Cyberquest

Last week my grade 7 class went to cyberquest at another school for the day. I had never heard of cyberquest and I was amazed that the opportunity this program offered to elementary students. Cyberquest is taught in 2 sections for a total of 4 days. Students are split into 2 groups and each group focuses on woodworking or acting/technology for 2 days and then the groups switch for the following 2 days. It is a very interactive workshop where students build bridges and easels or they create a movie using proper lighting, video taping and computer programs.
I thought it was a really neat way to introduce students to subjects that may be available to them when they hit high school or it could spark an interest for a future job. I find that students are sometimes reluctant to try new or different things and this workshop has them try two very different skills that they may have no tried on their own. It also lets students out of the classroom, in a new environment where they are having fun but also learning at the same time. I had never heard of Cyberquest before going with this class however I learned that it is offered to all schools within the Niagara Catholic Board. I would assume it is in the public board as well. I am interested to see what other boards offer this program and the costs for implementing it in new boards.

Micro-Teach

Of my 5 years in concurrent education, I can't believe that this was my first time filling out a lesson plan and implementing it to students. I was quite frustrated that this was the case and I think that is why it took me so long to develop and finalize the lesson plan I was going to use. I decided to continue along with what we were doing in grade 7 science looking at homogeneous vs. heterogeneous mixtures. I brought in real life examples of things the studentswould find at home and asked them to tell me what type of mixture it was. I continued with definitions and then an experiment using koolaid. I finished the lesson by having students provide additional examples of types of mixtures they would find at home. I could not believe how relaxed and natural it felt to be with the students and teaching them! It is a completely different feeling than being in front of your peers and teaching them a "how-to".
My feedback was good and I really enjoyed listening to what suggestions my counsellors and peers had. Apparently I say the word "perfect" all the time which was something I never realized. I caught myself in some slang and I hope to continue to catch myself so that I can correct in on the spot. I also learned more about the lesson plan than I ever have because I learned that my understanding of where things should go wasn't completely accurate.
I will admit, the video taping was the most intimidating part of the lesson and I have yet to watch the entire video because I find it weird watching myself!

First day in the classroom

Technically it was my second day at the school when I met the class I would be teaching. The first day my associate was out of the school and the principal did not want to stress the supply teacher so I was put in a grade 1 classroom. Although it was nice to talk and meet one of the teachers and observe her teaching techniques, I am in the junior/intermediate division and I highly doubt I will ever teach that young. The students are very cute and tiny but I know that primary is not the area for me! On the first day I had a chance to meet the rest of the staff and familiarize myself with the very small school.
The following placement date I was able to meet my associate teacher who is an older woman but went through the Brock teacher's college program only 3 years ago. I noticed how current she was with the students within the first few days. Since she is familiar with Brock's requirements she was very helpful in providing me with information and tools I will need throughout my placement. I was a little nervous about having my first teaching block in a grade 7 classroom however they were very welcoming and they asked a lot of questions. I am interested to see how my block goes with them!

Mini-Micro Teach

When this task was first presented I thought it was going to be very easy but when I sat down to think about what I wanted to do I had very few ideas. There aren't too many things that you can teach that are interesting and can be done in 5 minutes to your peers. Well at least I didn't think so when I tried coming up with ideas. Finally, a friend mentioned the idea of paper airplanes and I really liked the idea because I could also tie it to the grade 6 science curriculum. I was excited that I had something everyone could do and it was something that would not be too expensive. When I arrived at St. Alexander's however I quickly learned that 2 other people had thought of the same idea!! I was really surprised. I then spent the morning trying to think of something else I could do since I knew I would be one of the last presenters. During lunch some wonderful ladies in my counselling group helped me put together a lesson on massaging. They were saviours! I quickly put my lesson together and even borrowed music and a CD player to set a "mood" during the lesson. Since I had planned this lesson last minute it made me very nervous. It seemed to go over relatively well although I know that had I had some extra time I could have done things differently. The feedback from my counsellors was surprisingly good and the suggestions (especially on my slang) are things I make a mental note and am trying very hard to avoid. I was very excited to get that day over with! I know when I do my micro-teaching I will be much more prepared!

First Day of Teacher's College

Whoa! What a day! It started off a little stressful when we did not know where to go for 8am. It was a good thing my roommates and I left early and found the room number postings on the wall in Welch Hall or we would have been wandering around the building all day! I am glad I was put in the half Catholic, half public counseling group because I really think I am going to learn something from both boards. There was quite a bit of information delivered and I still had many questions but I assumed they would be answered as the days continued.