Sunday, April 5, 2009

Week 11: Shadowing

Shadowing a teacher is a great way to take advantage of the concept of teaching. It's a great way to see what teaching may be like. It is a tough job, because there are so many things to remember. What you say, how you say it, and when you say it greatly effects your success in teaching, especially on the elementary school level in my opinion. By getting comfortable with this concept, and becoming aware of your words and when you use them, you can focus more on individual students.
I have been shadowing Aimee Vining, the music teacher. She has every class in school come to see her at least once a week for 20-40 minutes. She does a good job of remembering names, although sometimes it's easy to get siblings mixed up. She is in her third year of teaching, and it seems like she knows the ropes pretty well. She has told me that class management is one of the first things a new teacher should practice and perfect. Class management has to do with different disciplines, and strategies for gain control of your classroom so that the students are paying attention, listening, and engaging in the lesson. It is one area I know I need to improve, personally. I am a type of person who would love to just hang out with the kids, joke around, etc., but this doesn't allow for a successful teacher. I've found that there is a time for everything- joking around, being serious. Even the best teachers I have had are all very fun to be around, but I remember learning the most from them as well. Finding that balance is key, and enforcing classroom discipline without interrupting your lesson is the goal teachers set for themselves, and I see this everyday in Aimee's classroom.
Because of the different classes Aimee sees each day, and the different grade levels means different lessons for each of them, my mentor teacher has developed an organized system to help her sort through her daily lessons. She keeps bins (One for each grade level, K-6) on a shelf in her room. Each week, she places the lessons for each grade in their respectable bin. She also keeps a copy of her schedule of classes next to the bin, because it is nearly impossible to memorize or keep straight. It seems things are constantly changing, and this system has been a great way to keep up with everything. Before each class, she re-reads over the lesson she is intending to teach, and prepares for it.
In addition to her classes and lessons, she is the head of the Yearbook, teaches private lessons, is an honor band director, and is putting on the school talent show in a couple of weeks. A lot for one teacher, if you ask me! It has been really nice to be here this year with her. She is constantly telling me how glad she is to have my help, and I'm really happy I can. It seems that we came into each others lives at the right moment. I am definitely excited for the talent show. We've been making props during her prep hours these past 2 weeks. It should be very fun!
This past week I started leading the lessons. Aimee taught me how to write out lesson plans according to the Mesa Public School District, and I have written out a few for different grades. I taught a lesson in each of the Kindergarten classes, and it was pretty exciting. It makes me very nervous to think of the students all listening and watching me. I just want to make sure I'm saying the right things, and not forgetting any important points or add-ins. Ms. Vining said I did really well, and gave me some tips or options to implement the next time, and I did. I think I will be teaching more of the lessons I wrote out this coming week. I am excited again, and I feel like I have some footing this time. :)

1 comment:

  1. Glad to hear that you started to lead some lessons this past week. Nice job with your blog assignment.

    ReplyDelete