Standard 3: Instructional Planning

The practitioner plans instruction based upon knowledge of subject matter, students, the community, curriculum goals, and state curriculum models. 

Today we continued reading strategies in 5th hour. All of the students put up a debate about completing the work. Alot of students argued with me and said that I lied to them because on Friday I said it was the only day we would be doing reading strategies. What I meant to communicate was that we were only reading strategies during the class period Friday. I didn’t mean that we wouldn’t keep reading them on another day, I just meant that we wouldn’t be doing two different activities during class on Friday. After explaining myself I apologized to my students for the miscommunication and then gave them a list of the agenda. I told them that we need to complete reading strategies 4-6 and the review, then we can take a break from the readings strategies and begin a new unit. After explaining that schedule most students settled down but some kept up the fight. I feel as if they were on a sugar high from the past halloween weekend. I don’t know if they ate some candy before they came to school, but normally they are tired in the morning and very compliant, not as hyper. 

After yesterday’s experience with reading strategies, I found some clips on youtube that pertained to the passage. Today we were reading 3 passages. One was about the trojan war so I asked the class who knew about the trojan war. Only two kids raised their hand, TJ and Logan. I asked them both to explain what they knew and they had conflicting views, so I picked apart their views and told the class which were true. Then I explained the two armies involved in the war and how the war started. Then I showed a clip from the movie Troy. The clip started with the Greek gift of the trojan horse and how the Trojans accept the gift and bring it into their city. The class got to see the walls that the Trojan army had built and how the Greeks came out of the trojan horse at night. This clip was helpful because the students were interested in watching. They were intrigued from Logan and TJ’s discussion and wanted to know more. After the clip we read the passage and answered the 3 questions following. There were only 3 questions, but the clip was only 2 minutes and saved me from an argument with the students. Instead of arguing we were discussing the Trojan war and most of the students were interested. The next passage we read was about the Olympian runner, Wilma Rudolph. I had never heard of her before so I googled her and found a clip of her winning the olympic gold medal in the 100m and 200m race. I decided we could watch the clip after reading the passage since the passage addressed her training during high school. After reading the passage and answering the questions we watched the clip and the class got very excited to see her win her races. This gave me some insight that the students really liked watching sports. We had about two minutes before class ended so I decided to show the class the x-games clip I found that pertained to the passage we read yesterday. The passage talked about sky-surfing so I was able to find the gold medalist jump of sky surfing and the students found it pretty cool. 

Standard 10: Computer Technology & Standard 4: Instructional Strategies

Standard 10: The practitioner evaluates technology and integrates it into instruction in a way that fosters learning, using technological resources both as teaching and learning tools in the classroom.

Standard 4: The practitioner understands and uses a variety of instructional strategies to encourage students' development of critical thinking problem solving, and performance skills.

In science, the students took a practice quiz to classify 25 different materials as conductors or insulators. Afterwards, we played a game using the Promethean board. The students got to come up to the board, one at a time, and match the images with their respective energy. The students had fun with this game. 3rd hour was very energetic, it was hard to control the energy. We would have the students volunteer to answer a question. The student would come up to the board and use the pen to drag the image to the specific type of energy it displayed. If the student got the correct answer a specific ring tone would make noise. The students found the sounds amusing which encouraged more students to volunteer. Some students wanted to do it a second time but once you answered a question you couldn't return to the board. After answering a question the student would return to their seat and pick another volunteer. Some students didn't want to volunteer and that made the student's who wanted a second chance upset because they would have chosen differently. Kyler pulled me aside and asked why we weren't letting the motivated students go up to the board. "Why wouldn't you want us to go up to the board? We really want to go and these other students look as if they are being forced to go up." Kyler is an active participant in class when he chooses. He found this review game fun and chose to be actively involved. If he isn't interested he doesn't apply himself to the lesson, instead he will zone out and copy notes from his partner. With this review activity everyone could be involved, we didn't have the chance to loose any students from being involved, unless we gave all of the questions to the students raising their hands high in the air. This situation represents a catch-22, "Let only the excited students answer all the questions and loose the attention of the other students, but make the volunteers happy. Or involve everyone and aggravate the excited students by denying them the chance to answer another question." Either way someone is unhappy, but I would rather have everyone involved. Therefore my response to Kyler was, "I would rather have everyone involved. You are a pretty outgoing student where some may be intimidated. They could use some support going up to that board in front of the class. Maybe you could cheer them on? Show them some support?" Kyler said, "okay, I just really enjoyed going up there, it was fun to answer those question." I replied, "I know, give them a chance and let them see how much fun it is." After my conversation with Kyler, I started thinking about the reading strategies I do with my 1st hour class. As a class we read passages and answer questions to prepare the students for the district/state assessment. Each student reads a paragraph in the order they are seated. The students are not allowed to pass unless they have a 504 or IEP that specifically addresses reading out loud. We haven't had any problems but in this situation, students who would enjoy reading out loud are limited to a certain number of paragraph during class where the other students who do not enjoy reading out loud are forced to, most of these students complain throughout the class. In this situation it may be better to give the students class participation points for reading out loud, to prevent complaining/poor attitudes. The students would be motivated by the point system to read out-loud which would hopefully decrease their poor attitude in class.

Standard 9: Collaboration, Ethics and Relationships

The practitioner fosters relationships with parents, school colleagues, and organizations in the larger community to support students' learning and development. 

This past week we had student-led parent teacher conferences. During school on Friday, the students went to their homeroom to collect their assignments. The students were each given a black binder and instructed to put their assignments in the binder. The teacher passed back the assignments she wanted placed in the binder. The students were also given a sheet with each of their classes, a grade print out of all their assignments in each class, and an overall grade print out. The students had to fill out what they were doing in each of their classes and state two goals. Jun had asked what his two goals should be. I looked at his grades and saw he had a few low grades on his assignments. I asked him how he felt about math and he said he can’t stand the class but he gets his homework done, he just turns it in late. So we made one of his goals, turn in assignments on time. Then we looked at his overall grade report and he had a few absences in art. I asked why he was missing art and he said he was only tardy but the teacher doesn’t accept coming late as a tardy. So then his second goal was to be on time to art class. 

The students were responsible for walking their parents through their grade report and their assignments they completed in the 8th grade classes. The families would meet in one room and all the teachers would be present. There were multiple tables set up so the teachers could rotate from family to family. If the students/parents did not want to talk to a teacher they didn't have to and could collect their assignments and come and go at their leisure.

Thursday night was more shocking than Monday because of the discussions I heard and the family dynamics I witnessed. Almost every student had one parent or they had two parents, but they were divorced. One discussion that haunted me was when we had a student with ADHD and his two families present. His mom talked about his behavioral disorder and spoke of how drugs didn’t work the first time so we should consider a clinical program. Then his step mom and dad chimed in with their opinion. Everyone was in agreement but the student just sat their in between them staring down at the table, no nodding, just sitting there. The whole conversation made me uncomfortable because I felt as if the student’s opinion was not represented. Then I also thought about my years in middle school. We never had conversations with students about medication they were taking or the clinics they were attending. I feel as if our society has started to turn to the quick fix, such as drugs or having another professional address the issues, instead of confronting the situation and discussing it with the student. This student is very enthusiastic and responsive in class. He just needs to know his boundaries. However he has to be reminded constantly. This conference influenced me to get to know this student better. I interacted with him the next day during social studies. He was talking with his partner about abstract things and not completing their assignment. I came over and asked how it was going. His partner showed me one of her sheets that was completed and I explained that she needed to complete the second sheet (which was blank). Then I asked him how he was doing and he said that he was stuck on a problem. His partner knew the answer because she completed her paper and started to tell him the answer. Then I said, “wait, let’s let him figure it out.” He took the challenge and started to figure out the problem and came up with the answer on his own. Then they started working on the second sheet together. They said that it was hard because they didn’t understand what the question was asking and they didn’t know where to look in the reading. Together we broke down the question and scanned the titles of the paragraphs in the reading. They both were able to choose which paragraph pertained to the question based on the title and worked quietly together. It was awesome to see him being successful but also channeling his energy towards his work and not distracting other students. I would have wanted to share this experience with his family on thursday and to reassure him that he has been making a positive effort in class. 

Standard 8: Foundations, Reflection and Professional Growth

The practitioner continually evaluates the effects of the practitioner's choices and actions on students, parents, and other professionals in the learning community, and activity seeks out opportunities to grow professionally.

During today’s lesson we were building hot and cold houses. The students were given two cardboard houses and the following materials to choose from: cotton balls, newspaper, black construction paper, cloth, socks, and roofs (reflective, clear, or tinted).  The students were to decide what they needed to insulate a house (cool house) and what they needed to absorb energy  (hot house). Before starting the lab the students read the activity and defined the terms : absorb, reflect and transmit. During hour 2 and 3 Mrs. Ash asked the class to define the terms in their own words. However during hour 4, she asked them to define it using the book’s definition and provide examples. Mrs. Ash explained to me that 4th hour can be challenging because a few of the students are fast learners and a few are level 1. To counterbalance the range she changes up her delivery of the lesson for that class. Some students described “absorb” as to capture, take in or collect. One student said, “hostaging energy?” During 2nd period lots of students had insulated materials in both houses or they chose a tinted roof and covered it with a clear roof. I don't think they understood the activity or they didn’t understand the main picture. So the flaw could be in the directions, maybe we need to clarify that one house need to remain cool the other needs to be heated. Maybe we should provide the students with  more context such as a scenario, to give them some reasoning/purpose to create their houses. During 3rd period while the students were making their houses I circulated the room and knew exactly what to look for. I suspected some students would start using multiple roofs, forget to fold down the flap for the thermometer, block the thermometer, forget to record initial temperature, etc. We learned from 2nd period and adjusted accordingly so the data collected would be reasonable and  help the students answer the analysis questions. 

Standard 5: Learning Environment/Classroom Management

The practitioner uses an understanding of individual and group motivation and behavior to create a learning environment that encourages positive social interaction, active engagement in learning, and self-motivation.

I would describe my FoS class as positive, energetic, curious, social, and talkative. I would say that having a positive, energetic and curious class enhances the learning. However the social aspect makes the class very talkative and the class can get off topic often. I have learned that assigning partner-based projects have a negative affect because the work takes longer to complete. The students find themselves off task and talking to each other about non-related topics. After learning about this we made projects individual and if we needed to do group work we would allow no more than two students to be paired together. This required a lot of teacher circulation to answer questions and keep students focused and on task. During lessons all of these adjectives enhanced the lesson. I had some students answer a question and I would refer to them throughout the lesson. If students answered a question I was sure to give them credit for their answer and to keep referring to them throughout the lesson. When we were discussing the lava types of volcanoes we talked about the pyroclastic ash and I asked the students, “imagine if you were out running the ash, where would you go?” Travis answered, “I would get caught in the ash but I’d pose like this...” which added humor and the class laughed. The class also had curiosity:  I had a student confused about how hot magma was and I ended up asking if he was a star wars fan. He said yes and I asked if he watched revenge of the sith. He said yes, and I asked if he remembered the lava battle. He said no and the interest of the class was peaked so I said if we had time after notes I would show them a short clip. Then Dawson asked if they could deactivate volcanoes and we talked about star trek. He said he never saw it and I explained that it takes place in the future and they find a way to do that. If we have time I’ll show you a clip. We ended up not having enough time so I didn’t get to show the clips to them but I thought it would be cool for students to see the visual effects that movies can provide to compliment science. The only negative side to having students ask too many questions during class is that we weren't able to complete the notes. Which we would have to continue tomorrow and I wasn't able to show them the clips to answer their curious questions. 
In the following days we started to review for their volcano assessment. The students were instructed to complete a volcano practice assessment and Travis came to class early after lunch and asked for help on understanding subduction zones. I was flattered that he came to class early to know this topic better. He said he was ready for his quiz and that he wanted to do really well. I had a few students say that they didn’t recieve a practice assessment so I thought that we should at least cover the three types of volcanoes as a class and I figured it would be quick. However when I asked about the lava type (high or low viscosity) the students had two different definitions of viscosity. I knew Travis would have the answer so I asked him to give an example of high viscosity and he said honey and explained why the composite and cinder cone volcano would have high viscosity. Then Reese explained why a shield volcano would have low viscosity. I tried helping the students remember the three types of volcanoes by using mnemonic devices such as: shield- shore, strato- st. helens, cinder cone- cinderella’s dress. Both of these students are normally the social butterflies of the classroom so when they are participating  in the lesson the rest of the class is focused and intrigued to hear what Reese and Travis have to say. This week's rewarding achievement was learning how to channel their energy towards the lesson.

Standard 7: Assessment

The practitioner understands and uses formal and informal assessment strategies to evaluate the continuous intellectual, social, and physical development of the learner.

September 26th- Thursday

Today in chemistry we passed back unit 1 exams. The students got to view their exams and the rubric to see how it was graded. A few students were upset when they got one point wrong and it brought them down to a level 1. I walked the students through how to read a rubric. I explained that “if you missed 1 question but it was a fundamental question that is why I could only give you a level 1 in that skill. Even if you got the advanced question right, it puzzles me that you couldn’t get the fundamental question correct. These topics will be in the unit 2 test and I want you to do well in that so you may spend some time viewing your exams outside of class and retake the sections you want to improve on.” My 1st and 2nd hour classes were the very upset with their grades and had the hardest time reading the rubric. Most likely because these students are very amped about their grades. However these students do not come in for extra help after school because they are very involved with their extra-curricular activities. A few parents have complained about the approach to grading, the standards based grading, is not making their students happy. So Ms. Brown had a few conferences during the week with these parents to straighten out what was communicated from student to parent. Ms. Brown and I talked about how the students blew out of proportion what happened in class, “I only missed 1 point and now I’m at a level 1.” The students had not clearly read the rubric they were give to see how to get a level 2, 3, or 4. 

After the exam, we administered a pre-assessment about the atomic structure. I had the students correct their own quizzes using the SMARTboard because I did not want to grade anything after grading all their exams and I wanted to know if anyone was currently at a level 4 so I could record it in the gradebook and give them an extension activity, rather than an activity that they already have mastered. I had about three students from each 1st and 2nd hour class that needed an extension activity. The rest of the students got a packet on isotopes and ions. These packets were POGIL activities, so inquiry based learning. The students had to challenge themselves to figure out the puzzles they were presented with. They also had to analyze data tables and make their own conclusions. Ms. Brown and I walked around the room if there were questions. But I was sure to set the expectation that I wanted them to challenge themselves. Most students got through the isotope packet and started the ion packet. What they did not finish in class they completed at home. Again they don’t receive points for any homework/assignments, only their test scores. So I just said, “these packets will be good for your notes to prepare you for the lesson tomorrow and your exam, be sure to complete it.”

Standard 2: Diverse Learners

The practitioner understands how students differ in their approaches to learning and creates instructional opportunities that are equitable and are adaptable to diverse learners.


September 25^th- Wednesday 
Today the classes were 30 minutes long. For today’s lesson we gave them a reading on The Mighty Atom, an excerpt from Bill Bryson's, A Short History of Nearly Everything. The reading was about 11 pages and most students completed it in class. The students were asked to take notes on 5 scientists: Dalton, Thomson, Rutherford, Bohr and Schrodinger. These names were written on the board. I told the students it would probably be easier if you took notes while reading the excerpt because you won’t have time to go back through the reading today. Some students were flustered because they weren’t able to focus and they felt timed. I had a few students request to take the article home and I said that there were not enough copies. I had one student ask about the vocabulary. Another student was not paying attention and was on his phone so I came over to Maurice and asked, “are you tweeting your notes?” He laughed and I asked, “what’s your hashtag?” He looked at his reading and made up a creative hashtag and we laughed about it. Then I said, “I’m flattered you would tweet your notes but I need to read them too so write them down please.” He nodded his head and put his phone away, I didn’t see it out the rest of the hour. Then 4th hour I had a student, Gage, who refused to do the reading because he thought it was lame and he claimed that he couldn’t read. I told him that it was a very interesting reading and I wouldn’t assign it if I didn’t think it was helpful. He said he couldn’t read, then I asked him how he was reading phone in class. He said it was easier to read his phone than the reading in front of him. I asked him to try to read the passage and I walked away. I saw that he wasn’t getting anywhere he was just looking around up at the ceiling. So I came back and asked how he was doing. He said he couldn’t read the passage, then he asked could I just read about these people on the internet using my phone? I said if he did that then he would be changing the source and how that would affect his notes. He said that it was too hard for him to focus on the passage in front of him and it would be easier to read off of his phone. So I made a deal with him that he could use his phone but I needed to see notes about each scientist before the period was over. He said okay and went to work. He had all of the notes I had asked him for by the end of the period and I could see him working during class. It didn’t look like he was on any social media. I couldn’t understand if he really needed a different source or he was just too tired to read the passage. In this case i comprimised with him because I had the option to keep arguing with him, allow him to do nothing and stare at the ceiling for the rest of the hour, or try to get him to take notes with such accomodations. I decided on the latter because he still was involvled during class time. 

September 27^th- Friday 
Today in Chemistry  I started the day with saying we are going to have some fun and learn some exciting things. I had a student ask enthusiastically, “are we doing a lab???” I said, “not today, but we are doing an experiment and taking notes on the atomic structure of the atom. I was pleased that this student associated “fun and exciting” with labs because those are my favorite lessons to plan! The students were actually intrigued by this lesson, probably because of the anticipatory set yesterday and the day before. A Lot of their reading correlated with the power point and then at the end of the lesson we talked about isotopes and ions. During the lesson we discussed J.J. Thomson and the cathode ray tube. Ms. Brown was able to find a cathode ray tube so we could show the experiment to the class. This moment made everyone get out of their seats and was exciting. At first I explained the experiment using the powerpoint so the students understood what was happening then I showed them the actual cathode ray tube and they could see it for themselves. A Lot of students were excited and that helped with explaining the rest of the lesson.  During 4th hour, after the lesson, we have announcements and I had 3 students come up to talk to me and ask questions about the lesson. We showed a clip in class “The Space Between” and it seemed to blow a lot of the students minds. That was the idea though, it talked about the real-size of an atom and the components of an atom. One of the professors explained that it may look like I’m sitting in this chair but I’m actually hovering in it because the electrons of the chair and I are repelling each other. Gage asked me questions, “how could you be hovering in your seat due to electrons repelling themselves, but defy gravity?” Then he took an expo marker and started to draw on the board. “If I draw on this board, am I really drawing on this board? Shouldn’t the atoms be falling down?” I was so excited that he was so involved and enthusiastic. We broke his question down into one main question, the atom vs. gravity.  We talked about the forces holding the atom together and how it is indivisible. Then we talked about how gravity is a weak force compared to the strong force of the atom. That made him nod and he agreed. I was so happy that Gage had asked a question like that. It means that he was involved and now I know what captures his attention.  He is “one of the boys” in my 4th hour class that you observed Thursday. He sits in the back row and causes some trouble with his attitude toward learning. If the lesson isn’t engaging he’s not motivated to help himself. For example, Wednesday he gave me rough time with the reading.

Standard 3: Instructional Planning

The practitioner plans instruction based upon knowledge of subject matter, students, the community, curriculum goals, and state curriculum models.

Monday - Sept. 16th: This was my first day teaching the class with my own lesson plan. We started class with an anticipatory set - physical vs. chemical change lab. The lab was set up with 9 stations and the students rotated with their lab partners. The students were instructed to hypothesis a physical or chemical change and then record their observations at each station. The lab lasted for the first 20 minutes of class and then we started our notes about physical vs. chemical change/properties. I demanded that the class get out their note packets that we started Friday and turn to the correct page, while we were waiting for all the students to get back to their seats after lab. During 1st and 2nd hour the students were on cue. During 3rd and 4th hour the students were not following the lesson as well. I had to make comments such as, “you should be writing this down on your note sheet,” “this is an important definition,” “be sure to write down the examples so it is easier to differentiate between physical and chemical change.” I only made these comments because some of the students in the front row were just watching me write the notes and not following along. This experience reiterated to me that I need to speak clearly of my expectations to the class. Another example was during the lab, I didn’t make it clear first hour that the students should be cleaning up after themselves at each station. I learned that lesson and adjusted my instructions appropriately during 2-4th hour. The students were very receptive and only once in awhile forgot to clear their station. After notetaking the students had about 10 minutes of class left so I assigned their homework and asked them to work on it during class. I learned that most students did not complete their homework from over the weekend and had much to do so I decided not to correct the homework until the following day, Tuesday. During 2-4th hour I demanded that the students complete the entire packet during the class period after note-taking. I learned this early in the day that some students claimed to have completed the entire packet, but only completed one worksheet because they had homework for another class. I made it so that the students needed to show me they completed their packet so that they could work on a different activity (homework for another class).

Tuesday - Sept. 17th: In chemistry today we completed a boiling ice lab. The students had a fun time with it because they were out of their seats again and socializing in their lab groups. The task was to collect 2-3 ice cubes in a beaker, record initial temp, place on a hot plate and stir the thermometer continuously. Taking readings every minute, recording melting and boiling points, and then recording for another 5 minutes after boiling temp. Once students were done with their lab 1-2 hour went to their seats to complete their lab. However in 3rd hour the students just started to socialize so I made it required that they complete their lab and said that I wanted it completed in class today, to keep them on task. This made it easier for the students in 4th hour to know my expectations upfront at the beginning of class and they responded well to it. So I’ve been trying to adjust my expectations from 2nd to 3rd hour.  During FoS today the students took their plate tectonics retake exam and then we started the wattsville activity. The students had to look up vocabulary terms such as: Earthquake, Epicenter, Richter scale, Modified Mercalli Scale, Intensity, Isoseismal, etc.  The students were provided with a Modified Mercalli Scale, a map of Wattsville, and a script that had 24 callers describe the effects they felt and where they felt them. Then the students had to rate each callers’ description using the Mercalli Scale and write the intensity level on the map. This activity was an individual activity for the students because they had too much social time with the map activity. The students whined when we said individual work, but I think it was interesting to learn how the students did on their own. Some were very productive, some distracted other people from their work and others were not able to focus. For example, Paul could not focus on his activity at all during the day. I think he had a hard time with understanding the assignment so I worked with him for 5 minutes and then I went to the next person. I learned that Kyle has trouble with understanding instructions, he didn’t get all of the details I said. I expected this activity to be done by the end of class but the students weren’t close. I decided they would have time tomorrow to complete their activity in class. 

Wednesday - Sept. 18th: Today we discussed the boiling ice lab. I showed them a bar graph (student population’s favorite color) and asked what it was measuring. The students responded it was a poll. I explained how bar graphs are used to compare population interest. Then I asked why should we use a line graph? The students responded, “so we can see the change over time.” Then I showed them a line graph that had no axis labels, “what is this graph measuring?” The students couldn’t answer. I said, “I don’t know, I have numbers but they have no significance because I don’t know what it’s measuring.” Then I asked, “how could this graph be better?” The students responded with axis labels. Then I showed them another graph this one with axis labels, units, however the graph was on a small scale. I asked the students what was in parenthesis next to the axis labels, they responded with units and we talked about temperature, “You asked me yesterday which degrees celsius or fahrenheit you should measure in. Don’t you think the person who reads your graph is going to ask the same question?” The students all nodded their head. Then we discussed how it was hard to read the scale for the people in the back of the room. “How could we make this line graph more visually appealing?” The response was, “adjust the scale.” I had 1 or 2 students show me how they would adjust the scale. Then I showed them an appropriate line graph complete with a title. I asked the students to make sure their graphs resembled this graph and they made notes. Then we discussed possible error during their lab. I personally found this topic boring so I tried to make it interesting/exciting by walking around the room with my examples and provide them with some energy. I wanted to experiment and see if the students responded better when I was moving around or if I was at the front of the room taking notes on the SMARTboard. I think they responded better when I was moving around because they weren’t expecting it. Then we jumped into discussing states of matter: solids, liquids, gases and I handed out note packets. We took notes as a class on the smart board and I provided them with an analogy for each state of matter, that applied to them as a student. As a solid, “you are in your desk, not free moving, you’re not walking to get a kleenex or go to the bathroom, but maybe you are using your calculator like Shelton, or you drink a glass of water like Avery, or you comb your hair like Trey.” The students responded to my observations and giggled a bit, but the students that I mentioned lit up a bit. Then I explained, as a liquid picture yourself going to the cafeteria or your next class, you are free moving, however you can only move as fast as the person in front of you. You are confined to the hallway and you can’t just bump pass someone in front of you. You are a mannered particle. You’re better than that.” The students laughed at that analogy and they all nodded their heads in understanding so they continued to stay focused. Then I explained, “as a gas particle you are leaving school, you are no longer contained and you go to the parking lot and you disperse. You drive your car home, everyone goes their own separate ways.”

Thursday - Sept. 19th: For FoS I wanted to discuss the Wattsville activity but since the students didn’t complete all of it I wanted to test their understanding of the Modified Mercalli Scale. Each student had their own Mercalli Scale and I provided the students with images from the Japan earthquake/tsunami on the SMARTboard. As a class we decided what the intensity level was. When a student shouted out an intensity level they had to justify their reasoning. I felt this drove student participation and this class is very unmotivated however they are social butterflies. So this activity was a fun way to channel their social energy. After this presentation the students completed a seismogram activity where they had to identify the P and S waves and calculate the magnitude of the earthquake. The instructions were pretty explanatory and the students that finished first were very helpful when I asked for them to assist a fellow student that had a question, while I was helping other students. Today I passed back their plate tectonics retake quiz, some students did much better and some didn’t improve at all. If a student did not improve I instructed them to study their notes when they were done with the class period. Travis said he didn’t have his notes and I provided him with a copy, I didn’t want to provide him with an excuse to fail. He was very responsive and studied the notes I gave him. 

Friday - Sept. 20th: Today in FoS, I planned to have a presentation for the students to learn and be involved. We took notes on Earthquakes, I provided them with a fill-in-the-blank note sheet. The students followed along during the presentation and were highly involved. I would ask the class questions and if they answered I would refer to their answers throughout the lesson. So for example, I asked what the epicenter was since we defined it on our notesheet about earthquakes. Then I had travis say it was under the surface and I had Issac say it was on the center of the earth. I asked Travis to explain further what he was trying to say. He said it’s the most intense spot and it is from under the earth. I explained his answer to the class and said that Isaac is correct the Epicenter is on the surface of the earth, however underneath the epicenter, in the earth we call that the focus. Then I provided them with a picture so the class could see the correct understanding. Throughout the lesson we referred to the focus and the epicenter occasionally but when it was discussed I would say, “As Travis explained the focus is located…” and “As Isaac explained, the epicenter is located here and it…” When I would do this their face would light up and they would smile. I could only see this but I was happy that my words had a positive effect on them and it reinforced others to participate. I had DeVanna asking curious questions, I had Reese and Donald trying to make analogies for their understanding. Even if everyone wasn’t involved I still felt that their energy was palpable through the class. We even got to show a few clips in class, a tsunami in thailand and liquefaction in Christchurch. The students found these clips really appealing and intriguing, they started asking further questions. Today was a good day with these students I feel like I know what motivates some of them and I’m still trying to figure out how to differentiate for the other students. This week has been a blast and I’m going to do some more experimenting. 
x

Standard 4: Instructional Strategies

Instructional Strategies: The practitioner understands and uses a variety of instructional strategies to encourage students' development of critical thinking, problem solving, and performance skills.

"How are you selecting students to answer or volunteer in class? Do you use some sort of method (e.g., alphabetical; based on PBIS points; start with quiet students)?"

Monday: During the 4th hour I called on a student, Dane, multiple times because he kept answering my questions but not loud enough for the class to hear. So I asked Dane to repeat what he said and he got upset and defensive that I had called on him. He said that he didn’t say anything. Then I replied, “ you have the correct answer just say it louder so the class can hear.” He refused to say anything. During the lesson I asked specific questions and learned that I should ask broader questions so more students are encouraged to answer them. 

Tuesday: I found myself demanding interaction throughout the lesson. I asked the students to participate and answer questions. Most of my questions were specific but the answers were in their note packets, I didn’t think it was too much to ask the students to follow along with the lesson. So I asked the class, “I need all of you to pull out your note packets that you received yesterday. This lesson needs you to follow along and I want you to have these notes for your homework tonight.” The class responded immediately and got out their notes. Some students weren’t focused on the lesson and would talk while I was explaining the lesson. In order to confront those students I would ask them questions that were specific but would be easy enough to answer if they were following along with the notes. I picked on Losiel because he was having a side conversation and using his phone to text others. Ms. Brown says she has a rule about “no cellphones” but she never enforces it so it makes me feel like the bad guy if I call people out for having their cell phones present. Instead I’ve found myself asking students individually to put their cell phones away when they should be working on something else.

Wednesday: Most of the students in 4th hour had all of their worksheet completed. So I asked a few students, Terry and Tashay, if they would be comfortable giving their answers to the class. Terry said sure. When I called on him in class he was a little shocked because he wasn’t following along and didn’t know where we were then he was able to give me the correct answer. However he wasn’t capable of explaining it, so we went over it as a class. Tashay had asked a question on his worksheet about rounding sig. figs. When we walked through it together he got the answer and understood why. So I asked him if it would be okay for me to call on him during class for the answer, he said sure. When I asked him for his answer in front of the class he owned it. I just let Tashay give me the answer then I explained they “why” to the class. Today I experimented with different types of checks for understanding. I started asking the class to raise their hands all at once and give me a thumbs up if you’re good or a thumbs down if you’re not good. I started checking in with the class frequently because I noticed lots of students are on different levels. I found that it helps to explain concepts/answers in detail. However some students already understand the logic behind a concept/answer and they get bored when I slow the class down to explain the concept further/repeatedly for those students who are confused. I still need to work on asking different questions. Since I was on a time schedule today I could have asked my questions faster and demanded answers faster, instead of asking in depth questions as to “how did you get that answer?” Today I approached Dane in my 3rd hour and apologized to him for picking on him during class, I explained, “I didn’t mean to pick on you, I just thought I heard you saying the correct answers and I wanted you to tell the class because it is one thing to hear it from me, but another thing to hear it from you.” He said, “you didn’t tease me, I was saying the answer I just was surprised you asked me and I felt uncomfortable sharing my answer so I lied.” I replied, “That’s okay, but you deserve to get credit for your answers and I admire your knowledge I just want to build your confidence and have you share it with the class. Next time don’t be afraid to speak up.” He said, “all-right.” 

Thursday:  After confronting 3rd hour yesterday about their note sheets they were prepared for today’s lesson. I’m glad I spoke up during 3rd hour because it resonated with the students. Same with 4th hour, ever since my efforts with Dane the students learned that I expect them to participate. During the Percent Error lesson I explained the importance/value of percent error. I asked one student to stand in front of the class and have the class guess their height. Then I threw out a measurement 10 inches off.  My guess had a percent error about 30%. Where as, if I estimated the distance of my house (90 miles away), 10 feet off, not a big deal, there is an acceptable percent error. Percent error seemed to click for the students. During the lesson I asked the students to read the equation from their notes while I wrote it on the board. I wrote the equation without the absolute value brackets on purpose and I asked the class “what is my equation missing, look at the numerator.” Some classes knew they were called absolute value brackets, some did not, however they still replied with brackets. As a class we clarified absolute value as the absolute measurement from zero. Some class got through all 3 practice problems (3rd and 4th.)

Friday: As a class we defined matter as “anything that has mass and takes up space (volume).” Then we broke up matter into two different categories. During 1st hour the class knew everything about matter. 2nd hour knew almost everything. Both hours had great questions, however I found myself answering their questions instead of staying directed with the lesson. In order to adjust my lesson I didn’t ask the class as many questions during 3rd and 4th, instead I wrote the notes on the board and then I would provide a few examples. I didn’t leave the lesson open to discussion until we got to the practice problems. As a class we read the description of 10 different substances and classified them as different types of matter. After the practice problems I had the classes start on their homework problems. Lots of students took advantage of the time given to them. I enjoyed today’s lesson because no matter what I had people sitting on the edge of their seat. I don’t know if it was because the previous lessons were boring and in this lesson you could start to discuss elements. The class was great and there was a great energy. I liked asking the class questions about classification and I was proud when I heard their reasons for justifying their answers.

On a first name basis...

I just finished my second week at Washington High school and it feels so rewarding to know all 160 students' names. Yes, there are a few that I am still hesitant about, but I am confident that I know 99.5% of the students by their first name. This week has been amazing. I have found a comfort level with my students and have started to relax. My anxiety has started to fade and I am starting to smile. It is amazing how well the students respond to a smiling face. I have seen a drastic difference in a students attention and an increase in engagement when I smile. As I've gotten to know these students better I've noticed that certain classes know each other really well where some only know a few students in their course. This observation has made me want to put an extra effort to get to know the students but also encourage them to do group activities and get to know each other. Because I have felt the class dynamic sway the class attitude. My first and second hour courses are very social with each other and know each other well and they keep a positive attitude in class. These two classes are the most productive. Whereas, the third and fourth hour are anti-social with each other and have a bitter attitude in class. My goal is to find a way to make the students bond and test my theory, if the students will have a better attitude in the classroom if they know one another better. My first activity was "Epic Rock Paper Scissors," and the students loved it! Each student had to find a partner, challenge them at rock-paper-scissors, and then the winner had to challenge another winner and the loser had to become the winner's cheerleader. So by the end of the game there were two students that were challenging each other and had half of the class cheering them on. The winners, Jesse and Terry, walked out of the classroom feeling like champions. This week has been a great experience and I'm currently looking for my next activity!

Initiation for new teachers...

During my first week at Washington High School, the school hosts a fall sports assembly. The new teachers made an obstacle course for the students to complete and then they all have to dance like crazy. It was a pretty cool way to get the students involved and excited for the first football game! My cooperating teacher signed me up for dancing in front of the whole school... This was a great way to finish off my first week at Washington High School. I even got recognized for my talented moves by some of the first years later in class.

V-DAY!

Aug. 27th- Tuesday - First Day of School 
Today we had an early dismissal. Five classes of students, the biggest class in the chemistry department had 34 students. The freshman students were lost but there faces were priceless. I had one female student approach me with a disgusted look on her face, “excuse me, but they signed me up for weightlifting, I didn’t sign up for that.” My response was, “maybe you should try it, weightlifting is actually really fun, you may find you like it.” Then my co-operating teacher came over to talk to us and supported my statement by encouraging the student to try out her weightlifting class. I also had to take a student to the main office to get an ID card and I learned he was dual enrolled because he was homeschool until today. I felt anxious for him. All of the students were nice the first day and my co-operating teacher said, “the students are all well behaved because they’re too scared at the moment. They won’t test the waters until next week.” So this week we started discussing classroom management- which she would discuss with the class tomorrow. During the chemistry class periods we stood up and filed around the desks in a circular formation and shared our name and something we did today or during the summer that involved chemistry or science. The students had a fun time with it and the game ended up taking the whole 30 minutes that we were allowed for each period. In earth science we gave the students a different rock/mineral and had the students describe the rock with 3 adjectives and include one fact that the student had in common with the rock. Another thing that I learned today was that the students involved in student senate do not have a 7th period because that is when student senate meets. Therefore most students involved in student senate enroll in an early bird course which begins at 7:15am. My teacher said, “our biggest challenge is going to be having full attendance in the early bird course.” Following school hours we had our first student teaching seminar and it felt relieving to know that my fellow colleagues shared the same anxieties. I felt very supported by my fellow student teachers and the professors so I will be looking forward to the next seminar. 

I knew I wanted to be a teacher when...

I knew I wanted to be a teacher when... I was showing a group of 4th grade students chemistry demonstrations with my professor Maria Dean. I felt the students get excited after each demonstration and I was rewarded with their “ooohs” and “ahhhs.” I wanted to keep them enthralled with the chemical reactions but we ran out of demonstrations. In that moment I wanted to know more about chemistry so that I could entertain and educate the young minds in front of me.


My best memory about learning is...when my 8th grade science teacher captivated his students with a demonstration to start off class each day. Mr. Adams was a brilliant teacher and would have the attention of a full classroom at the start of the bell. Each day he would start class with an explosion or another experiment. Then he would ask the students questions about their observations. The students were engaged immediately and full of excitement. I learned a lot from Mr. Adams because I was fully engaged, even my classmates were engaged, there was no one to distract my attention from science.

The legacy I hope to leave is...one of a positive engaging experience for my students. I want my students to be excited to learn but I also want them to be curious. I want to indulge my students by the stories of science in everyday life. I want to persuade them to be curious and ask questions about the food they are eating and the water they are drinking. I want my students to think critically. If none of those things are received by my students I at least want to be a role-model for my students. 

BYOD...Bring Your Own Dinosaur?

Where did you find information about your device?
I have used an iPad before for various activities but I do not have my own and have never used it in a classroom until now. I normally use it for email, notes, and music, so in order to find more information I went to the App store. I found the app store very helpful because most of the apps were arranged by category and sorted into appropriate grade levels. The search que allowed Caleb and I to tour the app store and apply it to both of our fields.

What did you try but discard? Why?
We tried using the app "iMotion HD" which allowed the speed of movies to be manipulated. However we did not use this app for our project because the app supplied more cinematography features for making an actual movie. Whereas, we wanted to use the app to slow down our recorded videos and critique the actions in the movie. This app did not break the frames and kept a smooth transition, but we wanted more. We wanted to focus on the one person recorded and be able to manipulate and critique their actions.
We found this app inconvenient because the movies had to be recorded using the app (and movies that were recorded on the iPad could not be uploaded to the app).

Did you "test' out your applications on your friends (or younger people if you had access to them)? What was the reaction?
We tested our applications between the two of us and then I had used the apps with a few friends of mine in the teacher education department. My friends said that they enjoyed our project idea and agreed that iMotion HD was cool but not as good as SloPro or Coach My Video. My friends really enjoyed the features of SloPro, being able to slow down the recording and edit the framing. The SloPro app had a feature titled "ghosting" where every single action is characterized and recorded with a fainter line, allowing the viewer to see every movement.

What are your thoughts on 1:1 classrooms? Do you hope to teach in one? Why or why not?
I think the presence of technology is growing within the everyday life of students and students are adapting so why shouldn't schools adapt to every day life and incorporate technology into the classroom. In a secondary classroom I could see many applications of 1:1 classrooms. For instance, textbooks could be online, the students assignments could be more interactive and visual. The variety of apps could cater to the students learning needs. If a student is a visual or an auditory learner, there are different apps that are easily accessible and effective for different learning styles. Inevitably I think that teaching in a 1:1 classroom has the advantages of captivating more of the students attention because the classroom would be more relatable to the real world. Everyday students are reading and writing in class but are communicating with their touchscreen smart phones. The world is evolving to use more technology and students are adapting to their touchscreen smart phone. I wonder if giving students more technology will exercise their critical thinking skills and inspire students to adapt to change.

What are your thoughts on BYOD? Would you or could you make this work? Why or why not?
I think that BYOD would encourage students to take ownership over their devices and ensure that each student had the ability to access their devices. However in this economy it is a lot to expect each student to have a high enough SES status, where their family can afford such a device for their child, let alone other children in the family.

What are your thoughts on one-device-per-classroom? How would you make this work?
If the classroom had one device that was accessible to all students I would want the students to share. The students could be split into groups to complete their assignments and have to complete their assignments through a rotation (like circuit training).  For instance, an assignment/worksheet can be handed out to the groups and the students have to complete sections A-D on the worksheet. Each section (A-D) have to be completed at different stations. Station A could require the students to use tangible objects to answer the question. Station B could require the students to use pencil and paper to answer the question. Station C could require the students to make a poem/riddle to answer the question. Station D could require the students to record a skit to answer the question. The scenarios mentioned are just an example of how a student's creativity and adaptability can be measured in the classroom. The students are all able to use the device at a different time, but in this scenario the students are in groups. Since the students are in groups, it is possible that not each student in the group will be using the device. But all the students in the group would benefit from the capabilities of the device because they would be able to complete Station D.

TOM TOM (Grading Philosophy Statement)....recalculating

1. Homework will count for 15% of students’ final grade. Each night the students will be assigned a homework set. In order to check for understanding it is important to receive the student’s feedback.
2. Labs will count for 30% of students’ final  grade. Labs are where most visual learners will start to understand the material. The students need to be present or make up the lab if they missed it.
3. Lab reports/worksheets/questions will count for 5% of students’ final grade. Lab reports are a check for understanding of what the student knows from the lab experiment.
4. Exams will count for 50% of students’ final grade. All exams will cover the material from the specific units and will be imperative form of assessment.
5. Rubrics will be given for each lab report in assigned to the class. In order to help the student succeed the rubric will be given.
6. If the student has any uncompleted work the student will not pass the class at the end of the semester. This is because all assignments need to be completed, to stress the importance of gaining a full understanding of the material.
7. Exams can be redone in class if the student receives lower than an 80%. If the student received higher than 80% the student understands the material and made minor mistakes (the student should be held responsible for making such mistakes and needs to learn to check their work). If the student received lower than an 80% the student has not mastered the material.
8. No extra credit will be given in class. If the student does not receive credit for any missing assignments, the student needs to turn in the assignment. If the student wants to make up their test score (below 80%) they can do so to improve their grade.
9. Students will be given a review session and study guide for their exams. Stating which chapters and sections will be covered on the exam.
10. Attendance will be imperative, however not part of the final grade. If a student is sick I do not believe their lack of attendance should be counted against their final grade. However their final grade will reflect their attendance.  Attendance is imperative to understanding the topics covered in class. Each day the students will absorb an enormous amount of information.

What's the big idea?...let's map it out.

I decided to make a concept map about the pH scale because it could be used in my lesson plan as an introduction. The bubbles are linked with websites about the topics so the students could use the concept map and click on the bubbles that they have questions about. I would hope that the concept map ignites the student's curiosity and show the students a visual layout.

I created a concept map using Slatebox and found it easily accessible. The concept map was easy and quick to make, it even allowed me to use links for each of my bubbles. I think it would be beneficial for students to create their own concept maps throughout a unit. The students could attach links and papers to the bubbles and have all items organized and easily accessible. These maps would be used again as a quicker way to review for the cumulative final at the end of the year.

Grades...and how does that make you feel?

In order to assess the purpose and practice of grades the following five interviews were conducted:

Co-op teacher: According to my Co-op teacher grades are used as a visual aid to show students how well they do in class. Inevitably grades are used to motivate the students to complete their assignments and earn points. The students in Ms. Duning's class have a hard time turning in assignments. Therefore Ms. Duning has established a system for late work: the second day late only half the points can be earned, then any day after only 1 point can be earned. But the student must turn in every assignment in order to pass the class. "If a student does not turn in an assignment the student will fail the class." The students must turn in every assignment because students need to learn to be responsible and know that they are expected to do the work required to pass this class. 

College student: According to a college student, Hannah, who is studying Biology and Environmental Science, grades are pointless. Hannah recently took an exam and the material on the exam was very different from the study guide. As a student Hannah was frustrated because multiple hours were spent studying on one exam, and the exam was not even challenging. Hannah felt as though she wasted time studying the material for that specific exam. In this case Hannah was upset with the professor for making the exam easy and would have preferred to have spent that time studying preparing for another class. This was especially frustrating because the test felt pointless. "If the test is pointless, then so is the grade."

Parent/guardian: According to my father grades are very important. "Grades are like a credit score, it opens doors for you and follows you everywhere." Grades don't actually follow you everywhere, but they do play a big role determining acceptance and funding when you apply to college, graduate school, medical school, etc. Grades also open doors for students. If a student has a 4.0 GPA the student is immediately recognized with respect and identified as a competent and honorable person. However if a student has a "D" on their transcript the student shows the field in which they struggle. Now visualize asking the bank for a loan, and it will be approved based upon credit score. If you always pay your bill you have a great credit score which shows the bank that you are a responsible person. If you have a few hiccups because you missed the deadline a few times, then the bank may not think so highly of you and will not give you the full loan. Your credit score gives a bank member insight whether or not you as a client will be able to return the money you borrowed back to the bank. Now visualize applying to graduate school, based upon GPA. If you have the 4.0, the graduate school will want you because you show a dedication to your studies. If you have a "D" on your transcript you may have to explain the reasoning and prove yourself to the graduate school that you are dedicated to your studies before immediate acceptance is given.

Residence Life Supervisor: According to my supervisor, grades are an indicator of how well a student can multi-task. This includes, organizational skills, motivation, involvement, well-rounded spectrum, etc. If a student is applying for a Resident Assistant position it is very important that the applicant has a firm GPA. Grades are very important because they are a good indicator in where a student struggles, how did they push through the struggle, was the student motivated to fix their grade, will the applicant look for different resources to help his/her residents? All of these questions lead to a bigger picture, how will this applicant provide for his/her residents? The student who has a low GPA will not be hired because one needs to prove they can take care of themselves before helping others. The student who has a firm, but borderline, GPA may be hired but will do the bare minimum to interact and help residents. The student who has a high GPA will be hired with the expectation that when such student is presented with a problem the student will have the critical thinking skills and the motivation necessary to help others.

College Physics Professor: According to my college physics professor, grades motivate students to do their best. Professor Ugur taught at the University of Iowa until last year when he started his first year teaching at Coe. Ugur was shocked that the student's at Coe were not as competitive or involved as his previous students. He explained that most students would come in before lecture and work all the chapter problems in the classroom. Professor Ugur was shocked that the students at Coe were not more aggressive. He was especially shocked when some students said they wanted to go to medical school because it's even more competitive. To introduce a competitive atmosphere, Ugur explained, "in order to receive the highest grade in class you need to be compete with your fellow classmates because your exam grades will be based upon a curve. Ugur believes in the bell curve because even if he made a bad test, our grades would still fall in three places: average, above or below. Top 20% of students would receive an A in his class, the bottom 20% of students would receive a D and the rest of the grades would be distributed between the students in between that range. 

After interviewing these five people I have come to understand multiple perspectives and explain core values of grading. "Teaching Responsibility," from my co-op, I understand that grading can be used as a way to help students understand responsibility. Such as requiring students to make the deadline in order to earn all of their points. However the stress of the deadline may encourage cheating/copying/not the best student's work. "Trust," from Hannah's perspective, the student was frustrated because the exam lacked a challenge. By not making the exam challenging the professor lost the trust of the student. Because now the student is confused whether or not to study as hard for the next exam. "Collateral," from my father's perspective, grades are imperative because they can be used as collateral for admission to college, graduate school, medical school, etc. "Work Ethic," from my supervisor, a GPA can indicate a lot about a person's work ethic and motivation. The applicant with a higher GPA will be given the job because the student exemplifies a higher potential to multi-task. "Competition," from my physics professor, I understand that grades have more value when students compete for them. Having the highest grade would have the highest value. Regardless of the dynamics between the interviewees, these interviews exemplified the value and stress of grades in every classroom. 

Welcome to the Tool Shop

Differentiated Instruction: the teacher assess the student's needs through a pre-survey, observation, or personality test, etc. and uses the data from assessments to design future lesson plans and provide the students with the tools they need to be challenged.

As a science teacher, inquiry based learning is ideal because the students are interested and curious to inquire multiple experiments. This is the ideal situation in a science classroom, questions are presented to students and their answers are challenged. The students are encouraged to defend and provide evidence for their reasoning. The students are being challenged through “inquiry-based learning” because the teacher is constantly using formative assessment in class discussion, small groups, lab, etc. 

In a secondary classroom, I think it is very important to design diagnostic assessment. Each class has certain expectations and benchmarks that should have been mastered before the succeeding class. I think a diagnostic assessment would help refresh the students but also help the teacher design lesson plans to review such information that is not clear. As a student, if a vocabulary term that I didn’t understand was used during class I got confused and lost interest in the subject. If the teacher can make such review lessons or worksheets to raise students to the same level, I think more students will be engaged and retain the information.

In Ms. Duning’s General Motion class she provides some of her students with worksheets to complete during her class. When Ms. Duning uses the whiteboard to work problems and review vocabulary, most students get out their note books and script their own notes. Whereas, some students pull out a worksheet that has fill-in-the-blank options and visual aids. These students were given these worksheets because they have trouble paying attention in class. In order for students to be active during class Ms. Duning had to create a worksheet for those students, and the students will receive credit for completing the worksheet. These students are being provided with this incentive in order to encourage their involvement in class, due to the appeal of more points and the student’s only have to write one word in the blank versus a whole page of notes. Another idea that could challenge students and improve participation could be active involvement. Maybe a review day could include interactive games and students could be presented with a competition and challenges.

The students need to feel challenged in order to be intrigued by the assignment. Through inquiry-based learning the students’ statements were being questioned. But if a student responds to questions with “I don’t know” then the student needs more tools. The teacher needs to assess what concept the student feels comfortable explaining. When I was observing Ms. Ramakers’s Chemistry 1st block class I kept receiving “I don’t know” in response to my questions. The class was reviewing “net-ionic equations” in small groups and one student was struggling to understand the question. In order to assess the student’s content level, I started asking high-order questions. When the response was “I don’t know” I started asking questions that pertained to the previous lesson that the student’s already “mastered.” The student then started to respond to those answers. After finding which level the student was on I started to shape my next questions. This example in Ms. Ramaekers’s class reminds me of the importance of assessment as Wormeli has discussed; if a student is going to be assessed, the results need to be considered and direct the design of future lesson plans. 

I think that differentiated instruction improves the student’s understanding of the material and helps the student’s learning develop. Through differentiated instruction the teacher provides the students with the tools they need in order to be challenged effectively. From my experience as a student, I have learned that I need to be challenged in order to be intrigued by the assignment. But in order to be challenged effectively the teacher has to have a firm understanding of the student’s needs. In order to assess each student’s needs a pre-survey could be administered to gather data about the student’s diagnostic level, content level, personality, tracking of progress, immediate feedback, etc. These methods would be ideal to gather data about a student, but only if the results were observed and used to direct future lesson plans. The teacher needs to commit to differentiated instruction before these methods are employed. 

How to be a superhero

As a scientist, I have always wanted to invent something great that would improve the future of the world. I chose to study chemistry because I wanted to discuss ways to improve the environment, remove toxic chemicals, improve water quality, etc. but I realized that our efforts were meaningless if the people were not educated. For instance, I am currently working for the Iowa DNR collecting and analyzing water samples from urban and rural streams around Cedar Rapids. From the analysis of these samples, the streams are being polluted immensely by the people around them who do not understand the harm their actions have caused. I have realized that change and progress will not be possible if people are not educated. In order to change the world and improve the future, it all begins in a classroom. In this particular case, water quality is not a high priority in the curriculum, but the topic addresses our most critical means of existence, water. Which inspired me to develop a way for water quality to be included in the curriculum. For my research project, I developed an educational website that was easy and accessible to teachers, filled with links that addressed water quality and were applicable to lesson plans.

This past Summer I traveled with eight nursing students and three biology students to Swaziland for a May Term. We spent our days traveling with parish nurses through rural and urban towns, visiting many families in need of medical care. These families had poor nutrition and were not able to travel to receive the medical care they needed. I spent the night with one of these families and was welcomed into their home and experienced their way of life for a day. I traveled with the mother and her younger daughter to preschool. They lived at the top of a mountain and the pre-school was four kilometers south; normally the daughter completes this hike by herself every morning. After an hour of hiking we arrived at the preschool. This school was made out of concrete blocks, had two rooms, one big and one small. The big room was empty, but the smaller room was filled with educational posters on the wall and had a few desks. At the front of the room was the teacher's desk and table. The big room was used for activities. The students would learn the curriculum in the small room and then go in the big room and perform a song to help them remember. The students were very excited to have a visitor and performed all of their songs. The first song was about their arms, left vs. right, then their feet, etc. Singing is an important part of their culture and the teacher was able to incorporate the student's needs to help them understand the curriculum.

In addition to expanding the curriculum,  I also believe that every student should be challenged, not just a particular gender or race, but every student. As a female student, I have experienced what it feels like to be discouraged from the math and sciences because of my gender.  I learned at a young age that I needed to motivate and encourage myself. Because of this experience I have dedicated my time and energy to teaching young women the power of science. In the fall every year, Coe College sponsors a program, “Open Minds, Open Doors,” for female middle school students. During this program, female students attend a variety of workshops where different female employers explain their career, in either the field of science, technology, engineering or mathematics. At this program, I have participated in chemistry and physics demonstrations for the students. I enjoyed asking questions and gauging the students’ knowledge before showing them the demonstration and I received much reward from their learning experience after the demonstration.

I also believe that a student cannot be appropriately challenged if the student is not provided with the tools they need to succeed. Another experience I had in Africa was at a secondary school. We traveled with parish nurses to the rural middle school to do an annual physical. We administered physicals to one class and separated the class by boys and girls. The class was soon transformed into five stations: the first was a counselor, second was weight/height, third was an optometrist, fourth was a dentist, and fifth was a pharmacist. The counselor would talk to the students and ask about feelings, abuse, etc. At the second station, I measured and recorded the circumference of the student's bicep. The third station, the students were checked for Glaucoma. The fourth station, the students were checked for rotting teeth, cavities, gingivitis, and periodontitis. The fifth station, the pharmacist would provide the students with the medicine they needed such as: ibuprofen, vitamins, supplements, ointments, etc. The downfall of the pharmacist was that the students were putting the medicine they received in their pockets. There was no way to ensure that the vitamins would be administered appropriately, or even to the right person. Once all the students completed their physicals, there were some students who had rotting teeth which needed to be removed. The dentist grabbed a chair and placed it along the back of the room and administered Novocain and extracted certain teeth from four students. This experience made me realize how hard it is to help a student succeed. 

In this experience, the parish nurses were providing the students with medicine, but unfortunately this only happened once a year. In order for a student to be healthy and successful the student needs to be supported constantly. These students needed more than just a one-time visit. They needed someone who could provide them with their medicine and toothbrushes daily. I could only think of one person that these students would see every morning and that was their teacher. The teacher is already responsible for washing their lunch dishes and keeping them in a clean lunch bin. The teacher would now be responsible for keeping his/her students healthy enough to survive the next year. In America a teacher will not have a full class of students with rotting teeth. But there are students in the classroom who will be unable to focus on the curriculum and the teacher needs to use resources to make that student succeed. If the students in Africa need to be healthy to focus on their studies, then the teachers are the leaders who can help these students attain their health status and education.

In the classroom, I would like to provide the students with multiple experiences and resources to capture their attention and help students gain a better understanding of any conceptual idea. I believe that a conceptual understanding has more reward than any correct calculation. I would like to embrace the challenges of teaching by creating different ideas and experimenting with different learning styles. I am curious to explore the world of education, to know my students better and curious to find the best way for them to learn. As teachers we need to provide insight and we need to provide for our students with the tools they need to succeed. I would like to have the opportunity to teach because I believe that education is the most crucial element to changing the world.

To tweet or not to tweet...

Who are a few of the educators you choose to follow? What did you get out of their posts?
I followed Mr. Rydstrom and I found his blog to be very helpful. Mr. Rydstrom tweeted many links that he used in the classroom and tweeted about his classroom's success. Many links that I clicked on had to do with a project the class was completing. However he found those links from a fellow teacher on twitter and shared his success with other teachers through twitter. Mr. Rydstrom also tweeted about the importance of making a lesson unique, Kill your powerpoints and teach like a pirate .

Who are a few of the non-educators you choose to follow? Why?
I chose to follow TED talks, Great Minds Quotes, Whole Foods, Earth Eats, I chose to follow these non-educators because I find TED talks inspiring and motivational. I decided to follow Great Minds Quotes because I find that most quotes open my mind to consider life/people from different perspectives, other than my own. Even though we don't have a Whole Foods in our location, I chose to follow Whole Foods because this profile tweeted healthy recipes. As a future science teacher I would like to serve as a role-model and an example of how important it is to note the chemicals we are ingesting daily. The recipes tweeted by Whole Foods explains how to prepare the food and which foods to use and why such foods benefit your body. Along with the health segment I decided to follow Earth Eats, which tweets about food safety, policy, sustainable agriculture and recipes.

Analysis of a hashtag.
The hashtag I chose was #chemchat. Most all chemistry teachers tweeted with this tag, I felt like I struck gold. There were many teachers who would tweet their lesson topic and ask for suggestions. Some teachers tweeted articles that pertained to chemistry news. Some teachers tweeted about projects, science fairs, essay competitions, etc. I found this tweets to be great resources for future teaching. These tweets started to shape my ideas about what I could incorporate in my classroom but also how I could use twitter to my advantage.

Potentials of Twitter as a teaching tool, as a professional development tool or something else.
I think that Twitter has a great potential as a teaching tool. I have discovered that when teachers post a question another teacher is soon to reply. The communication between teachers is advantageous, because so there are so many resources, why re-invent the wheel when you could ask a fellow science teacher for their opinion? I also think that twitter could be used as an easy way to communicate with students, such as reminders, assignment postage, etc. The teacher could also use twitter as a way to track student progress. For example the students could be encouraged to make three tweets a lesson or a day. These tweets could be statements about what they just learned, kind of like keeping a journal of thoughts.

Downfalls of Twitter.
I found the character limit really annoying. However since it is a tweet and not a journal entry, it makes sense to have a character limit. After considering, I realized that tweeting guided the author to make the most catchy phrase or state the exact point. I enjoy the fact that twitter encourages directness. I found that very helpful while scanning through tweets.

Reflections of your own personal Twitter uses.
I found twitter a nice way to network with other teachers, share perspectives, reflect on your day, communicate methods for lessons, share ideas, etc. When I tracked #chemchat, I found that lots of teachers would tweet the topic of their lesson and ask if anyone had any suggestions for keeping the lesson exciting. I think that twitter is able to benefit the world of education by increasing communication between teachers and from feedback of other teachers, tweeting may encourage teachers to add variety to their lessons.