Adventures of a Student Teacher Prt 2

“Going so soon? I wouldn't hear of it. Why my little party's just beginning."
~ Wicked Witch of the West - Wizard of Oz 

 

With the oh so anticipated writing STAAR upon us, the fourth grade teachers decided it was time for a little WOOT Camp! That's right, a writing workshop to get us all "woot wooting" our way to writing success! What better theme to have than The Wizard of Oz?! We spent half a day on Wednesday and Thursday preparing our little munchkins for writing success. The fourth graders were split up into three teams, the Munchkins, Angry Apple Trees, and Winged Monkeys. The students participated in a grammar walk in Munchkin Land where Glenda the Good was ready to award every visitor with writing points, while the Wicked Witch of the West (yours truly) was fighting to keep them all to herself. The Scarecrow was teaching her visitors where to place those tricky commas, while the Tinman was putting together stories in logical order to help her find her heart! Dorothy and the Lion were doing all the same, but in Spanish for our friends who take the Spanish STAAR. It was an exciting two days in the Humphrey's of Oz! With the Emerald City of Writing within our sights, we are all skipping our way down the yellow brick road to STAAR success!

This little wicked witch is excited to see where the rest of her teaching journey may lead!

(Hopefully not under a house!) 

Adventures of a Student Teacher Prt 1

In January of 2014 I began my student teaching experience at Humphrey's Highland Elementary, home of the invaders, in Mrs. McWilliams' 4th grade self contained class. I was terrified, nervous, and excited all at the same time. I felt like the new kid, except on a higher level. I didn't know where to sit, I didn't know where the bathrooms were, and I had no idea where I was going to eat lunch. Simple things, but important things. Come to think of it, these are the same fears that children have on their first day of school. It's the fear of the unknown, and that's why it's important as teachers to have procedures ready to go for your students. Procedures allow students to have a constructive learning environment that encourages them to think for themselves while having guidelines. Procedures eliminate that fear of the unknown and allow students to strive for success.