One step closer! I am one step, one week, one lesson closer to beginning my student teaching experience!
This week, to begin my Thanksgiving break, I had the chance to head to Penns Manor and teach for a period. I taught the Agriculture Careers and Leadership course that I will be teaching in the spring which consists of 15 underclassmen. I chose an FFA Life Knowledge Lesson on defining leadership and decided to run with it as is.
It was a wonderful afternoon with the students, and again, quickly showed me where I have room for improvement in the classroom. While Mr. Huges and the students all left me with positive comments overall, there were a few specific areas that Mr. Hughes pointed out for me to work on and a few I reflected on myself.
One that I am aware of and have been struggling with all semester is timing. Whether that's how much time to include in the plans for students to complete something, actually timing the activity in the moment to stay on track, or generally paying attention to how much time is remaining in the period and adjusting accordingly, I struggle with timing. While I know that these skills will come with experience, one way I plan to combat this issue in the spring is with a classroom timer. The use of a large, digital timer/ clock will allow me to stay on track better without constantly consulting my watch and will also allow me to set a timer for activities so that I give the students the correct amount of time promised.
My other big struggle is classroom management, specifically in terms of confidence. To be honest, I generally do not feel comfortable telling people what to do. This can create problems for me in the classroom as I am often not confident enough and this lack of confidence can be seen by the students. I am sure that as I get to know Mr. Hughes and my students, I will become more comfortable, allowing me to have more confidence and presence in the classroom.
Overall, I thought that my lesson went very well and I was happy for the chance to be able to connect with more of my students. I know that two main areas I want to focus on improving in the spring are my timing and my confidence but I feel that more time and experience will go far.
Only 45 days until I kick off a great semester of student teaching at Penns Manor Area High School! See y'all in January!
This week, to begin my Thanksgiving break, I had the chance to head to Penns Manor and teach for a period. I taught the Agriculture Careers and Leadership course that I will be teaching in the spring which consists of 15 underclassmen. I chose an FFA Life Knowledge Lesson on defining leadership and decided to run with it as is.
It was a wonderful afternoon with the students, and again, quickly showed me where I have room for improvement in the classroom. While Mr. Huges and the students all left me with positive comments overall, there were a few specific areas that Mr. Hughes pointed out for me to work on and a few I reflected on myself.
One that I am aware of and have been struggling with all semester is timing. Whether that's how much time to include in the plans for students to complete something, actually timing the activity in the moment to stay on track, or generally paying attention to how much time is remaining in the period and adjusting accordingly, I struggle with timing. While I know that these skills will come with experience, one way I plan to combat this issue in the spring is with a classroom timer. The use of a large, digital timer/ clock will allow me to stay on track better without constantly consulting my watch and will also allow me to set a timer for activities so that I give the students the correct amount of time promised.
My other big struggle is classroom management, specifically in terms of confidence. To be honest, I generally do not feel comfortable telling people what to do. This can create problems for me in the classroom as I am often not confident enough and this lack of confidence can be seen by the students. I am sure that as I get to know Mr. Hughes and my students, I will become more comfortable, allowing me to have more confidence and presence in the classroom.
Overall, I thought that my lesson went very well and I was happy for the chance to be able to connect with more of my students. I know that two main areas I want to focus on improving in the spring are my timing and my confidence but I feel that more time and experience will go far.
Only 45 days until I kick off a great semester of student teaching at Penns Manor Area High School! See y'all in January!
Victoria, thanks for sharing both your gems and opps from your LifeKnowledge lesson, and for including pictures of the experience! Using a timer is an excellent way to help you with pacing, and students really like knowing how much time they have to complete tasks and it will help them to learn to manage their time more effectively. Confidence with classroom management will come with time, and we will be giving you some tools you can use in this area in class on Monday!
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