2/24

This week felt like the week that everything really clicked more for me. I finally feel like I know my students really well after working with them so much so I am finding myself making all of my instructional decisions based upon what I know they need and the standard course of study. It is a really good feeling to finally feel like I am really getting somewhere with them and meeting the needs of each individual student. I am feeling much more confident in myself and proud of my students as they are growing. 

I would rate this week as a 5 because it truly was a great week, I left everyday feeling fulfilled and I arrived each day with a newfound confidence in myself and in my students. I think that’s what this experience is really all about! 

A pleasant surprise for me this week is how smoothly things really went. My Kindergartners finally have transitions mastered, they know what I expect and they are looking more and more like first graders each day. I have been very proud of the whole class this week. It feels like a big accomplishment to have a good routine established with them where I don’t have to constantly remind them of things which makes me really proud! 

As I am realizing the distinct needs of each of my students on a deeper level, I will  be able to build upon those experiences even further for next week. I am finally sure of the best way to differentiate even for independent work to make sure I am meeting each students needs and I know I will be able to build upon this for my plans for next week as well as during instruction next week. 

My short-term efforts are still aligned with my long-term efforts because I am working now to work towards meeting the goals I know I will have to have met by the end of this semester. My PDP goals are in the works now as well as the things I can implement in the classroom that will help me meet my long term goal of a successful portfolio presentation. I am building in more and more technology, parent communication and global awareness now so I can have evidence in my portfolio. 

This week, I could have spent more time documenting data so I don’t forget after the lesson and less time doing things that I could have my assistant do. For example, handing out materials. I could save myself valuable instructional time by having her take that responsibility. I am glad I am realizing this now though because I feel it is really going to be beneficial to myself and my students. 

That ties into a little but of my apprehension for this week because I am often uncomfortable asking people to do things for me. I always think I need to be able to do things myself. However, I don’t want that to adversely affect my instructional time so I am willing to get over that apprehension! 

My first logical step for next week is to make sure I have everything I need printed and gathered (materials wise). Then, I want to take a look back at this week’s reflections. I want to use these to guide my next steps. 

This week I analyzed all sorts of data because I always do for each content area to know what my next steps are. The data that stood out to me the most was the writing data this week. I have worked in first grade for years so I am accustomed to the type of writing and the amount of writing that we do in first grade. So, when looking at my KIndergartner’s writing I am always keeping in mind what I know they need to be able to do. I build in many opportunities for writing and after analyzing data this week, I am aware of the differentiation I need to have in order to meet the needs of each student in writing. I am also adding a writing center to my literacy stations and in my writing station, there will be vocabulary cards that tie to the stories we have been reading what we have focused in on in science and social studies and even some math vocabulary. I am going to allow students to use these cards to write about different topics. I think this will be very beneficial for them. 

My one piece of advice for other student teachers is to always think ahead. Look ahead on what you will be teaching and it will be easier to find ways that it all ties together across content areas and you will be so much more confident if you know what’s coming! 

I also feel that I grew in the following elements of the NCTCS standards this week: 

1b. Teachers demonstrate leadership in the school- I was able to collaborate this week with the other Kindergarten teachers along with our lead teacher to track the progress of our RTI groups and make sure our students are showing growth as well as determine our next steps. 

2c. Teachers treat students as individuals- I am finding I am getting better at seeing each student as na individual and realizing that while I have high expectations for everyone, I also have different needs to meet for everyone. 

3d. Teachers make instruction relevant to students- This week, I worked hard to make sure I tied instruction to students-  I found myself constantly asking how this could apply to their everyday lives and experiences. It really is so much more meaningful for them if we can make those connections!

4d. Teachers utilize and integrate technology in their instruction- This is one of my PDP goals and I am being very intentional about putting the technology in their hands! This week, I was able to do this during literacy instruction and I am building it into my math instruction for next week as well. 

5b. Teachers link professional growth to their professional goals- This week, I had another opportunity for professional development and I also picked out 5 professional development opportunities from my county to attend in 2 weeks that are tailored to my weak areas as a professional (in my opinion).  I am excited to be able to grow in those particular areas. 

I have started my PDP log for my portfolio as well as my classroom website. I don’t want anything sneaking up on me at the end as far as the portfolio is concerned so I am focusing heavily on all of the requirements right now. 

As of now, my CE and I feel fully supported! I feel like the experience is going really well and I am ecstatic to see what the next couple of weeks hold! 

I almost forgot about my blog, that was a close one! I would rate this week as a four, it was good but it was BUSY! With it being the 100th day of school this week, valentine’s day, a brand new student entered my classroom, and four confirmed cases of the flu- I would say it has just been a little bit chaotic! However, the chaos provided me with new experiences I hadn’t had before- I have never had a new student just show up in the middle of a day but I really have enjoyed this student so far. He is very sweet and with it being Kindergarten, my sweet students have taken the time to take him under their wing and are excited to have him too, it has been very enlightening to witness. In between my usual instruction in my class, I also took time to acknowledge the 100th day of school with as many small. educational activities as I could. We did lots of ten frame organizing activities and I found out that 100 fruit loops on a necklace is no easy feat- I am still finding fruit loops in random places in my classroom! I am learning that Kindergarteners and the flu don’t mix and I am disinfecting like a crazy person trying to keep it from spreading much further. I have finally learned these students well enough to where I can look at them and tell something is wrong and sending them to have their temperature checked has led to us discovering 3 out of the 4 cases once they were sent home and taken to the doctor! I am really hoping none of our teachers and no more my students get it! 

This week, I was pleasantly surprised to see some of my students showing growth. I see growth a lot in Kindergarten but this week has stood out for me because of one group in particular. I have a small group in the afternoons for RTI that are the lowest in Kfngarten as far as their foundational reading skills are concerned. I love these students and I so badly want them to get the skills we are covering. After a few weeks of feeling like I was getting nowhere I was feeling discouraged about the group. After talking with my university supervisor about it and my CE, I was reminded that I might not always see growth quickly- sometimes it is just small steps overtime. Well, I am finally seeing growth in this group and as I am seeing them recognizing more and more sight words and using their segmenting and blending strategies and FINALLY picking back up the first sound when they blend, I felt so accomplished and SO proud of them this week, I could have cried! That doesn’t mean we don’t still have a long haul ahead of us to get these students where they need to be but this tiny sign of progress was big for my little group. I have also switched up the activities we do and tried to make it more engaging and I am seeing a difference with that too. So, I was really pleasantly surprised with my RTI group this week. 

I will build upon this lesson next week. I will continue to target those skills they need but in the most engaging way that I can. I won’t get discouraged or frustrated and I will continue to work to motivate these students and provide them with positive reinforcement because I can tell they need these and so benefit from it. 

My short-term efforts are still aligning with my long-term efforts as I am entering into week 5. I am finding my short-term PDP goals are aligning with my long-term goal of being an effective educator. As I make small steps to meet the goals of my PDP, I am seeing how this is going to benefit me in the long run as a soon to be educator. 

I am wanting to spend more time working on my portfolio next week- I don’t want any of those requirements to overwhelm me as we get closer and closer to the end, it is time to really buckle down with this. I am hoping to spend less of my weekend time trying to prep and plan for the next week (I am finding lesson planning is becoming more and more second nature and is taking less and less time) and spend more time working on my portfolio requirements. 

I am finding each week I am becoming less and less apprehensive. Students pick up on a lack of confidence in what you are teaching and saying so I am learning that I can’t afford to be apprehensive. I just have to trust what I know and learn from each experience to better prepare me for the next. I am finally starting to overcome apprehension and it has really had a positive impact on me in the classroom this week. 

For next week, my first logical step is to be well-prepared. I will look over my lessons to make sure I know exactly what I need and can be prepared for what I am teaching. 

My piece of advice for upcoming teachers this week is to always be OVER PREPARED. If you walk into your classroom without proper planning and preparation- the students know it, everyone knows it, it is chaos and you will be miserable and will feel like nothing has been accomplished. It is best to be over prepared ahead of time, trust me!

This week, I have really been working hard on number bonds with my students. Any little extra piece of time we had, we would work to find the missing parts in sets of number bonds. I analyzed every activity we did, making sure I had evidence because I needed to know who had it and who didn’t so I could determine my next steps. I knew I couldn’t move on until the large majority of my students had it for sure. So, I analyzed lots of my math data this week and really targeted this skill based on the data I was analyzing. There are just a few students left who need my assistance but can get it as we talk through it so I am still building the practice into my lessons! 

This week, I also worked on developing myself as a professional in the following areas: 

1c. Teachers lead the teaching profession- I was able to collaborate and work closely with several of the teachers in my school that I had not previously had the opportunity to as we worked together to make our Bingo for Books night a success- It is a free event where students and parents play Bingo for free books! 

2a. Teachers provide an environment in which each child has a positive, nurturing relationship with caring adults- This week when I received a new student, I was really able to put this into practice in a new way. He was afraid and I was nervous but I remembered how important my role is as his teacher to make him feel welcome, comfortable and positive about our school. 

3c.Teachers recognize the interconnectedness of content areas/disciplines- This week I was intentional about building in science and social studies standards into my literacy groups so I can connect more of the content areas

4d. Teachers integrate and utilize technology in their instruction- I was also more mindful of putting the technology into my students hands this week- they we're able to use their iPads for several learning activities! I am still trying to grow even more in this area. 

5a. Teachers analyze student learning- I found myself constantly analyzing student data this week (especially in mathematics) to determine my next steps! 

This week, for my portfolio, I worked on professional development. I took a course on academic vocabulary and am so EXCITED my county is offering an entire day of professional development they are going to let me participate in- I get to take 5 classes- I picked the 5 I felt I needed the most development in and one is on literacy instruction which I am SUPER excited about because it is so important in Kindergarten! I also worked on my parent communication as I was intentional about writing positive notes about behavior! I also got to attend 2 parent meetings this week and development more of a partnership with these parents as we determined what the next steps are for their child this school year. 

I am feeling fully supported by my university supervisor and I know my CE is too. I seriously could not ask for more! I am so thankful for my supervisors constant advice and how she tells me how I can be better in a way that lets me know she really cares about me and my success! I cannot think of any areas where I need more support at the moment! 

I would rate this week as a 4, it was good week but we had a lot of sickness going around the classroom this week which I think is to be expected this time of year but it is hard on the Kindergartners when they don’t feel good! There were some tears, upset stomachs, and lots of runny noses! I hate it when they are sick and I found myself wishing there were more I could do to help them feel better but I am hoping by next week, we will all be on the mend! 

This week, I was pleasantly surprised to see how engaged my students were in phonics. It is admittedly my lease favorite subject to teach but it is very important they get it because it is essential to their reading skill development. I found this week that it is really all about how I approach it though! If I seem excited about it, they are excited about it and I worked to build in activities and hooks that would make the content more engaging. They did so well with it and were excited to do phonics so that was a big accomplishment for me this week! 

That was an important lesson that I will build upon next week. As I am getting more and more comfortable with planning lessons, I am finding it easier to build in engaging and interesting hooks and actives that will catch their interest. That really is so important because if they are not engaged, I might as well be speaking a different language because without engagement, they are not getting what I want them to out of the lesson! I will build upon that next week, as I work to build in even more opportunities for engagement- I am especially focusing on my RTI group with this because the skills we practice in that group everyday can seem so redundant! 

My short-term goals and my long-term goals are definitely still aligned. I am working on improving myself in each area of the NCTCS each week so that my long-term goal of being a well-rounded, effective educator are still aligned. Each little step that I take each week gets me one step closer to the goal! 

This week, I will spend more time analyzing data from my students and less time over-thinking my plans! I am finally feeling more confident in my ability to plan for a successful week so if I spend less time over-thinking while planning, then I can spend more time analyzing data to see exactly what each of my student’s need. That ties into apprehension as well because my apprehension with my planning tends to have a negative effect on me and can be time-consuming. I am making a conscious effort not to be apprehensive about planning and if I feel unsure about something, I will reach out more to the resources I have available to me-such as my university supervisor. 

My first next logical plan for next week is to go ahead and look over my plans and make sure I have all of the materials and resources that I need ready- I have learned that in Kindergarten, you really can never be too prepared!

This week I was able to analyze progress monitoring data for my RTI group. Those students are not in my classroom but I have them for an hour for targeted instruction in the areas that they need in reading. They were progress monitored this week and I was able to see the areas that we saw the most improvement in and the areas where they improved the least. This let me see what I need to continue to target in my group. 

My best piece of advice right now for upcoming teachers is to go ahead and be focusing heavily on the teaching candidate standards and each element of the standards- there is a lot that goes into each standard and you want to make sure you are covering each area! This week I worked on improving myself in the following areas: 

1b. Teachers demonstrate leadership in the school- I was able to sit down with my Kindergarten colleagues this week and look at the math standards that our school system is looking at adjusting and implementing into our standard course of study. It was a great opportunity for me to collaborate with my colleagues and get some of their insight of the standards. 

2e. Teachers work collaboratively with the families and the significant adults in their lives- This week I was able to be a part of several conferences to let parents know exactly where their student stands at this point in the school year. Some of the conferences were harder than others but it was an excellent learning experience. 

3d. Teachers make instruction relevant to students- This week I worked hard to put technology in my students’ hands and to give them some time to work collaboratively with partners in order to foster their 21st century skills.

4b. Teachers plan instruction appropriate for their students- Collaborating wit my colleagues in order to analyze student data and plan for small group allowed me to develop this area this week. 

5b. Teachers link professional growth to their personal goals- Reflecting on my strengths and weaknesses as a teacher in order to develop my PDP was very impactful for me and helped me in this area of the standard. 

This week, I was able to work on my behavior management portion of my portfolio as well as the technology requirement- I am working on compiling a list of technology resources to implement in my lessons each week that will have an impact on student learning. 

At this point, my CE and I feel very supported by my supervisor. I cannot think of any extra support we need at the moment!

Week of Reflection: (list the date of the Friday for week just completed)

  

Friday- 2/3/17

Can you believe it is already February and we are chugging right along with our student teaching experiences? It is really moving so much faster than I ever imagined it would but I am finding there is so much that happens in such a short span of time- a week can be so full of experiences and opportunities to learn!

I would rate this week as a 4, it was a good week but a little bit chaotic trying to get students adjusted back to our normal schedule. This has been the first week the students have been in school for a full five days in three weeks so I knew it was going to be an adjustment. Also, we started our RTI intervention groups which are an hour a day and so building that in with everything else I need to teach presented a new challenge for me but it is a good challenge because I know my students are going to benefit from interventions tailored to their individual needs. It was my first week of seeing what it is like to just have to be completely flexible. Sometimes, we had to finish work or lessons past the time I had blocked off and I just learned to go with it this week. Most days, the schedule is going to change a little bit and I have learned to be accepting of that while still finding time to fit everything in!

This week, I was surprised by some things. I started a unit on symbols. I started with symbols that students see everyday in the environment and I build in some symbols in the first lesson that I knew they had seen before and they could correctly identify. As we moved into harder symbols that I did not think they would have been exposed to, they really surprised me not only with how well they could identify the symbols but also how they could tell me exactly what the symbol met. It turns out Kindergartners are WAY more interested in symbols than I ever thought. So, we took a couple of days and moved into national symbols. I started with our country- the students were so interested in our national symbols. They LOVE the bald eagle- we even watched some live in the nest. They also want to know exactly why we have the national symbols we do which lead to some really good teachable moments for me. I loved seeing them so engaged in a topic that I really thought might be complex for them. It felt like a really good accomplishment. We also have moved into other countries- it blew their minds that other countries have completely different symbols than we do, one student even proclaimed “WHY wouldn’t they want the bald eagle?!” The quote of the week for me was when I was showing students the national symbols for Canada and when I got to a picture of a beaver, one student said “Canada picked a HAMSTER as their national symbol??” I had to bite my cheek not to laugh but we talked about the reasons why Canada chose a beaver, not a hamster, as one of their symbols and it was a good learning experience. 

My experiences this week taught me a lot about what I need to be doing in the near future. I was able to take what I am seeing and experiencing with my students and letting that decide exactly what works as my next steps with them. I am really starting to see how each student learns and I am getting a god understanding of things they are getting and not getting as we go. I know what we can continue with and what we need to re-focus on and that makes me feel really proud. I knew that was something I would pick up on as I spent more and more time with them but it feels really great to be able to build on what I am experiencing and it be meaningful and helpful to my students. This keeps my short-term and long-term efforts aligned as I am working to see growth in each of my students and prepare them for the first grade. 

I think next week I need to maybe spend a little more time sleeping. I do not feel like I really have much time for it but I am finally starting to see that rest is actual an important component of successful teaching. If I go to bed late because I am up working on something, I see a direct impact on my ability to focus and my ability to teach. It will be a challenge but I am going to set a time for myself to put everything away and rest at night. That way, I won’t be drained and I can keep my immune system up- I certainly do not have time to be sick! I will spend more time resting at night and less time worrying! 

My next logical step for next week is to go ahead and get as many of my materials together as I can- I am implementing lots of manipulative for math and I can go ahead and get lots of my activities for small groups next week- I am still at the school now so this will be easy! I can clear out my mental clutter by writing down exactly what I need for each lesson. I am finding it helps me to have a list of what I need attached to each lesson with bullets for what I  need and then I check them off and I get the materials together-that helps me to feel much more prepared for the week!

This week- I was able to look at progress monitoring data for my small groups. I can see where there is growth and where this is little growth. That is helping me to target the areas my small group needs the most. They did really well with letter recognition on their progress monitoring and got most of their sounds. They showed the least growth in segmenting and blending. I am finding this is struggle for many Kindergartners and my small group in particular, can say most of the sounds in the word accurately but when they put it back together, they put the last sound first. For example, a student will say /t/ /o/ /p/ and then blend it as pot which is incorrect. I am trying some different approaches and activities next week with my small group and seeking advice from the other teachers on my team. The data was very helpful with letting me know exactly what I need to target. 

For other student teachers, I would advise you to spend as much time as you can learning exactly how assessment data is gathered, what it means, and how it guides your next steps. That has been such an important part of my learning process and really is an essential aspect of effective teaching. 

I am working on increasing my rating in the following elements of the NCTCS- 

1c. Teachers lead the teaching profession- I worked with my county’s professional development coordinator in order to obtain even more professional development opportunities in my county- she is willing to help me to get into the courses that certified employees are being offered. She has been a really great resource for me to develop even further professionally. 

2d. Teachers adapt their teaching for the benefit of students with special needs- For my lessons this week, I worked on implementing strategies that are research-based and are much more specific to the needs of my individual students. 

3a. Teachers align their instruction with the NCSCOS- This week, I worked on integrating literacy instruction into other content areas (specifically math) which is something I was not doing before. My students and I have focused on the vocabulary in the math concepts we are learning and I am developing a math word wall for my classroom to solidify those connections. 

4d. Teachers Integrate and utilize technology in their instruction- This week, I am worked to give my students more experiences with technology that will actually enhance and impact their learning. I am putting the technology in their hands and getting creative with ways that we can use it to make our learning more engaging and effective. 

5b. Teachers link professional growth to their professional goals- I am seeking as many professional development opportunities as I can- I signed up for a webinar today on how we can make academic vocabulary stick for students! I am excited about it as I am working to expand my students vocabulary everyday which is important in Kindergarten. 

I have worked on assessing myself and developing my PDP this week which really has an important role in many parts of my portfolio. I am also watching the other teachers complete their PDP’S which are due this week and it is very similar to what I am doing. I am hearing many of them say, “Why did I ever set this goal? What was I thinking?” I don’t want that to be my thoughts at the end of this process so I am being very intentional about the goals I set for myself. 

I am fining that many of the tips and advice my university supervisor gives me are tips that my CE is taking to heart as well. I tell her all of the suggestions I get and how I am going to implement what my supervisor suggests and she’ll say “I never thought about it that way” or  “that is a really great idea!” and then she helps me to come up with the bets ways to use the advice in the classroom. It has been really great to have everyone working together so well. My CE was especially on board with helping my students to start thinking about their futures, high school, and college even in Kindergarten. We are designating a spot in our classroom to display when they graduate from high school and their thought on their plans after that. It was so sweet to see how many of them already have an idea of what career they might want- I am excited to build on this as time goes on! I am thankful for all of the support I have gotten so far and cannot think of any other additional support I need at the moment!