Fall 2008
Reflection on Service Experience
Artifact Description:
I have meditated on my service at Motivate Our Minds as a Girl Scout leader, including my views on handling a group of young girls and attempting to teach them new things in a fun environment.
Reflection:
I fulfilled my service hours at Motivate Our Minds (MOMs) where I am a Girl Scout leader for a group of eight girls aged 6 to 10 for one hour a week. Before I began this endeavor, I knew that this would be a very stressful and time-consuming task. I knew that there would be a lot of paperwork and that it would be difficult to maintain the interest of the girls. However, I do not think that I realized quite how difficult this task would be. The girls are usually very well behaved in the beginning but by the end of the hour they are hyper. I usually get frustrated at the end of the meeting and the girls begin to argue. I am learning many things from these girls. They taught me that in order to get them excited about something, I must first be excited about it and show them that I am excited. I plan on continuing my service here for the rest of the year and possibly next year. I have not yet been able to take them on a field trip or take them into the community because only half of them have returned their Girl Scout registration. However, I hope to have them sell cookies later on in the year.
The girls are slowly beginning to develop positive values, social competence, and positive identity. Through the Girl Scout Promise and Law, they learn about caring for each other, honesty, and most importantly respect. As a troop, we have been focusing on respecting each other. The girls often get into fights and mess with each other’s things. I try to stress respect as much as possible in the meeting, because without respect it is hard to have fun or learn anything. I have learned that the strongest way to teach the girls about these important lessons is to model them myself. Also going through the Promise and Law with the girls is very useful. I created an activity in which the girls draw out each part of the law with an example and then they explained it each other. It showed me what the girls understood and allowed me to teach them each individual part to make sure they really knew what it meant.
I now know that it is difficult to keep girls’ attention for an hour. I have discovered that I work better with one-on-one situations with the girls. It is difficult for me to keep the attention of all the girls at once. I need to work on establishing boundaries and expectations and maintaining order during the meetings. This may help me to hold their attention and allow them to have more fun during the meetings. I enjoy creating the meeting plans and choosing activities for the girls, especially crafts. I have also learned that the girls love to make crafts from food because they get to eat it afterwards.
Rationale:
After every meeting, I reviewed how the meeting went. I logged what I liked and what I disliked about the meeting and then I contemplated how I could improve myself as a leader. I then put those ideas into practice at the next meeting and then reviewed whether or not those tactics worked.
Spring 2009
After my teaching experience at Burris Laboratory School in Muncie, Indiana, I reflected with other EDEL 200 students and also by myself on how well my lesson went. I then wrote a reflection, weighing my strengths and weaknesses during the lesson. I then contemplated how I could improve the lesson and myself as a teacher in the future. In addition, two current teachers gave me suggestions on how I could improve both the lesson and myself as a teacher.
In the future, my peers and bosses will periodically review me to ensure that I am teaching my students as best as I can. Reflecting back on my lessons will allow me to improve them for future students. Reviewing back on the day will allow me to identify my strengths and weaknesses and give me an opportunity to grow as an educator.
Fall 2010
Reflection on Practicum Experience
Artifact Description: This assignment is a representative plan to simulate an integrated unit for kindergarten children. Requirements of this assignment include a unit graphic, a rationale statement, activity plans and content area standards, supporting resources, and INTASC reflections specifically related to the unit plan.
Reflection:
I created this Integrated Unit Plan for Kindergarten students. These students were enrolled in a half-day program that primarily focused on mathematics and literacy skills. In order to address the other subject areas, we had to integrate them with math and literacy concepts. I chose a unit plan on weather and seasons because the weather in Indiana changes often and it was relevant to the students. Throughout this unit, the weather outside changed from snow and ice to rain to sunshine. As the weather outside was changing, the focus of the lessons inside changed as well.
I created a graphic of my unit using an online-based presentation software called Prezi. If you are not familiar with Prezi, I highly recommend it! It is fantastic and much more interactive and engaging than PowerPoint.
http://prezi.com/i_vtyuj8ruwy/edel-351-integrated-unit-plan/
As a practicum teacher in the Burris Kindergarten room, I reflected on all of the lessons that I taught, as well as some of the lessons that my colleagues taught. I wrote down my reflections in a journal and made notes on my lesson plans about what went well and what I should change in case I used them in the future. While observing other lessons, I found useful strategies for working with children and I implemented them in my own teaching philosophy, and I made note of strategies that did not work well. We discussed our lessons and what we observed in the classroom as a class as well.
Spring 2012 - Student Teaching
Artifact 1: Journal Reflections
Description:
Journals can help one keep track of reflections and experiences, as well as future suggestions if lessons are going to be taught again.
Analysis of what I learned: Even though you reflect mentally about your experiences everyday, recording them in a journal where you can look back and read them again and again has immense benefits. It allows you to see your progression over time as well and see what you still need to work on.
Demonstration of competence of INTASC 9:
I reflected upon my experiences in the classroom weekly. I recorded what I thought went well and what I thought could have gone better. I also took notes on what suggestions I received from other teachers and supervisors and I noted some things that I thought would improve my lessons or classroom management in the future.
Artifact 2: Observations of other teachers
Description: Observing other teachers and classrooms can help you develop more classroom management strategies as well as instructional strategies.
Analysis of what I learned I noted many great strategies that I now implement in my own lessons and classroom management. Observing others helps me to see how certain strategies can be carried out and how the students respond to them.
Demonstration of competence of INTASC 9: I have observed and taken notes on numerous teachers this semester, both in the grade levels I am currently teaching as well as some that I am not. I have taken some strategies that I have observed and use them daily with my current students.
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