First week of fourth grade!!!!

This was my first week in the 4th grade classroom. It started off with 2 staff development days, which consisted of a lot of meetings that really opened my eyes to all of the decisions teachers actually have a say in. The third day was used to get the classroom ready for the children and figure out the scheduling details. Valley has had a lot of changes since last year, we hired a new principal and our school day is an hour longer this year, students start school at 7:50 and are released at 3:15. By the fourth day I was very anxious to finally meet the 25 little fourth graders that I would be spending this semester with. The students finally arriving to the classroom was very exciting, especially because when I first came to Valley I started with two second grade classes, I then moved into a third grade classroom that consisted of a mix of the two second grade classes that I previously had. I am now in the fourth grade with some of the same students that I started off with. It has been really interesting to see the students grow over the past two years and I am looking forward to what this semester has in store. I have learned so much from being with the Valley faculty and the students. The students that I have had over the past two years were really happy to see me and have me apart of their classroom again. All of the changes that I mentioned above brought upon many questions that were still in the process of being answered the day before school started. It seemed to be a bit hectic for the faculty but the first day for students went very well. In attempt to make the end of the day pick up/busses to run more smoothly several faculty members and myself tagged children as they were getting dropped off at the "kiss and drop". We tagged the children by asking guardians what the plan was for arrival in the a.m. and departure in the p.m.. If the child was supposed to go on a bus we wrote down the bus number on the sticker, if the child was supposed to be picked up we wrote pick up and then put the sticker on the child's shirt. They were to were the sticker all day so that at the end of the day teachers and bus drivers were aware of where the child was supposed to be going. Over all, I believe the tagging really did help to make the end of the day go more smoothly but there was still a little bit of chaos. Being apart of this first week of preparing has been a wonderful learning experience that I am happy to have been apart of.

Celebration Reflection

Last Friday all of the Benedum students had to attend the Celebration of Inquiry Seminar at Lakeview. At this seminar all of the Interns present their research and findings. It is always very interesting to listen to but this year I found it very helpful for me and my current research. One of the presentations I listened to was on sight words and if visuals or kinesthetic activities help them recall their sight words. This presentation was very helpful to me because it is exactly what my research is on this semester. The presenter had really great and creative activities that I thought my students would have enjoyed as well. For one of her activities she created "angry birds" but in real life out of toilet paper rolls. She had sight words written on them and the students had to knock over the toilet paper rolls that had that sight word on it. I thought this was such a great idea and the students would be intrigued by it since it is just like the angry bird game that is on phones. I believe it really helped that many of the students knew how to play already and could relate to it. She also had activities like sight word twister, bean bag hoop throw and leap frog. Listening to her presentation and hearing about the activities she used it really opened my eyes to what I could create for my students. Another one of the presentations that I listened to was on sign language being used in a Kindergarten classroom. This was incredibly interesting to me and I was amazed to hear about how well her students responded to it and picked it up. The presenter told us about one of her students who never spoke to anyone in school or around people from her school but after teaching sign language to them this student began to communicate by using sign language. Her communication was still very little but it is a great start. The presenter also said she never thought that this particular student was participating and learning the sign language but when she recorded her students and her teaching them she saw in the video that the student was participating, she was doing the signs behind her back so that no one could see. I think that this is an incredible story and it shows that we should not assume that a student isn't learning because they may have their own way or be to shy to show their participation. I took a lot of notes this year at the celebration so that next year when I go to create mine I have an idea of what others did.

Characteristic Post #2

Characteristic 10: Be Liberally Educated. Each semester I take several classes outside of the Benedum program. Many of the extra classes that I take are usually dance classes. These dance classes can be very helpful for teachers because they can be easily integrated into the classroom in all different subjects and for all different grade levels. The African Music and Dance ensemble class is a wonderful class to take for teachers. It not only teaches you music and dance fro other countries and cultures but it also teaches you about other cultures and what they believe. This is a great way to fulfill the standards on diversity and culture because I could teach them a dance and about that culture. I have used a lot of what I have learned in this class at my PDS with my students. Many students love learning through movement and hands on activities so having this in my background has been very useful. There are several other classes that are very helpful such as reading classes and CHPR. In our CHPR class we created a full unit plan which is also a great resource for us to have. Characteristic 4: Be a facilitator of learning for all students. Being a facilitator of learning for all students is a very important characteristic to have. There are several ways you can fulfill this such as literacy work stations, differentiated lesson plans, learner profiles and even seating/classroom arrangements. The classroom that I am currently placed in has several special needs students. We must be able to accommodate for all of the students and one way that we do this is through seating arrangements. I have one student that is hearing impaired and has behavioral problems in the classroom that I am placed with this semester. In order for him to get the best education possible we must cater to his needs. One way we do so is through seating arrangements. We must be sure that he is always at the front of the classroom so he can hear the teacher and we must always be sure he is placed around students that will not distract him or cause him to misbehave. It is crucial that we do this for him through out the day because it will really effect his learning negatively if we don’t. The classroom arrangement is just as important. In order for all of the students to have the opportunity to learn as much as they can the teachers must know a little bit about them and how they learn and what distracts them. For example, some students can not be placed near windows because they will constantly be distracted and looking out the windows.

Creating a Classroom website

In one of our classes this year we are to create a website for a classroom. I think this is a wonderful idea and I will definitely have one in the future for my own classroom. I think it is a great way to keep parents updated and share info. and what is going on in the classroom. I love that you can share pictures on the site and even have a sign up sheet for activities that you need parent volunteers for. I am still working on the classroom website for made up Kindergarten class but I am really enjoying this assignment and think it will benefit me for the future. Here is the link if you want to take a look around: http://msrilkoskindergartenclass.shutterfly.com

Characteristics

Characteristic 1 is to have commitment and skills for lifelong learning. There are several ways a novice teacher can fulfill this characteristic such as blogging, Pinterest, workshops, research, reading educational literature and simply just communicating with other teachers and sharing ideas. Two artifacts I often use are Pinterest and sharing ideas with other teachers and even talking with students about their ideas and intersts. Pinterest is a wonderful way to share and learn about all types of stuff, including lesson plans, arts and crafts and much more. Many teachers use Pinterest as a site to share all of their classroom activities and blogs. Pinterest connects you to all types of information, ideas and people from all over the world. This artifact connects to this characteristic because outside of the classroom a teacher must constantly be trying to figure out new ways of teaching and helping the students. Not only can Pinterest be used to share ideas but it is a great way to organize and keep ideas that you may want to use in the future. Pinterest is one way that a teacher can constantly be learning new material and develip effective teaching skills that will enhance their teaching experience as well as maximize their students learning experience. I already have an educational section on my Pinterest where I pin ideas, lessons and blogs that I would like to remember or try out at some point. Pinterest has already been very helpful to me and gives me more creative ideas for the classroom and lessons. Characteristic 9 is to be aware of and have respect for human diversity, this includes much more than just ethnicity/race but also learning styles. Being sure to fulfill this characteristic is very important. In order for student’s to get the most out of school it is important for students to feel comfortable and respect others who may be different then them, physically, mentally or spiritually. It is important for teachers to be aware of all the diversity that is in their classroom so that they can meet the needs of each student. Teachers knowing about their students’ family profiles is one way that teachers can become more aware of their students needs, differences and any limitations. One way to be culturally diverse is to have a family night or each week or month learn about a different culture and ask parents to come in and share their culture and traditions with the class. This is a great way to not only get the families involved but also for the children to be able to ask questions and learn about their classmates and other people of the world that may believe or live differently then them. I have always thought that when I have my own classroom I would like to focus on a different country/culture each month and learn all about it, taste the food, have someone speak about it, read books about it, learn about the music and dance and the clothes they wear. I think the students would really enjoy it!

Corinthia Rilko-Ipad Prezi

Ipads on Prezi

Instructional Use of the Smartboard

Technology Reflection Assignment

Description/Experience
The seminar demonstrated smartboards and there uses in the classroom. I found out that smart boards can be used for any subject and all ages. We were shown several educational games that the whole class can take part in. We were also introduced to different sites that have educational games, read aloud and many other things that can be used on the smartboard. I think it is a very wonderful and unique way to introduce lessons to children and get them involved in a fun way.

Application

• Learners: Second grade students.
• Learning outcomes: At the end of this lesson students will know what long and short vowels sound like. They will be able to decide whether it is a short or long vowel sound in a word.
• Assessment: I would assess the students by observing them play the picture match short vowel and long vowel sounds game. I would be able to determine if it effective by seeing if the students understand the different sounds that long and short vowels make, I would know if they understand because they will have to match the picture with the right sound.

• This lesson would begin with me introducing the students to the short/long vowel sounds picture match game as well as the smartboard they would be using to play this game. Students will already be familiar with the smartboard but I will just review how to use it with the game.
• I would then use the smartboard to show them an example of a long vowel and a short vowel and we will discuss each.
• Following my example, I will ask them a few questions to see if they understand the difference.
• After explaining long and short vowel sounds and the game I will demonstrate how the game works.
• Then I would have each student come up to the smart board one at a time to match one word with the correct sound.
• After each student receives a turn we will review and reflect on the game. Discussing how the game went.

Reflection

--Pedagogical-Content:

• My strategies give demonstrations; provide visual aids and hands on opportunities as well as providing a fun educational game for children to explore the different vowel sounds. I believe this would help my students comprehend the material because for it is a fun and more unique way to demonstrate and let them practice the vowel sounds. All students learn in different ways and I feel like this particular game will be good for all learners because the students can not only see it but they can also hear it and repetition is involved. It is also a hands-on activity and somewhat of a competition which often motivates students.
• Some students may not have a very good vocabulary or understand vowel sounds. People from all over, all ages, pronounce things differently so depending on exactly where the student is from and the type of language they hear they may pronounce things differently, making it hard to decide if it is a long or short vowel sound. I am sure most of the students will be on different levels with this particular content so some students may breeze right through this while others may struggle. Some students may not enjoy going in front of the class and choosing an answer, they may be scared or embarrassed of getting the wrong answer but I think for the most part students will enjoy the activity since it is a game.

--Technological-Pedagogical:

• The smartboard would serve as a visual aid and provide a hands-on educational game for the students to practice their vowel sounds. It would support the way I would be teaching this activity by reinforcing what I have already introduced them to.  It is also repetitive because after each match it reads the words and emphasizes the vowel sounds clearly so that the students can hear the difference. Also since each student would go up one at a time while the one student is doing the activity at the smartboard the other students will be watching, hearing and learning too.
• I would need to keep my students engaged in the activity even when it is not their turn to go up to the smartboard. In order to do so I would call on them randomly to go up to the board and I would divide the class up into teams so that they are encouraging each other and they are more likely to pay attention even when it is not their turn so they can see who is winning.
  
  

--Technological Pedagogical Content:

• The smartboard would enhance the way the content is represented in my activity because it is more engaging than just practicing on the chalkboard or on worksheets. Instead it provides a visual aid and allows the children to play a hands-on game that allows them to practice the material they have already been introduced to. It provides a lot of repetition hopefully making it really stick in the students’ mind.
• Without this technology the students would not be able to play a hands-on game that can provide visual aid, repetition and be as engaging as I believe it is. There are several other things that the students could do to learn and practice the vowel sounds such as other fun games and even simply using the smartboard as a whiteboard by writing different words and grouping them under the correct vowel sound.