Group Lesson Plan!

I finally got the chance to co-create a lesson plan and it was a lot of fun! (: I would definitely use fakebook in class for the following reasons:

• It is creative
• Involves a close reading of the text
• Easy to monitor
• User Friendly
• Unique for each student
• Something students are familiar with
• Involves Non Print Media!

After reading a lot of the comments, I found some things that I would change. A lot of people said that three statuses/interactions a day would be too many. The suggestion was to ask them to have 10 or so by Friday. The problem I see with that is if you are only taking two weeks to teach the book, everything will be very cramped. Like we mentioned in class, if you give students a week to do it, chances are, they will wait until Friday and do all of the statuses/interactions in one sitting. While the project will be complete, they really aren't fulfilling what I say as the purpose. I think having three interactions/statuses a day will keep the students on track. Plus it really won't take any longer then five minutes to complete. As long as they remember their username and password that is (: I appreciate all the ideas/critiques though and I will certainly keep them in mind. I'm looking forward to seeing the other lesson plans. Great job to those who have already gone! (: 

Presentations Day 1

After viewing two of the presentations today, I'm realizing how many great ideas I can obtain in the next few class periods. Both the lesson/tasks shown today were very well thought out. What I liked about both of them was that they covered a lot of different things. The one lesson plan covered a novel, while another covered a short story. Some involved process drama, some involved filming, and they all involved participation. I think each of these lessons will be a great asset to us as future teachers. The great thing about these, is their flexibility. These lessons can be linked to just about anything, with a little tweaking perhaps. I'm looking forward to doing my group's presentation on Monday. I also like the idea of classmates suggestions as well. It is always good to have constructive criticism. Each idea given can be one that you had not considered before and ultimately be very beneficial. So far so good! Looking forward to seeing our next few lesson plans! (: 

Reflections

On my way to school today, I took some time to think about all of the tools that we found during class this semester. There were a couple, in particular, that stood out to me as great lesson plan ideas. I actually really liked the 6 Word Story that I presented. I think that that would be an excellent beginning of the year exercise. It is not lengthy by any means, but it is a great introduction to narrowing down larger subjects. It is also very creativity and each students' individuality will be apparent. My groups lesson plan is revolving around the fakebook website. Once again, I think this is another great tool that can be used! It is fun, interactive, and easy to use. Certainly the more user friendly the tools are, the better! Anytime you use technology, a risk is being made. Like in class today, the laptop cart was not working out very well. These things happen and that's just a part of technology. But with that risk, if it works out, you are teaching your students multi-modal ways of learning. I think that a lot of the tools presented could be tweaked to fit into any lesson. It will be interesting to see the ones that I will choose to use as I start making lesson plans! (: 

Cultural Clash

My friend, knowing I'm an English major, sent me a link to a Youtube video that he found. It's a video of an English teacher rapping Shakespeare with a student, a rap battle to be exact! I watched this video and realized the importance and value of having different cultures collide. If students feel that they can't relate to hard material, such as Shakespeare, there are different methods that can be incorporated. I think that the rapping is a phenomenal idea. It's out of the box and allows students a different outlet, an artistic one, to mix in with English. In my Young Adult Lit class, we had a brief speaker come in who did something very similar. For extra credit in one of her classes, this speaker memorized part of a Shakespeare play, put it to music, and rapped to it. She told us how she helped out at a school program and taught students how they could do this with other pieces of literature. I love this idea because it is not something that is typically done and students could really relate to this. There are kids that really respond to things such as music, art, technology, etc. Clearly, because of this, there is such a need to take some of these ideas and run with them. Creativity is something that the world can never have enough of (: 


Here's the link to the Rapping Youtube Video!

Manifestation Determination

Something I learned that interested me in class today, was about the term "manifestation determination." Besides the fact that it rhymes, it sounds pretty interesting. What manifestation determination does, is allows teachers to discuss with parents, school board, principals, etc... about a student that may be acting out in class. It seems simple. However, if the student has any sort of disorder, such as an emotional behavioral disorder, and their disruption is a result of that disorder, they cannot be penalized. We are learning about Tourettes syndrome in class and all of the side effects. 10% of students with Tourettes have what is known as "copralalia." This is the involuntary use of obscene words. So if you have a student in class, who uncontrollably swears, that student, by law, cannot be held accountable for that. The same would go for a student with Oppositional Defiant Disorder, a disorder in which people experience acts of rage and aggression. If a student walked up to a teacher and assaulted them, a manifestation determination could be held. But if the act of violence was a direct result of their disorder, then they cannot be expelled. To the best of my knowledge, this is how I understood manifestation determination. Our professor mentioned how many teachers are upset about this idea. If anyone has any comments, feel free! (: 

Easter!

With Easter coming up on Sunday, it is amazing to see how fast this semester has gone for me. With these last few weeks coming up, I know that I'm going to be in for a lot of work. Even knowing that though, it is exciting to have another year under my belt. I can imagine that it will feel the same when I am a teacher. If by the end of the year my students have a deeper appreciation for English and reading, my purpose will be fulfilled! The different classes that I have taken this semester have given me so many ideas to use in my classroom. Up until this semester, I had not taken many classes that asked me to step out of my role as a student, and think like a teacher. Having these classes now makes me feel better equipped for teaching. I feel like I have a lot of great ideas that I would like to use and am excited about what lays ahead. Gaining these experiences from professors are so helpful because many of these lesson plans have already been tested, and are successful. I may not use the activities in the same exact fashion that I was introduced, but a little tweaking is never a bad thing. It is important to individualize your lesson plans for each class, because each class is unique. As a teacher, I'll have to figure out what works best for them, even if it means changing a couple things on my behalf (: That's just part of the job!  

Activities

I enjoyed learning about different activities that can be incorporated into the classroom. Lectures are beneficial, but not every student responds well to lectures only. Using multi modal ways of teaching will enable you to accommodate for all of your students. I really love the graffiti board idea. I did things similar to this when I was in high school. It is a great way to bring the class together but also allow them to add their individual thoughts to the group. For students who are usually quiet, it gives them a chance to voice their opinion as well. Last Wednesday, we talked a little bit about using skits in class and how they are effective. I think that they certainly can be effective, if you have a group of students who are enthusiastic to do it. I do think it is important to pull kids out of their comfort zones sometimes, but you have to make sure that by doing it, you are not defeating the purpose. If the students are going to absolutely dread the activity you have planned, then the point of the lesson may be lost. It could work the opposite way though! Sometimes the very thing you dread doing, after doing it, you can't imagine why you hated it for so long. It's like riding a roller coaster for the first time. You may be nervous and even uncomfortable to ride it for the first time, afterwards though, you realize you conquered your fears and had a good time. I think doing activities like these in class include a little bit of a risk, but I think it is beneficial for the students to try and learn best as many ways as possible. (: