Ranting and Raving

I guess this blog is just supposed to be us ranting about all of our miseries. To be honest, I don't really have anything to complain about... honestly. By some miracle, with a job, volleyball and boyfriend I have managed to stay on top of my homework and in most cases ahead of schedule. I am really excited for field, my teacher is amazing and is willing to try WTW in her classroom and is willing to hand the reins over to me at any time. I guess if I had to rant and rave about something it would be about next semesters teachers. I just don't understand why an adjunct is taking on 2/3 of the seniors. Don't get me wrong, Jan is a great woman and very passionate about what she does, but she is not very organized and is the worksheet queen! There are so many great professors in this program and a number of them would be fabulous as our senior teachers, I guess I was just a little disappointed that some of the more seasoned professors won't be able to see us off in our last semester.

Fulfilling the Promise pgs 120-162

The section we had to read today was the toolbox in the back of the book with 24 different ways that instruction can be differentiated. Especially this semester I am really beginning to see the value in having books like this with appendices in the back. There are so many great teaching resources out there and these toolboxes are so great to have. I loved her idea with the menu because kids feel empowered when they have a choice. There were things they had to do, things they could choose from and then extra things they could do if they have extra time or just want to continue doing what was being done in class. When kids are given choices (just like adults) they don't feel so bossed around and suppressed. They feel like they are part of the learning experience and they feel ownership of it.

Fulfilling the Promise Ch. 7

One statement that I thought was particularly powerful was on page 90 when she says "living the simplest truths is seldom easy." I think this is a very powerful statement. You think about some simple truths that we live by and those are usually the hardest to live. For example, think about loving others. A very simple concept and very easy to preach, but when that person cuts you off in traffic or when that classmate makes a questionable comment, it may not be so easy to live. The other statement that hit home for me was on page 91: "If we allow ourselves to fall in love with what we do, we will be reborn countless times." One concept that is hard for me to grasp is the fact that my first year of teaching, I will not be perfect, in fact there is a chance that I will be pretty terrible. The process of being reborn countless times will require time. Being the impatient person that I am, I want to be "that teacher" that everyone loves now. The process of being reborn however, will make me stronger and make me into the teacher that one day I will be able to be.