Standard 2: Works With Students as Individuals
One important aspect of teaching is getting to know your students as individuals. The better you know your students, the better you can design creative lesson plans to keep them focused and engaged. When students are aware that you truly care about their learning, I believe they will perform better in the classroom. Teaching is about building relationships with students.
Upon changing semesters this year, I received new students in January. Since it is one of my personal goals to get to know my students as the individuals they are, I made a Tell Me About Yourself survey for them to fill out. This survey asked some personal questions about how they spend their free time and what hobbies they like to pursue. I also included some questions about their strengths and weaknesses in the English classroom. The final question required them to suggest a book to their classmates. With this information, I learned that many of my students struggle with grammar and spelling so I considered that new knowledge when planning for lessons and reviewing basic grammar skills. I also plan to create a poster of recommended 7th grade books so I can post it in my classroom for reading suggestions.
This year at MSU, one of my 800 level courses required me to do a Case Study on a struggling student of my choice. I chose a student who was in my classroom year round and really seemed to struggle with staying on task, completing work on time, understanding assignments, and reading. I set up an action plan and later reflected how I improved my classroom environment for this student.
Since my 7th graders come from an elementary school, they are not accustomed to writing lengthy essays. The first essay that was presented to them first semester was a cause and effect essay about a short Greek myth from their literature books. After reading the story, explaining and practicing cause and effect with a powerpoint, and explaining the contents of an essay, they were given a Brainstorming packet designed to help them map out their essay. To keep students on track, each student had to meet with me and get their work approved and stamped before moving on to writing their essay. This allowed me to spend one on one time with students, recognize and talk with them about their strengths and weaknesses, and help them improve their writing.
After writing throughout the semesters, my students began to improve their writing skills. Every week I assign a journal for them to write that can be found in their vocab packet for the week. Since our theme for third quarter was "Persistent Pursuits," I assigned a Breaking Barriers essay that explained a personal barrier that each student had to overcome. The assignment actually derived from a nationwide competition and they used Jackie Robinson as their inspiration for writing. By taking his values into consideration, each student wrote about a difficult time in their life. This really opened my eyes to some of the struggles my students have. I understand them better as individuals and I am glad they feel comfortable enough to share this information with me.
As I wrap up my internship, we are starting a memoir unit. Since the book is not particularly beneficial for students to read in order to fully understand the components of memoir and narrative writing, a lot of activities can be pulled out from the concepts of the book instead of focusing on the content. This assignment has students research their families. Through this activity, I can learn more about them and their family and they can know a little history about who they are. Family Tree, Fast Facts.
Upon changing semesters this year, I received new students in January. Since it is one of my personal goals to get to know my students as the individuals they are, I made a Tell Me About Yourself survey for them to fill out. This survey asked some personal questions about how they spend their free time and what hobbies they like to pursue. I also included some questions about their strengths and weaknesses in the English classroom. The final question required them to suggest a book to their classmates. With this information, I learned that many of my students struggle with grammar and spelling so I considered that new knowledge when planning for lessons and reviewing basic grammar skills. I also plan to create a poster of recommended 7th grade books so I can post it in my classroom for reading suggestions.
This year at MSU, one of my 800 level courses required me to do a Case Study on a struggling student of my choice. I chose a student who was in my classroom year round and really seemed to struggle with staying on task, completing work on time, understanding assignments, and reading. I set up an action plan and later reflected how I improved my classroom environment for this student.
Since my 7th graders come from an elementary school, they are not accustomed to writing lengthy essays. The first essay that was presented to them first semester was a cause and effect essay about a short Greek myth from their literature books. After reading the story, explaining and practicing cause and effect with a powerpoint, and explaining the contents of an essay, they were given a Brainstorming packet designed to help them map out their essay. To keep students on track, each student had to meet with me and get their work approved and stamped before moving on to writing their essay. This allowed me to spend one on one time with students, recognize and talk with them about their strengths and weaknesses, and help them improve their writing.
After writing throughout the semesters, my students began to improve their writing skills. Every week I assign a journal for them to write that can be found in their vocab packet for the week. Since our theme for third quarter was "Persistent Pursuits," I assigned a Breaking Barriers essay that explained a personal barrier that each student had to overcome. The assignment actually derived from a nationwide competition and they used Jackie Robinson as their inspiration for writing. By taking his values into consideration, each student wrote about a difficult time in their life. This really opened my eyes to some of the struggles my students have. I understand them better as individuals and I am glad they feel comfortable enough to share this information with me.
As I wrap up my internship, we are starting a memoir unit. Since the book is not particularly beneficial for students to read in order to fully understand the components of memoir and narrative writing, a lot of activities can be pulled out from the concepts of the book instead of focusing on the content. This assignment has students research their families. Through this activity, I can learn more about them and their family and they can know a little history about who they are. Family Tree, Fast Facts.