Well finally things seem to be looking up!
I came into today's lab with 2 objectives:
-Smile: be excited
-Answer and ask lots of questions
For once I really think that happened!
The lesson I presented today was an introduction to the final project in my animal science II class. The project is to develop a farm business plan. The students are going to be presented with the project at the beginning of the semester. They will asked to choose the species they want to do their project on, and then I asked them to list "factors" they used to make their decision on a notecard.
I have definitely realized I hate "quite", I really need to work on allowing students time to complete their bellwork. I always want to jump into the lesson before I allow students sufficient time to complete the bellwork.
I gave myself a huge pep-talk before I walked out the door this morning! "I will be excited, I will be happy, I will smile!!" Well overall I think it worked, my evaluations all stated that I had improved enthusiasm! However, it was mentioned if it was genuine or forced... But heck, I will take it either way its an improvement!!
The second objective I made for myself was to ask more questions, in addition I wanted to make sure I was answering all questions. I made sure to check for questions and answer all of them. I can see that I still need to work on developing my questions. I know what I want the students to say however, I think I need to phrase them differently. Thus, my next objective is to work on scripting better questions!
Overall, I was happy with my performance today! Finally a lab that made me say I think I am going to be ok and make it through this. I really feel like I am making progress.
Mindy, good job with the pep talk and trying to be focused on your improvement goals - what a great example for all of us to sincerely consider our areas for improvement and work on them consistently!
ReplyDeleteThe concept of using PSA for a unit project is new to me, and one that I kind of like... I may consider using that for one of my units!
Wait time is hard sometimes, especially if you don't have to do it. And silence (quiet periods) can be awkward if you're not doing anything, but it is good to always be watching your students to see if the time is adequate or if more is needed. Or, if you give them a time limit, stick to it and watch a timer!
Hi Mindy,
ReplyDeleteWay to go meeting you're objectives! That's pretty awesome that you had objectives for yourself not just the students! That may be something I'll have to adopt! I like the content of your lab as well I am doing something like this in the spring. We'll have to collaborate! Great job on the boosted enthusiasm! Good luck on your next lab, hopefully you can ease your way into natural rather than forced. =D
Mindy,
ReplyDeleteYou defiantly meat your personal objectives and may be more than the rest of us have made great strides in improving your teaching Great Job and keep it up !!
Mindy,
ReplyDeleteI am so happy for you and the fact that you are gaining even more confidence...that is just great! I liked your idea of pep-talking yourself before lab and breaking things down into just two things to improve. That is something I'm going to try for next time. If we try to attack everything at once, it's hard to notice our progress. Steps are good! Keep it up!
Mindy,
ReplyDeleteI am so glad that this week went good for you. I feel that we all have the same problems you do about showing excitement. Everyone has their rough times but giving yourself a pep talk before the class is a great idea, I have never thought of that. As far as scripting that is just going to come with time. Once you learn how to ask questions and how to think like a high school student it will become a lot easier. Overall, I am glad to hear that this week went better for you. Just remember we are all in this together.
After both reading and watching your lesson this week, Mindy, I can see a difference! Don't worry too much about the time issue for students, just simply give them a cue to act out when finished so both parties are sure everyone is done. This is really efficient and I use it in all my labs. We all have those "fallback words" too, when we aren't completely sure what to say. I have them and many of my teachers did too. Keep practicing and recognizing those key words, because they can cue your thoughts to look back at the lesson plan or check up on yourself for whatever reason. This is a great positive experience that will propel you to the end of the semester.
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