Blog #1
Learning Experiences
I have learned so much in the first month of classes, and it's so exciting to know that this time next year I will be incorporating these tools in my student teaching classroom! We started the semester off talking about concepts and topics, then transferred into generalizations and guiding questions. This is something SO beneficial to students at any grade level. Having good generalizations that hook your students is key to having a solid unit. As we built through our unit in class, I see how each portion is a building block on the central focus of the lesson. I'm very anxious to get my placement back and implement this during my clinicals!
Another learning experience that was very rewarding to complete was the Wisdom From Experience project. I completed my interviews with second and fourth grade teachers from Cleveland County Schools. I asked each teacher questions about integrating social studies in the classroom, tools for keeping students, engaged, and ways to make the standards relevant to student learning. Each teacher provided me with many resources and tools to use when I am student teaching and then becoming a first-year teacher. Relating to the NCPTS, standard three focuses on teachers knowing the content they teach. Both of my teachers emphasized the importance of making social studies relevant to students so they will connect with it more. One recourse my fourth-grade teacher uses is called Scholastic Reading; students read an article related to news events happening in the world and answer questions and listen to podcasts on the topic. Mrs. Galloway said her students work very well with the program and assessment showed. The technology used in the classroom relates to standard 4, that teachers integrate and utilize technology for instruction.
Outside Learning
Continuing to talk about the Wisdom from Experience project, both teachers agreed that there is not an ample amount of time for social studies instruction to happen in the classroom. I did some research on some of the programs that my teachers use for integrating the curriculum into the Language Arts standards. Scholastic Learning and North Carolina Social Studies Weekly are both great programs that combine social studies into language arts articles that keep students interested and informed on world events. I also found this really cool website that lists out ideas for incorporating social studies into language arts classroom. Methods such as read aloud, calendar tracking, and discussing current events were just a few great tools. I will attach the link below. :)
https://thecornerstoneforteachers.com/social-studies-in-literacy-routines/
Future Classroom Connections
There are so many things I've learned in the past month that I will 100% use in my future classroom. Creating units utilizing concepts, generalizations, and guiding questions will grasp my student's attention. This ensures students are not just memorizing facts, but actually retaining and learning the information. Sadly, when I was in elementary school, I do not remember learning a lot about social studies. I want to change that when I have my future class and integrate social studies into any subject I can.
Madison,
ReplyDeleteThe teachers you interviewed for your Wisdom from Experience project seem to have given you some great information that you can use in your future classroom. It is wonderful that they both provided you with tools and resources that you can utilize during student teaching and your first year as a teacher. My CE and her grade level uses Scholastic Reading as well. What a great idea to take it a step further and have students listen to podcasts that are related to the articles being read. I think it is interesting that there is not enough time in the classroom to focus on other subjects other than ELA and math. Through my clinical experiences I have also learned that integration is key to ensure students are subjected to each subject area as much as possible. Thank you for sharing the link that we can will allow us to explore the tools you mentioned. You also made some great connections and I am happy that you are gaining so much information to use in your future classroom. Great post!
Madison,
ReplyDeleteThis first month of classes has certainly been full of new learning experiences! I like how you said that generalizations are the key to building a solid unit. It is SO important to hook students in to the lessons so they feel motivated, engaged, and interested in what we are teaching. I want my students to know that the concepts we learn about in class are relative to the real world and important to know about! You seemed to have gotten a lot out of your Wisdom from Experience Project. Thank you for sharing the resources you were given!
Madison,
ReplyDeleteYou are so correct, learning the different between concepts and generlazations is a great tool to have. As teachers we need to know the difference and how to apply these to the grade level and classroom we are in. You are right to say this will really hook our students and I believe it will help them understand the unit lessons better. Another would be your grasp on the Wisdom for experience project. The teachers you interviewed really seem to know their stuff and I really enjoyed the link you attached with a great tool to use for the calendar. Great job on your blog Madison.
Madison,
ReplyDeleteI feel like I have learned so much in the first few weeks of the semester. I was nervous about starting my first methods class but I agree that we have covered so much material already. Both of my wisdom from experience teachers use Scholastic reading also. Which I think is a great way for students to learn what is occurring in the world in any grade. Both of the educators I interviewed said the only time they spend on social studies is when it’s integrated into other subjects. The only time I remember learning social studies in elementary school was when we used to read articles in time magazines. Which was not very often and only covered certain topics. I plan to implement social studies wherever I can into my future classroom. Great post!
GO MADISON GO! Thank you for such a clearly written blog that is aligned to the checkbric! I am thrilled to see how you are connecting things we are learning in class to your future profession. Keep up the great work!
ReplyDelete