Putting it all TOGETHER

The last teaching lab of the Spring 2013 was teaching an FFA LifeKnowledge lesson at our cooperating center--our opportunity to 'put it all together.' I traveled to Oley Valley feeling ready and confident after a positive experience with the three-day micro-teaching experience at Central Mountain High School the week previously. I used the lesson "What is the value of diversity on teams?" to base my class and then put my own personal touches on it. Overall, I figured it would be a great way to weave in a let's get to know each other activity and also touch on some international concepts...my favorite.
I got the challenge and benefits of teaching the lesson 2 times for the freshman Ag Environmental class. The added challenge was that it was the last day before Thanksgiving break, but actually I think it was a perfect lesson for that! They had a ton of energy (I'm getting the feeling that I like energetic students) and I had a lot of fun activities planned. Also, the fact that I had two lessons helped me make some improvements on the second one...cool!

I really loved the introduction activity...What motivates or characterizes you?! I had the students draw 3 things and then they presented as a form of introduction. It was so cool to see the diversity of experiences and interests in the class, plus it was a ton of fun and I could make connections with a lot of the students. Even with this initial activity, I had to use some class management techniques, but the students were all very receptive.

"What do you think of when you here diversity?" 

I posed this question and had them do a brainstorm speed-round with post-it notes. I varied it between the two periods, and actually wasn't overly satisfied either time, neither with the activity nor the review.

My favorite activity is when I divided the class into groups and handed each one a 'present:' toilet paper, a stirrup leather, a bar of soap, and a sponge. They had 2 minutes to think of as many uses as they could for that item. Wow! I pretty sure they convinced me that with those 4 items, that that was all one needed in life! Anyway, it was a great introduction to the value and challenges of working on a team.

Overall, I thought the lessons went very well. The nature of the lesson topic was very flexible for activities, so that was nice. To my surprise, I was able to have a lot of fun presenting this lesson and still maintain a respectful environment and was able to get their attention back very easily. There were some challenges though. The classroom has stationary science desks and sinks, which means the desks will always be in rows. Teaching-wise, my flow in the first period was choppy, but it improved a bit in the second lesson, especially in the introduction. In the first lesson, I really sped through the introduction, barely talking about the objectives. In the second lesson, I slowed this part down.

I am so thankful for the flexibility and coaching from my cooperating teacher, Mr. Deysher. Overall, it was a good start. I have a lot to learn, but I am looking forward to next semester!

3 Day Micro-teaching Unit at Central Mountain HS

Wow, what a cool experience! We finally got to put all our teaching theory into good use, and I feel so much more excited to keep working hard and improving. Oh course I definitely had some rough points at times during those three days, but overall, I had a ton of fun and I'm feeling like I am on the right track.

I taught Ms. Hack's 2nd period Animal Science class a 3-day unit on Rabbit Management. While preparing these lessons, I had a difficult time making rabbits exciting without an actual rabbit, but the help of a 4-H rabbit kit (thanks to Quinn),  a lot of brainstorming, and some coaching, it was anything but boring.



Day 1: Rabbit parts and breeds

I was so nervous I couldn't even sleep the night before. I felt that no amount of riding lessons or clinics could prepare me for THIS experience! I was terrified, no matter how much I prepared. Within 10 minutes of the start of class, 'the calm' settled in...YES! Despite flying through the material in the beginning (probably because of nerves) and a student giving me a fake name, the rest of the class period was A LOT of fun. It left me feeling motivated and excited about what I was doing.

Day 2: Rabbit selection and the Punnett Square

Coming into this day, I was confident about the class in general, but a bit worried about how the class would fare with the Punnett Square. They came in tired and quiet, but as an interest approach, we picked skittles out of cups to determine the 'traits' of a rabbit face. They ended the activity with some crazy-looking bunnies drawn and a little bit of sugar. Oh...and I had their interest for sure. Despite the negative attitude in the beginning of class about Punnett Squares, they were ready to learn and were very engaged! I could have explained the Punnett Square with more clarity, but they still understood the concept.

Day 3: Rabbit care and quiz

Everything went OK this day, but not like I planned. My YouTube interest approach did not go through, so I started without an interest approach. What a difference in class energy compared to the day before! I like energy; therefore interest approaches = super important! They designed their own rabbit hutch and a management plan for their rabbits and got so involved that we ran out of time to review for the quiz. It wasn't ideal, but it worked just fine. The students did great on the quiz. BUT...my proudest moments were when they were disappointed that this was my last day and reading their positive 'Learner Satisfaction Forms.' :) What a good group of kids.

What things are working? 

 I'm fortunate to be blessed with a lot of energy and a generally positive mindset, so this flows nicely into my teaching. Students commented "energetic, friendly, encouraging" and "she was happy during everything and taught us in a good understanding way" and "I could really understand her and she had us participate." My supervisors noted the excellent use of positive reinforcement and proximity control.

What things aren't working...yet? 

Things went well overall, but we all have a lot to learn. I need to work on my flow by improving my transitions and stating WHY we need to learn the material. Also improving instructions will make things flow better by starting with a signal word, naming the task, declaring the time, and signaling them to go. My questioning could also use improvement. With higher level questions, I will be better able to increase the rigor of the material and create a better flow.

"Well that's all folks!" 

Inquiry Based Instruction: Cracked Open

After learning so much about inquiry based instruction, it was now our time to 'give it a go!' I enjoyed the challenge of trying to figure out how I was going to turn my Egg Foam Stability LAB into an Inquiry Based Instruction Lesson. As far as preparation, I really knew the material, gained all the supplies and felt organized; however, I really had no idea how it was going to go.

And the good news? 

I really can't gauge if it was a true success or not; however, I really enjoyed teaching it and felt the students were very engaged and thinking.

When should sugar be added to the egg albumen whisking process for optimum leavening properties using in baking? 

This was the question that I was gearing the students to develop. It related to the previous class lesson about the structure of proteins. I knew this would be a challenging topic, but the students did really well.


I began by handing each student an egg as they entered the classroom as a type of interest approach, asking them about the nutrients in the egg.   THEN, one of the student's egg rolled off the desk and hit the floor...CRACK! Ok, to be completely honest, I actually predicted this would happen but decided to go with the idea for the interest approach, because it would be really funny if it happened (and I love to liven things up whenever possible).

I began my lesson with a power-point presentation to give them a basic understanding of the content. Using the supplies provided, I then told them to pose a question and write a procedure for me to pre-approve before they began. I felt this was a really good idea; however, I really had to throw in some hints here and there to get them thinking in the direction I wanted them to. Finally, they began the experiment, but actually we ran out of time before it was completed! I'm thinking an electric beater could really make this process quicker.

Overall, I think it went well, because I was able to get a better understanding of how to facilitate an IBI lesson.

K-W-L Charts as a Literacy Strategy

The K-W-L Chart is a useful literacy Strategy that helps the student connect what they already KNOW, what they WANT to know about the topic, and then finally what they LEARNED about the topic. For this week's readings about inquiry based instruction, I will being using this strategy.

What I already KNOW: 
1.) Inquiry based instruction uses discovery and trial to teach the students.
2.)  It is student directed learning rather than teacher directed learning.
3.) There are different degrees of inquiry based instruction.

What I WANT to learn: 
1.) I want to learn better how to facilitate this method of instruction.
2.) I want to better relate my lessons to real-life scenarios.

What I LEARNED:

Wow, the readings really covered a lot! Meyers noted that inquiry based instructions allows learners to take charge of their learning. It is most beneficial when it is viewed relevant to the students and connects to past experiences. The readings also focused on the teacher's exact role, which was helpful to read. This included promoting student dialog, intervening to clear misconceptions, and transitioning between small groups and classroom discussions. The reading, "An Inquiry Primer," focused on inquiry learning being related to the scientific method. It also discussed different forms, including structured inquiry, guided inquiry, open inquiry, and the learning cycle.

The reading, "Simplifying Inquiry," presented a very interesting technique to help facilitate this type of instruction, called scaffolding inquiry. Since this method can be difficult for many students to grasp, it was suggested that throughout a school year, the lessons grew from low level inquiry to later a high level of inquiry. That way, the students gain understanding and confidence as they begin learning through the inquiry based method.