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For reflections made on my Mind lab experience see the following link:-
karen-and-teaching.weebly.com
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Well I made it to the end of the year, although at times I didn't think I would. This was my first year in year one and wht a year it was.. There were ups and downs, tears and despair, laughter and fun and I have loved every minute of it. I feel I have grown as a teacher and I have had a great support network around me, from senior management, my mentor teacher, my team leader and of course my team. We have worked collaboratively and shared many ideas and resources, just what a BT needs. At times when I have felt out of my depth and bewilderded there was always someone there for me. What have a accomplished this year? Lots and lots too many to mention but a mention must go to some of my achievements. One of the most challenging for me was my development of Te reo and knowledge of Maori culture, having come from the UK my knowledge in this area was sadly lacking much to my embarassment. My enrollement on the Open Wananga course has helped me enourmously with my knowlede of local culture and language which I have been able to promote in my classroom for the benefit of my students and whanau. I have also enjoyed implementing and completing my first teaching inquiry based around the importance of oral language in the classroom environment. I had lots of support from Erica at RTLB and managed to take on board her tips and advice and successfully implement activities into the classroom. Erica was impressed with my commintment and activites she even showed the ERO when they came to visit! I must also mention the fabulous relationships I have built with my students and their whanau. I feel I have made not only relationships but friendships too. And of course a mention must go to my nomination, by a parent and student, for teacher of the year, what an honour. I have loved year one, what I thought would be a huge challenge was a most enjoyable experience, what a fabulos bunch of students I had. I hope to have instilled in them a love of learning, set them up to achieve success, take risks and continue to learn in a positive, enthusiastic way. There were lots of tears on the last day from myself, my students and the parents. I now look forward to next year's intake. Wendy asked us to look at and reflect on our morning admin routine.
The first point in question was the roll and how we greet the children and to ask ourselves are we actually acknowledging the children or just ticking boxes for the benefit of e-tap. Upon reflection I do make a point fo trying to acknowledge each child as they enter the classroom first thing in the morning, even if I am busy setting up for the day or answering e-mails. I think it is import to acknowledge students and parents so that they get a sense of belonging and acceptence, you are happy to see them and that they are not just a number on a roll. I always make a point of actually turning to face them if on the computer, it's just common courtesy, how would I feel if I walked into the staffroom and people acknowledged me with their head down? We say the roll in Maori, Kei te pehea koa, (this is also for my benefit too as I need to brush up on my own Te-Reo) which the children were apprehensive of at first but it rolls off the tongue now! During roll I have the children seated at their tables quietly reading, the reason, I am concious of how long the children spend on the mat (this was one of the points for me to consider from last years observations) and the fact that I have a lot of boys who like to keep moving. It also keeps the noise level down (children are excited at the start of the day) and lets me do the boring admin stuff really quickly as I don't have to keep stopping to tell them to Shh! Wendy has already observed my morning routine and one of the points she mentioned was there was not enough student involvement, I hope I now have the balance right as now the children are in charge of the date/weather calender and they ask each other the questions regarding day/date/weather, which they seem to enjoy. I also let them take charge of the visual timetable and they chose to turn over the picture when the activity was done, an idea I had not thought of. The feedback also made me think of the star of the day and how they are chosen, the child who was the the star the previous day pulls the name of the next person out of the bag. ,(once chosen they go in an elastic band so everyone gets a turn) they make a big deal with drum roll etc. They then get to wear the official helper badge and they have to do special jobs throughout the day, such as calender, choosing a buzzword, runner for the day, giving out books etc. One thing mentioned in the e-mail which I need to address is the amount of time spent giving out insturctions while other groups wai,t is a concern of mine. I need to have a think of how to address this for the benefit of myself and my learners. I have tried to address this in reading as I now have computers set up ready for children to just go to and begin, and I now tell my readers to find their favourite page in the book and practise reading it for when I get to them. Obviously this is a small start and something that needs addressing. The points made in the e-mail were very valid and it has made me look at my own practice and address certain issues. I find feedback such as this a great help as it does make you reflect on your own teaching practice, I'm not perfect, but by reflecting and making the right changes it will not only benefit me as a teacher but will also benefit my students as they become more activley involved in their own learning. End of term reflection
Holidays are meant to be a refreshing and relaxing time, preparing for the next term, right? Well the holidays have ended, where did the days go? I spent the time catching up with my washing, cleaning, ironing, two days preparing my classroom and 3 days planning! Reflecting on the last term, what have I learnt? Well, full time teaching is a bit of a culture shock, as university does not prepare you for the daily demands placed upon a teacher. I have learnt that NE are not as independent as older students. They require constant supervision and help. It is also not un-common for a handful of students to be asking to go to the toilet, spell something, find out what to do, have help to get started as well as attention seeking behaviour, and all this at the same time!!!! Such incidents keep you focused and busy but at the same time they exhaust you both physically and mentally. At home it is often difficult to leave work at work, and the laptop is always out on the dining room table after dinner, that is if I remember to have dinner! As a perfectionist I can't help but dwell on my days teaching, what went well or didn't go well, did my students benefit. This often results in myself planning for better activities for the benefit of my learners, but often than not it creates doubts in my mind and makes it impossible to relax. It is often difficult to find that worklife balance at home, not only is there work on your mind but then there is the shopping, dinner, cleaning and of course a social life. So what can I do to improve this? Perhaps when the children are asking for spelling of certain words remind them of the strategies they have been taught, sight words, word wall, and ask a friend, remind them it is ok to make mistakes. Regarding the toilet requests I need a new strategy to stop the interruptions. I will have a table on the white board where the children will write their name when they go to the toilet and rub it out when they get back. That way I will know who is out in case of emergencies, only one child will be allowed to go at once. i am also going to have a star helper of the day, this child can give out worksheets, collect in books etc, giving me valuable minutes to be with my students and at the same time it gives the students a sense of responsibility. The most valuable piece of advice I can give to myself is to keep breathing! there are going to be times when things don't work or mistakes are made, so what if chaos reigns once in a while, if it's not dangerous don't stress. It's Ok to take a step back once in a while, I just remember why I do it. I love love my job, and have to confess I couldn't wait to get back from the holidays (how many people can say that)? I feel like I am doing well, learning fast and becoming aware of what I need to develop my skills further. I feel confident that my teaching practice is developing nicely although I still have a lot to learn. I am raring to go in term 3 and have lots of new ideas and practices that I hope will benefit my learners, set them up for success and make learning fun! |
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