7:45, and Gina is in a teachers meeting until 8:00. I spend that first 15 minutes saying good morning to the kids who come in and exploring the classroom. I also go say goodmornng to Gina's daughter, who is in the second grade. Once the bell rings, Gina and I go outside and greet each student with a handshake. She beings them in, does a morning activity, similar to a Do-Now at Impact, and takes attendence. We all them go next door into the big room and do math. During this time, I grade the homework from the night before. This week book report drafts were due, so I was also reading and correcting bookreports before Gina looks over them. After a long period of time in math, the kids go out for snack and recess, and I went too to supervise. After that, I went back to grading reports and the math from before recess. This is when Gina surprised me with teaching. After I taught, it was lunch time. I ate with Gina and we discussed my project. Once the kids went out, we went through the book and she made coppies of all of the assignment sheets I wanted to use for the rest of the unit. Then she showed me a very helpful website called edhelper.com, where I can look up extra resources should I chooose to do so. I then went to get some fresh air for the last minutes of lunch. After lunch, I did some review from the last time about habitats and an intro to the desert before the kids went out for P.E. During this time, I helped Gina re-do her bullitan board. When the kids got back, I had my time to teach. I taught them about the desert and dispelled all of the myths kids get about the desert from TV. This concluded my work day, so I said goob bye to Gina and her daughter and went to wait for my mom, who was coming to pick me up and say hi to Gina.

WLE Blog #2

 My mentor is named Gina Ledsma. She is a 3rd and 4th grade teacher, and my main mentor at Alameda Christian School (ACS). The principal of ACS is named Jean Busby. She is who I am to report to should Gina not be present. I do not work with Ms. Busby very often, if at all. Mrs. Ledesma's typical day is simple, yet difficult. She teaches math in the morning, English before lunch, and rotates between history, Bible, and science after lunch. On Tuesdays and Thursdays, her kids go to P.E. for an hour in the afternoon, so she has some prep. Her class has 11 students: 10 boys and 1 girl. She is allowing me to teach science on Tuesdays when I am there during the last hour of the day. Gina has always wanted to become a teacer, however she did not think they made enough money. In college, she started as a business major. Finally, she decided to step out in faith as a Christian woman and follow her true calling to become a teacher and got her clear credential in the University of Phoenix in Arizona.

WLE Blog #1

1)    My workplace is called Alameda Christian school. It is a small school of approximately 45 students from grades K-8. It provides a quality Christian education in a family like environment.

2)    It is a very small business.

3)    It is located in Alameda, on Pacific avenue. There are 2 main doors in the front. One leads to the office and the other to a hallway with 3 classrooms. Both doors will give you access to the classroom I am working in. Both doors will also lead to the large playground. At the far end of the playground are two more classrooms and the back gate.

4)    There are 5 teachers, the PE coach, and the office manager, so 7 staff members.

5)    All of the employees are women except for the PE coach. Everybody is polite and respectful to each other and to the children. They all have college education.

6)    They all have their clear credentials in education from a 4 year university.

7)    It serves the children unquestionably. They are very dedicated to helping the children.

8)    The classroom is very structured and organized in the way it is run and everybody is close to his or her students. Also, there are cross class groups. For example, the 3rd and 4th graders I work with have a Kindergarten reading buddy that they read to every week.

9)    Having only been there twice, I have not observed any weaknesses. Everything seems to run smoothly and orderly and the kids are getting a good education. However, as time goes along, I might find small weaknesses with the school as I did last year.