Learning Each Week

I have loved teaching my cute 2nd graders. I am learning something new from this experience each week.

Something that I learned this week: there have been a few problems regarding the student's desire to participate. Some of the children have seen dancing as an option, and not part of their education. I talked to my mentor, and she was able to help me with some ideas of how to get them more involved (things I could say such as positive reinforcement, discussions to have, etc). So today I went and the students and I talked about how we learn more and become smarter by actually doing and trying things. This increased their desire to move because they wanted to become smarter. We also talked about how we need to try, even if we don't know the answer. It went so much better! They were participating and dancing the whole time, and had a good time.

Today was the first day that I integrated dance to a core subject instead of just teaching elements. They seemed to enjoy dancing and moving more, so I think the integration contributed to their participation level.

Today was such a fun day teaching. The students were so curious about stars, and had questions that demonstrated to me they were understanding the material well and were thinking deeply about it. They were excited to hear we would be learning about Galaxies next week. I can't wait to go back and experience that lesson with them! (If you want to check out this lesson, click here.)

I am so grateful for my mentor, Miriam Bowen. She gave me such great advice about classroom participation (as noted above) and also just teaching in general. One of the pieces of advice that she gave me that really stood out was, KEEP THINGS SIMPLE. Lesson plans can be exciting and fun without being complicated. I can also keep my life simple as a teacher, so that I can be prepared and have a clear head as I go into teaching. What great advice for teaching and living? Keep things simple.