End of the Year Animoto

Working the Crowd and Room Arrangement

Chapter One

"....teacher quality is the single most important in-school factor influencing student learning and achievement." I believe that this statement is very true. A teachers quality isn't necessarily determined just by the quality of the information that they are giving but also the quality of who they are and how they act towards their students. The quality in which a teacher shows their students is sadly what determines whether or not I enjoy coming to class to learn. If a teacher doesn't show any effort in the quality of their teaching or the quality in how they present themselves to their students it doesn't make me want to listen to anything they are saying. 

Chapter Two

According to Jones, the best way to give corrective feedback is to Praise, Prompt, and Leave. A teacher is supposed to commend the student for the progress they have made and the steps that they have done correctly, address what can be fixed and what the student needs to focus on, and leave before they have time to make excuses for why they can't do it. This method seems to work well for students that like to continuously ask questions.

Chapter Three

The room arrangement in my field site classroom has two tables for the teacher to sit at around the classroom and several different tables for the kids. She also has a large carpet for classroom activities. I think that this arrangement works well for the class and allows us to get to every kid easily as needed.

Chapter Four 

The teachers desk should be in the back of the classroom. This way the students are closer to the board and the teacher still has the ability to get up as needed and walk around the students to check that they are on task.

George W. Bush Presidential Library and Museum

Last Thursday, the Education and Training classes all took a field trip to the Southern Methodist University campus and new education facility. There, they showed us several exciting activities that they have available for their students including a virtual reality classroom and augmented reality apps for your smartphone to use in classrooms. This is the first time that I had seen anything like that so I find it really fascinating. 

Our next stop was the George W. Bush Presidential Library and Museum.

The oval office that the library had was just like the actual oval office at the White House. It was really cool to see what the inside of the oval office looks like from the crown molding to the furniture and rugs.















The No Child Left Behind Act was a very successful education initiative during the Bush campaign. He believed that every child held the ability to read but weren't being taught the correct way in order for them to reach their potential. He wanted every child to have the opportunity to read without being "left behind" in a classroom setting.

The 9/11 exhibit in the museum had me in awe the entire time. The attacks on America on that day affected the Bush presidency because it showed the strength in not only our nation but the president himself. No president goes into office wanting or being prepared for it. "It's not about the cards you're dealt, it's all about how you play them" This was by far my favorite section of the entire museum because you felt all the emotions in the room at one time.

Skills I need to work on

Three skills that I need to work on for the future are my social and emotional skills, my self-awareness, and my relationship skills. I tend to be a very independent person and push myself away from people rather than become close with them. I also have trouble looking at things in a positive light, typically, I focus on the more negative aspects of things because I want everything to be perfect. These skills will help me in the future because they will contribute to my social skills and outlook on life that will benefit my internal mindset on life. 

It all starts with a plan

I feel as though this video can be beneficial for all grades because it keeps everyone participating and interesting. If you're constantly calling on different kids and asking them what their peers said then they will pay better attention to the lesson and gain more knowledge from everyone else. 

Questions to consider

• How do talk moves encourage students to make connections with each other?

It encourages students by allowing them to have their own opinion of others students ideas while being respectful and possibly even benefiting from what those other students are saying.

• Which talk moves do you use in your classroom? Which could you add?

Currently none of the talk moves are being used in my classroom but I could definitely see the benefits of them. The talk move of "I have the same thought as you" would be great for younger grades such as kindergarten because it would keep them from getting distracted and trailing off and also keep from a noisy classroom.

• What can you learn from Ms. Simpson about encouraging students to change their minds?

I feel like Ms. Simpson was able to do this very well with her class because they had their original thought and opinion then were able to hear their peers and change what they had previously thought if wanted. 

Padlet Example

Habits of Mind Presentation