Harry Wong chapter 23- achieving happiness and success

Today we will be talking about a successful and happy teacher.
 Mr. Wong starts off this section by stating "  The two things that matter the most to a worker our time and money." Being a worker is not what you should aim for. A worker will agree to put in more hours if there's additional pay or some form of perk. If you are an educator you should not have to be bribed to put in more hours. As a matter of fact educators never truly stop working. A successful teacher is not a worker but a leader. Leaders look for enchantement without expecting a perk. "Life rewards the competent, not the clock watchers." If you are busy being a leader you will be rewarded because you are strengthening your skills making you a valuable assets. Now on to the classroom environment. A successful teacher understands that the classroom is a complex environment. Yet they are capable of making decisons and solving problems despite that. Mr. Wong seems to believe that "A person's behavior will determine what choices that person will make." I am going to go ahead and say that I totally agree. If being an educator you believe it is a miserable job then you will make poor decisions for your JOB. If you have a positive attitude about being an educator then you will make good dese ions to help you better yourself. To be a leader you must follow these simple rules.

• "Leaders CHOOSE!"
• "Leaders have control over their own lives."
• "Leaders are people who strive, reach for excellence, and seek achievement."

Leaders chose to become better at what they do. They chose to be successful teachers. Leaders don't decide they take action! Leaders also take control of their lives. They make sure to generate your own happiness. So much of that happiness comes from sharing with others. Leaders don't give up until they have what they want. If you haven't yet noticed a leaders behavior is also a big part of their success. They are always wanting to be involved in their profession and wanting to share their happiness with everyone around them. In this chapter Mr. Wong gives us a group of different people that either succeed or don't. I have read through and I believe that I am a maintenance person. Those types of people are the ones who are characterized as being tired most of the time.  They also hope to and the make it through the week always seeking sympathy. Next  we have protective people. They can usually be found sitting in the back of the role in meetings and complaining about everything they do. Sadly protective and maintenance people make up 80% of the teaching profession. We need teachers who are glad to be doing what they love and who are happy to help. Today when we give something we expect something in return. This should not be how we function but sadly that is how life works today. "This is teaching: Promoting student growth." A professional teacher seeks that the students perform above expectations. They want to see students learning everything they need to and much more.
I feel like in the future I would work hard to be a leader. I also feel like my profession will get into my personal life a lot and I am totally ok with that. I will always be striving to find the best way to make sure my kids learn. I want to be able to help all those kids who are struggling go above and beyond. My only goal in life is to be happy and although at first I didn't seem to know how to accomplish this I seem to have found my answer. Last weekend I volunteer to help raise money for charity since it's the holiday. Once I was done I realized it felt good to help those around me and share some of my happiness with them. I want to be able to help the who.e world but unfortunately that is impossible so I will settle for the next best thing. I will strive to help all those children who are struggling and need as much help as possible. I will spend as much time as I can helping and looking up ways to make learning fun and exciting. I will make sure that my students are excited for test to show off all the knowledge they have. I will keep in mind all that Mr. Wong has taught me through this book. If you are an educator I highly recommend you read this book it is seriously the best thing ever. Unfortunately I could not find the whole entire book but I was able to find this slide show summarizing the main parts of the book.
Here are some letters student wrote their teachers as a thank you for all they have done.
Please watch this heartfelt video of a teacher who believed in one student and changed his life.

Harry Wongs chapter 23- cooperative learning

We will be discussing cooperative learning and how it helps. 

 Mr. Wong says that "cooperative learning is a win-win situation." I am going to whole heartedly agree with this statement. When a teacher is up in front of the class teaching they can not possibly know which student is understand and which is not. Being in a small group those students may feel more comfortable letting their peers know they need a bit of help understanding. Cooperative learning refers to a set of instructional techniqueswhereby students work in small, mixed-ability groups. What this may look like is:  

• The teacher presents a lesson to the students.
• He student groups are given activities to master the objectives.
• The teacher teaches group and study strategies.
• The student work together to help one another master the objectives. 

Cooperative learning also help students compete only against themselves. Our society now has normalized the idea of competing against one another. Like Mr. Wong states " your mission in life is not to get ahead of other people; your mission is to get ahead of yourself." In cooperative learning no one student is responsible for themselves but for the group as a whole. Now I see my Pre K students sit in tables and are al, assigned to a buddy. This is because the teacher wants them to talk and try to come up with a solution by themselves. This is also extremely helpful because those who struggle can be partnered with those who have mastered the concept. That way they can help one another and they build up their social skills, and conflict management skills. Although this idea does seem great there are some cons to this. For example when you ask students to break up into groups you may get some groans or questions asking how long they will be in that group. Well "Effective grouping is dependent on two major factors." 

1. The class climate
2. The explanation 

When students don't cooperate the ineffective teacher is at a loss so remember " It is the teacher who is responsible for the success of the classroom. " This means that students do play a huge role in the classroom but that does not mean they control the classroom. An effective teacher doesn't give vague directions knowing that will provoke comments like "Do I have to do this." A teacher must give directions that are easily comprehended if not students will start to act up. 

 I really enjoy this method because I know that making new friends is also kind of awkward and this method helps students get to know each other. It also helps them feel more confident when they are having trouble if they are asking someone they know and trust. It is also a great way to get different learning styles mixed in. Students all learn differently and being in a group with other different learners can help them learn new learning methods. You can also assign each student a diffrent job to accomplish in each group. Do make sure to explain that although someone is in charge of a specific job it doesn't mean they do all the work alone. It means they make sure it gets done right and everyone participates. Make sure that the jobs are changed every other week. Oh and also try calling the. Support groups not just groups or tables. Because that is what we want a support group where we all want the other to accomplish so much. 

This website gives you some cooperative strategies

Here are some cooperative learning tips and techniques.

This website has some great cooperative games that you should try!

Harry Wong chapter 23- test

This week we will be talking about test.
 Mr. Wong states "The  purpose of a test to assess a student performance against learning criteria NOT to provide the teacher with the basis for a grade." Test are used as a form of labeling students while assessments are used to see students success. We as a society need to change that perception. We should not have students that get nervous when they hear they have a test coming up. Students should feel confident and be ready to ace it. As an educator make sure you know what 2 things a test must have. First the teacher should use the results of each test to remediate and correct for student mastery. Secondly the student should be graded on a percentage system. This way they are competing only against themselves. Ineffective teachers use the test as a means of need for points on a curve, passage of time, or period to kill. Test should feel like a way of encouragement. I know many older teachers give test and when a student fails just has them do corrections. Except the corrections is just writing down the problem and the correct answer. Students are not learning at all when they are told to do that.  "The purpose of a test is to help the teacher assess with the student has or has not learned." This means that when a student does not succeed then teachers must help the student with whatever they are struggling with. Think of it this way if you break your leg you won't be able to ever heal if you don't take care of it. The same goes for students they will never learn a concept if you keep testing them over a subject they don't understand. Mr. Wong states that "If the student DOES NOT MASTER an objective, give the student remediation or corrective help."  Although ineffective teachers only care about getting something in the grade book. Like Mr. Wong says "  The role of the teacher is not to grade a student. The main role of the teacher is to help every student reach the highest possible level of achievement." Formative test are used to determine what remediation is needed for a student to master the content, skill, or objective. This is what effective teachers should do when a student does not succeeded. These test should be the same kind of test but the questions should be a bit different. These days it just doesn't seem that way it seems like all that matters are grades in school. I think this is why many students seem to cheat it's easier than asking for help from someone they believe won't help them. I know that there have been many times I have been afraid to ask for help because the teacher I had was strict and would answer questions before or after school. I would have to ask a friend to explain the concept to me since I didn't want to fail and get a bad grade. We need to change this way of thinking. We need to make sure that asking questions doesn't make you dumb it makes you responsible! You are taking action by stepping up and saying I don't seem to understand. Test are a way of saying this but sadly in today's world this doesn't seem like a big enough shout. The effective teacher uses a test as a way to see where their students are or where they need help.
This is a website containing 10 must know facts about test for parents.
Here are some test taking tips for all ages.
A great site to use when you need to study or are having trouble with any subject is this one.

Harry Wongs: The role of a teacher is to uncover

                       Today we will be covering Harry Wongs unit D Lesson Mastery.
  As Mr. Wong states in this section "There is only one way for a student to learn anything. The student must put in effort; The student must work to learn." This is the most common reason why students do not complete their assignments. Students don't learn because teachers are the ones who do the hard work. Mr. Wong has made it clear from the beginning of his boom that to have a successful class we must teach procedures early on in the year. This is because this lessens the interruptions and and maximizes uninterrupted learning time. According to Wong "increase the amount of time the student is working, and you increase learning." Let's face it we only have a short limited time to teach a room full of different style learners the same lesson. We need as much time as we can get without any interruptions. A teacher who does not set up their procedures early on will be working extra hard now to try and teach students a new procedure in the middle of the year.
  Now on to the next topic, An effective teacher never asks "what am I going to cover tomorrow?" But instead should be asking "what are my students to learn, achieve, and accomplish tomorrow?" This is because as a teacher you should not be asking what you are going to do. This implies that the teacher is the one doing all the work and we do not one that! According to Wong if this happens then students will come to class wondering what the teacher is going to do next. At the beginning of a lesson make sure to let students know what they are responsible for learning. "The role of the teacher is not to cover. The role of the teacher is to UNCOVER."
  Now ineffective teachers will grab a textbook and tell the students to read a chapter and then test them over it. Although textbooks are a great tool for learning that is not the appropriate way to use them. The effective teacher stands before the class and address what the students are to accomplish. This way they can use the textbook knowing what it is they are suppose to be learning and not just diving in blindly. This is not only helpful for students but also for those parents who help students with their homework that way they also understand what it is their child is to accomplish.
  Objectives are another helpful resource not only to teachers but also to students. Wong explains that " objectives or criteria do two things : assign and assess." See when teachers use objectives it helps them teach more directly from it. And the objective helps the student by giving them directions to comprehend an assignment. An objective should consist of  a verb and a sentences explaining what is to be mastered. It should also be a precise objective not over the top complex. All that will do is end up confusing your students.
  The goal of a test is to determine wheather the students understood the concept. Wheather there should be additional study needed in the particular section. Test it's the teacher know if students are struggling to understand the lesson or if the teacher needs to change their teaching approach to one that appeals to everyone.
  Mastery is the knowledge of a skill or the accomplishment of something that was unacheiveable before. This could be like passing that spelling test that they struggled with for so long.
  Grades are important for student learning and achievement because it could help to motivate students to study hard to get a desired grade. This helps the student want to achieve goals and pay more attention in class. Grades are important because they reflect the students mastery of what they are learning.
  An objective for my Pre-K class would be something like: Write the numbers from 1-10
A test question for my class might be something like: what sound does the o in open make?
  My thoughts on testing within the classroom is that it is a good thing to do. This way you can see where your students are and if they are where they should be or if you need to work harder. Although I don't like standardize test I feel like they are a good tool to use. This helps determine wheather the curriculum should be kept the same or changed. This is all for the cause of a great education.

This link is for some fun educational videos to watch with young children

I found this cool website that has a bunch of Christmas ideas to do with young kids go check it out!

What constitutes an effective discipline plan

Reading Harry Wongs book has given me a great idea of an effective teacher. In his earlier chapter Wong states that you must establish your rules the first days of school. This way they learn it early on what is expected of them. To have an effective discipline plan you must establish your expectations whether they be written or verbal. As a teacher it is best you have your rules or expectations written and posted around the room here's why. Let's say you don't post your rules so when a student breaks a rule how will they know that they broke it? With that being said an effective discipline plan has 3 main components (Rules, Consequences, and Rewards). You must show students that you do abide by the rules so if someone breaks them then there must be a consequence. If not then students will misbehave since they see you don't enforce the rules or anything you said. The children will eventually not be afraid to break the rules as they will catch on to you not being consistent. This can also damage any trust or relationship with students as they will feel like their teacher doesn't stick to her promises. This is not what we want, we want the students to be successful and to come to you if they are struggling or need help. If students think you are not a person who sticks to what they say they may not have enough trust to tell you anything.  Now for the rewards part we don't just want to punish children we want to encourage them to be the best they can be. This is when you would reward children for excellent behavior. This also may encourage other students to abide by the rules if they know they will be rewarded. As much as this sucks it's true! Students are more likely to be involved and  do what they are suppose to if they know they will be rewarded. This all may seem like you are completely in charge and students have no say. That is not tru don't we want students to be involved a great suggestion would be to have some rules already made up and as a class you could make a set of rules.  Another important thing to remember is when making up your rules keep in mind the age and grade of your students. You can't have the same rules for kindergarten that you do for fifth graders. The biggest factor to having an effective discipline plan would be to actually use your discipline plan. Be committed don't just say you have a plan and then make up a new one as you go along. To have a successful year you must have some consistency throughout the year!

If I were in charge of the world poem

If I were in charge of the world
There would be no crime or violence
There would be nothing but peace
No more war or higher power

If I were in charge of the world
Summers would be longer
Everyday would be a holiday
There would be no Monday's

If I were in charge of the world
Pasta would be the only food acceptable
You could have dessert for breakfast

If I were in charge of the world
School would be a fun place
There would be naps for high schoolers
Recess would continue well into college

If I were in charge of the world
Teaching would be recognized as fascinating profession
Being a teacher would be the coolest thing ever!
A teacher would be paid a lot more
Teachers would get much more respect



This is the original poem that mine is based off of

Consequences

After reading Wongs ideas on consequences I believe that he is correct in what he is saying. I mean you can't get mad when a student doesn't know what to expect because you either don't follow your rules or you just make it up as you go along. Like Wong previously mentioned the first days of school are for teachers to go over what is expected from the students. This mean you go over the consequences of what their choices are. For example, I have a teacher who has a chart posted in their classroom with the consequences. Just yesterday we had a sub and she was being treated disrespectfully, All the kids were doing whatever they pleased. The teacher came back and you know what happened the kids that were being disrespectful yesterday were able to leave class or not do what everyone else did. The students who were quiet and being nice had to write a page long letter apologizing to the sub for the other kids behavior. While the ones who were being rude were outside the classroom laughing and the others inside complaining about not wanting to do anything. You want to know why...our teacher never explained the consequences in detail he just asked us to be respectful and do our work not copy. So know the whole class sees that he doesn't follow a set plan he just kind of wings it. I don't 100% agree with his saying of "the number one problem in the classroom isn't discipline it's the lack of procedures and routines." I do believe that discipline plays a big part in the classroom. Let's just imagine that there was no discipline in your classroom. Well if one student does something that is not ok how would they know it was wrong? I mean you can't discipline them since it's not important in your classroom. Then all the other students would also be doing things that aren't acceptable and that would be a huge mess. You must have a balance I believe of everything you know. You can't just reward good behavior and ignore bad one. You must reward good behavior and  eliminate the bad behavior. Wong does make a point of how most ineffective teachers begin the first day with trying to teach a subject. Then how the rest of the year that teacher is stuck "running after the students." This goes to show that on the first days of school you should always explain expectations and classroom procedures to get a smooth rest of the year. I really did like the way he has made it a point to  emphasize that throughout his whole book.

Also this article describes a great 3 step rule to consequences

This is a great video to have children watch when they are frustrated

Picture Book Month Activities

After reading Picture Book Month Teacher's Guide I believe that picture books are an essential part to learning. Picture books help illustrate empathy and they help experience complex issues. These stories are short and simple to help younger children grasp the concept of the book. Picture books have been thought of as books for young children. That is not the case though picture books are for all ages. For example, in my AP English class this last week we analyzed the book The Cat In The Hat. We started off with this picture book since there is so much detail that we can use as context and textual evidence. The most important part of a picture book is the tone of the author, the moral of the story, the entire book is important. Why is is that we assume that because there are pictures in the book it's automatically for younger children? Maybe if we put aside the fact that these books are colorful and playful we would see that the author has a unique writing style. Picture books can be used in any topic you want not just for English. Many children's book help to teach us of a different culture or about the world around us. So in honor of picture book month I chose the book The Diary Of A Worm by Doreen Cronin. This book is about a worm who keeps a diary describing some cool things that happens in his life. An activity I would do to go along with this book is to use a sock and fill it with some stuffing then hot glue googly eyes. Then while we read the book we can use it to narrate the story. Then once we are done reading the boom we will be making a diary of our own! We will have the students go home and with their parents make a small diary for about a week. On Friday have the students come up and present their diaries with all everyone else. Another awesome idea would be searching for worms! We use "mud" which is pudding with crushed up Oreos on top then we put some gummy worms inside our "mud". The students each get a cup filled this mud and they can search for their worms... A bonus is that you can serve this as a snack.
This blog is run by a mom who did some worm activities with her kids go check it out.
Please make sure to check out the official website for Picture Book Month.

Discipline and classroom management

For a couple weeks now I have been reading Harry Wongs book: How To Be An Effective Teacher The First Days Of School. Before even reading this book I had a different out take on discipline and classroom management. I use to believe that classroom management was how you kept your kids on track and quiet. As for discipline I thought it was a way of fixing behavioral issues. I have come to see that this is not entirely true. I believe classroom management should be how effectively your classroom runs with or without a teacher. For discipline I think that this means establishing rules/guidelines that must be followed. If these rules are not followed then you may use discipline to help ensure these rules are followed. I remember being a young girl how the classroom management was go to class and get to work don't slack off or you will go to the principles office. Last year when I was working with the first graders their classroom management and discipline was way different. They were expected to follow the rules/guidelines but now they had little faces describing how their behavior made the teacher feel. If you had a lot of frowns at the end of the day it was taken up with the teacher and parents. The same goes for this year with my Pre-K kids. The teacher has them move a picture of themselves to a different colored face. As for discipline I think the principle doesn't really get involved unless it is a big problem or the students behavior is not improving. For example, last week some students were arguing with one another and we asked them to try and get along. When that didn't work we pulled them aside and explained the consequences of not following the rules. This of course was no help they continued. So in the end we had another teacher take them to her classroom and she disciplined them. In the future I don't know how I'm going to react to any of these things. I am so use to following my mentors rules that I don't know how I would handle these types of situations. I guess I would just try my hardest to reinforce positive behavior since children love to be recognized for great behavior.

Also I found this really cool blog on establishing classroom management you should go check it out!

Teachers Reputation

In the book The First Days Of School by Harry K Wong there is a quote that I think is extremely important. "Right or wrong, accurate or not, your reputation will precede you"(Wong 101). I clearly remember being a young girl getting assigned a teacher that every parent wanted to steer clear of. She was labeled as a harsh and unrealistic teacher. My parents tried their hardest to get me out of her classroom but their efforts were for nothing. I remember not wanting to go to school on the first day. Then before I knew it I was standing before her classroom eyes all red and puffy from crying. I walked into class the first day of school to this teacher with the biggest smile on her face. My parents were at ease right away when they saw her come up to me after seeing my face. Then all the parents left and that when I saw why people were cautious of her. She started telling us that we were possibly the most troublesome students she had met. I remember for the rest of the year no one would do their work and everyone would act out. Know that I think about this experience I think this behavior might of had something to do with her expectation of us. Without even knowing us for more than a day she had made it seem like she had given up on us. Teachers reputation is an important part of who they are. Students will hear about you and have their minds made. Before even knowing you some students have already determined if they are going to be successful this year or not. Teachers can protect their reputations by being an effective teacher. Doing the best you can and being a great teacher is a great way to insure your reputation.

Welcoming students to your classroom

This week I am reading the classroom management section in How To Be An Effective Teacher The First Days Of School.
 I believe that it is very important to welcome your students to class everyday. Doing this makes it look like you care about the students. This will help build a great relationship with students if they feel like you genuinely care for them. This is especially important to do on the first day of school. Standing at the door ready to greet your students is a great way to start off a successful year! Douglas Brooks found that a question students ask on the first day of school is "am I in the right room?" By standing at the door telling your students your name you minimize the risk of students being in the wrong classroom. "Finding the correct room on the first day of school can be one of the most frightening experience for a student"(Wong 105). With this being said don't greet students with a frown. Always make sure to "stand at the classroom door with a big smile and a ready handshake"(Wong 105). It is also nice to have a little welcome sign somewhere around your classroom to get students excited about the school year. Like Wong said "everything possible should be done to welcome the students and to make sure they know where to go"(Wong 107). All of this will make your start to a new year very successful. For my future classroom I would like to implement the greeting students everyday. This to me is something that I believe students notice. It makes them notice how you aren't just trying to teach them something but that you truly care for them.

Important factors governing students learning

Hello everyone! 

This week I read part c of How To Be An Effective Teacher The First Days Of School By Harry K Wong. Today I will be answering the question "define and describe the most important factor governing students learning according to Mr. Wong?" 

Mr. Wong starts off by saying that classroom management is the number one important factor governing students learning. Like Wong said "Effective teachers Manage their classrooms. Ineffective teachers discipline their classrooms."(Wong 83) He uses a restaurant as a comparison to classroom management. Wong says that you may know how to cook a stake but to have a successful restaurant you need to know accounting procedures,federal state, and local regulations. Cooking a stake is the last thing you must know. Just like being an effective teacher you must know all the procedures, learning styles, academic learning time, ect.. before hand. Classroom management refers to all the things teachers do to organize students,space,time, and materials so that instruction and student learning can take place (Wong 84). Ineffective teachers have classrooms that are not ready... This causes a ripple effect. Confusion leads to problems which then leads to a non-managed classroom. To minimize the problem be ready before the problem arises. For example, making a seat chart to separate trouble students or have all the students facing forward towards you. Put a small space between you and your students so that if a problem does arise you are close to the source. 

To have a well managed classroom make sure you post an assignment everyday in the same spot. That way you don't waste any class time giving directions when students could be learning. Also don't start the day with taking roll. "Your first priority is not taking roll; it is to get students to work immediately."(Wong 121) Getting students involved in the process of roll taking you are wasting precious valuable time. Having a well managed class does not mean having a disciplined class. It just means having a well organized and thought out classroom. Many teachers are not very focused on how to manage a classroom. I recommend teachers read this book since it has very helpful advice. 

 

5 educational blogs

1. http://mscassidysclass.edublogs.org
This blog is Filled with pictures of students learning. It also shows us very fun and creative project the students have done. This is a great way for parents to get to see what is happening in the classroom while at work or anywhere else! This also gives teachers the opportunity to get a look a new ideas to try. It gives them great visual representation of how efficient the ideas may be.
2.http://4theloveofteaching.blogspot.com
This blog is just of a teacher posting pictures of what the students are working on. For example she puts pictures of nice interactive ways to engage her students. She has a graffiti wall where students can write amazing quotes.  It's great how excited the students get with these fun ways of learning this teacher is introducing to her classroom.
3. http://kauaimark.blogspot.com
This blog is a bit unique from the others. This one is run by a substitute teacher who tells very funny stories and blogs about his experience at school. This sub shows the great techniques teachers use in their classroom and how affective they can be. Not to mention it's a nice change of perception to see these techniques beinging used by someone other than the teacher!
4.http://youthvoices.net
This blog might probably be the best interactive one yet. Not only does the teacher get to post stuff but also the students get to get involved. This is a great way to get students involved since we are so dependent on technology in today's world. It's nice to see students write about whatever they want. It's extremely important that students write very frequently to get better practice does make perfect.
5. http://www.fernsmithsclassroomideas.com
This blog is where a teacher post stuff like fun activities to do. Ranging from coloring pages to fun games to play for math. It's a great way to get students to have fun while also learning at the same time.

Field site experience

My experience at my field site so far has been fantastic! I couldn't have asked for a better mentor teacher or better children. This year I was a bit nervous since last year I was with a 1st grade class. Despite this I feel like this year is going to be an awesome year! I feel like I am meant to be in a classroom setting. Thanks to my mentor this year I am getting more independent experience in the classroom. This week I have been sitting with my students and helping them with their sounds and writing. The only bad thing we don't have a lot of time to be able to get a better experience. So far I am really liking this year.

Top 10 things I wish I knew my first year being an educator.

Today I read the article 10 things I wish I knew my first year as an educator. It got me to think what I wish I knew my first year of being an educator. So here is a list of 10 things I wish I would of known when entering the teaching environment. But before that Go watch this video first it's a great inspirational video about teachers.
1.) Have confidence in yourself. 
Trust me you need to have confidence in yourself. I remember being in front of my first graders trying to read to them being so unsure of myself. I felt myself shaking and thinking they probably couldn't hear me or didn't like how I read. You know what happened when I finished? The kids told me that the book was their favorite and asked me to read another. My mentor teacher gave me this piece of advice when I explained to her I couldn't ever be a great teacher. "If you don't believe in yourself how can you ever expect me or anyone else to believe in you?" She said she doubted herself a lot to but great teachers have confidence in themselves, their lessons, and their students most importantly.
2.) There will be days when you feel like you aren't helping but hurting instead.
I can't tell you how many times I felt like I was just hurting my students. I couldn't help them with whatever they need my help with and they were relying on me to give them guidance. It took some time to understand that as a person you will have some down days but that does not mean you aren't a great educator! To help me get through these types of days I had a journal where my friend and I wrote some motivating notes and quotes to one another. Just remember your whole career is not determined based off of a couple bad days. It is determined by how you inspired students and gave them all the information they will need in life. Or next year which ever comes first.
3.) Have fun and enjoy what you are doing.
Although teaching can be a stressful job remember to take deep breaths. Then take a step back and remember doing this should be fun and hard work. If you keep on focusing on all the hard work you are not going to want to do this for years down the road. So let's just remember you can work hard but play just as hard!
4.) Teaching is a special job 
When I was younger I thought teaching was for people who couldn't get a better job. Now I see that being a teacher is a special job that not many can do. To be a teacher you must have qualities that many people lack. To teach is to inspire and care for your children.
5.) Not only do students get attached but so do you. 
When I worked with my first graders I thought that it was sweet how they got attached to me. When it was time to say goodbye I realized that the ache in my chest was the thought of not seeing them for a while. I thought before that teachers really didn't care for their students but I proved myself wrong. When you teach you don't have 1 child you have many children.
6.) Dont be afraid to try something new.
Doing things in a traditional style is great. Doing new things is ever better! Just imagine where we would be right now if we would of never tried something new?
7.) There are many factors that affect students and their learning.
Being a student myself I guess I understood this. When you get into the classroom though things like these seem to slip your mind rather quickly. Do whatever you can to help your students get on track. Help them in any form you can let them know you care.
8.) You cannot be too lenient with students or too harsh.
It's hard not to be a passive teacher that lets students get away with a lot of stuff. With that said that does not mean you can be a very strict teacher that students are afraid to come to. You somehow need to find the spot in the middle of these 2 teaching styles. Be the teacher students know not to try and mess with but let them know you understand if they need anything.
9.) Share any ideas you have with other educators.
I noticed teachers sharing and ideas or lessons they did with each other. We usually kept ideas to ourselves but see that's not such a great thing to do. You need to share with one another so that your students can get a better understanding of what they are learning. Plus it's fun sitting around sharing these awesome ideas you found or came up with.
10.) Be careful you might end up loving the teaching profession.
I thought I had a clear vision of wanting to be a police officer. Then I took this amazing opportunity to work along side a 1st grade teacher and guess what? I ended up having doubts about what my future career looked like. I enjoy teaching children things they will use throughput their lives. I just want to be sure that I am 100% certain teaching us what I want to do.

What does it take to be a teacher in the 21st century?

21st century teachers have to adapt to change quite quickly. In our world today we are being controlled by technology but luckily we have found a way to put it to good use. Today we have found many ways to implement technology in our classrooms and lessons. Now many people may disagree with this "new way" of learning saying students don't get all the information they need. Let us stop for a minute and think about it this way... You are a teacher with 20 students how are you going to answer all 20 questions thrown your way? Especially if students don't seem to understand no matter how hard you try to explain. With this new technology implementation students now have the freedom to look for answers themselves. They can now have resources which were not available before right at their fingertips. This way they can truly try to understand what it is they need help understanding. This way the teacher isn't the only source of information or knowledge. Since we are all so reliant on technology incorporating it into our education is a great way to get students motivated. They already use this stuff on a daily basis so using it to learn is a great way for them to do something they are use to doing. Teachers in today's world have to get to know their students. You see everyone learns differently some may be a more hands on learner while others may be auditory learners. Teachers have to know how to make a lesson to where every student can understand the material. We also have to understand students are effected by many factors not just their learning styles. An example would be world wide changes like climate change or social issues. You see students are now socially connected with each other all around the world. Using technology to connect with people around the world gives students a chance to learn new things about different cultures and beliefs. Another great thing that is being implemented is getting real life experience in a career students may want to do. Now you can be an inter at a school,office,or anything you want. This world and our educational system is changing rapidly. Being a 21st century teacher may be hard to adjust to at first but that does not mean it can't be done. We are adjusting our world and learning styles to become the best they can be.

 A great video to watch on 21st century education.
A great article to read about 21st century teachers

What do teachers make?

This week I watched the video What Do Teachers Make. It inspired me to think about this question more profoundly. I remember telling my parents that I wanted to be a teacher someday and I can never forget the look on their faces. My father told me "so all this education so you can waste your time being a teacher." My mother exclaimed "sweetheart you aren't going to school for so long to get a low paying job." Honestly it hurt that all they could think about was how much I would make and not about how happy it would make me. I told them being a teacher is not about money. It's about changing the world even if it's someone's world that you change. Being a teacher is about the passion you have for teaching. let's think about what being rich means? Being rich can be either money wise or knowledge wise. Teachers are rich just not the type of rich society thinks of. I mean think about it without teachers there would be no other professions. So when you put down teaching just remember that teaching got you to where you are now. I want to teach because I have a passion for teaching. I want to see my children go out into the world and do something that makes it better. I want to teach because to me being a teacher is the most powerful position you can have. I want to be a teacher because that is the type of rich I want to be. So to my parents I am not sorry if me being a teacher disappoints you. It is what will make me happy and to be honest nothing else matters besides my happiness. If you need any more reason to think teaching has a huge impact watch this video.

Here's where I find the treasure in teaching.

Like a great man once said "Educating the mind without educating the heart is no education at all" - Aristotle. When we think of teaching we think everything we learn goes to our mind, believe it or not some stuff goes to our heart. Also teachers for example, some teachers I know teach from their hearts not just because it's their jobs. Teaching should be something you do because you love to change the world. One of my favorite teaching websites would have to be this one.
http://interactivesites.weebly.com

My hopes for TAFE competition

                     For my E.A.T. class we have decided to compete in TAFE. For those of you who don't know what TAFE stands for it means Texas Association of Future Educators. We get to compete against other "chapters" in a variety of events. I have made a small list of what I want to compete in. 

                     The first one is a scrapbook of our chapters history. What this means is a scrapbook of what our chapter did the year before. We are allowed to have a group of no more than 4 people doing scrapbook. The next one I would like to do would be children's literature. You would be making a children's book for Pre-k audience. There is a limit of 24 pages just the front or 12 pages front and back. The total people that can do the children's book are 2. Finally the last event I would like to compete in is teacher created materials. You would be making a material you can use in your classroom to help you teach. This event only allows 2 people to compete together and does qualify you to go to state. I have decided to do the scrapbook event with 2 of my very close friends. We will start first by finding pictures of what our chapter did last year. For example last year we did a book drive then donated them to a clinic that had none. We will work hard on our scrapbook after class or any spare time we may have. We hope this will take us about a month or so to complete. To be successful we will need to be focused and do our best on this scrapbook. We will need encouragement and a lot of practice on what we are going to say. I hope we do great so I can inform you all that our hard work payed off. 

Find your marigold: the one essential rule for new teachers

This week I read "Find Your Marigold" and in all honesty I liked this article. This is the link to the article
The author made me realize if you want to ever succed you need positivity around you. We call these positive people marigolds they help us through it all. Marigold are what gardeners plant as companions to help other plants grow better. A marigold is a symbol for those teachers that you want to "plant yourself" close to so you can grow. For these new teachers they should be looking around for these marigolds well whatever job you have you should be looking for them. Let's remember though that where there is marigolds the positivity there will be walnut trees the negativity.  On this topic there may be people who aren't all marigold or walnut trees so just stick close to those that make you happy and want to see you thrive. The most important lesson this article has taught me is that as long as you surround yourself with positivity you are sure to thrive and be the best you can be. So beware of the walnut trees my friends and let's all try to be the marigolds we wish for!
 I do recommend to anyone having a hard time to read this article it really does give great advice and motivates you to be the best you can ever be.

Welcome to my blog

Hello welcome to growing with Jacky.
 I am currently going on to my second year of being an education and training intern. Last year I assisted a first grade teacher a few days a week. On this blog I will be sharing any teaching strategies, teaching advice or really anything to do with teaching. I hope to find out this year if my true calling is being a teacher. So I would like to thank you for following me on this epic journey. I hope that you enjoy my blogs and grow along with me!