My first day of observation was wonderful and completely welcoming. From the first moment of this adventure when I met Ashley in the Fairbanks airport I knew that I really had nothing to fear. The first element to my day of observation took place in the 6th grade classroom. This class was composed of six people and was an equal split of boys and girls. This class was exploring/brainstorming Cause and Effect relationships. Mr. Moore, our mentor teacher, would go over to me and Ashley and explain elements of his lesson in between activities. He explained that ultimately these students were preparing to write cause and effect essays, but in order to prepare all students for this challenge today's class period was spent brainstorming ideas and creating webs in order to fully outline the ideas associated with the topics.
Here's a web that was created on the board by Mr. Moore that illustrates the topic of how playing sports benefits students that are enrolled in school.
After the 6th grade class Ashley and I went back to Mr. Moore's high school classroom. In the senior class the students are working on an "I AM" unit which the teacher has created in order for the students to better understand their origins. After class was a homeroom period for all of the high school students to catch up on their work.
Once homeroom or the study skills period had finished, it was lunch time. After lunch which was experienced in the cafeteria where all of the high schoolers sat together and shared the events of the day, I went to Mrs. Moore's class which was "le cours de français II. This class had only three students, however I was impressed to observe that they were studying topics that I explored while in french back during my days at West Valley high school.
One of the things that I enjoy to do the most when I observe or substitute in a classroom is to look around and read all of the posters on the wall. In this classroom was posted one of the best quotations that I have ever seen. It said "Qui ne risque rien, n'a rien." Qu'est-ce que ça veut dire (What is that trying to say)? To roughly translate this statement "one who does not risk anything, has nothing.
The remainder of the day was spent observing Mr. Moore's classes as he continued teaching high school. For his juniors he discussed symbolism and the role that it plays within Of Mice and Men. His final class of the day was sophomore English. This class was participating in a unit focused on the ancient Greek tale "Antigone."
An example of a student's work from the Antigone unit
Once homeroom or the study skills period had finished, it was lunch time. After lunch which was experienced in the cafeteria where all of the high schoolers sat together and shared the events of the day, I went to Mrs. Moore's class which was "le cours de français II. This class had only three students, however I was impressed to observe that they were studying topics that I explored while in french back during my days at West Valley high school.
One of the things that I enjoy to do the most when I observe or substitute in a classroom is to look around and read all of the posters on the wall. In this classroom was posted one of the best quotations that I have ever seen. It said "Qui ne risque rien, n'a rien." Qu'est-ce que ça veut dire (What is that trying to say)? To roughly translate this statement "one who does not risk anything, has nothing.
The remainder of the day was spent observing Mr. Moore's classes as he continued teaching high school. For his juniors he discussed symbolism and the role that it plays within Of Mice and Men. His final class of the day was sophomore English. This class was participating in a unit focused on the ancient Greek tale "Antigone."
An example of a student's work from the Antigone unit
3:30 marked the end of our day. As I made my way to the office all of the teachers that I passed by asked me how my day was. I honestly felt that it couldn't have gone any better. Everyone was so nice and accommodating. As our school day came to a close I found myself talking to a health teacher about the one fault I found with the school. The fact that they had an amazing auditorium and no drama or musical theatre programs going on was devastating to me. Musical theatre is a huge part of my life and one of the things that I'm going to look into tonight is some material that fits all age groups while illustrating dramatic techniques.
After school Ashley and I all went to Laurie's office located in the local courthouse and then we all proceeded to go to D & D to get Pizza. What a great ending to a productive day!
After school Ashley and I all went to Laurie's office located in the local courthouse and then we all proceeded to go to D & D to get Pizza. What a great ending to a productive day!