Finding the Right Approach

This past week we had a lab task to develop and teach an interest approach activity to our peers. The activity I prepared and taught was Bernoulli principle using windbags. The purpose was to gain the interest of the principle before teaching about it. This would allow me to introduce a not so energizing topic with a fun activity to relate it too. 

To give this lesson some context, prior knowledge of the carburetor would be helpful for understanding the topic. The lesson started out well. I introduced the topic of the day, and led into the bellwork. I should have given the students more time to answer the bellwork question because I don't believe I gave them ample time to complete it. The activity went as planned. To quickly fill the windbag, the person has to keep the end that they are blowing into open and 10 inches away from their mouth. The student is not to know these things as it is to demonstrate the Bernoulli's equation of continuity. This would be taught further into the lesson. As the activity finished, I asked the students questions as to how and why my windbag filled before the other students. This is where it went down hill. 

My assumption is that I did not ask students in a clear way. My questions confused them more than the concept I was trying to teach. I am struggling to phrase questions in a meaningful way that doesn't confuse my students. What is the best practice to ask meaningful clear questions? How do you engage those students that don't want to participate or that are constantly confused? 

I feel like I am not performing well at all when things get difficult. I am not sure how to overcome. What are some strategies to overcome setbacks in performance?

Questions, Questions, and more Questions!

Our lives are shaped by questions daily. Why is that the case? Well, look at the root of the word, quest. We are constantly on quest to shape our lives, or even further shape our knowledge and understanding. Teachers ask hundreds of questions daily to send their students on a quest to find that nugget of knowledge in their minds or to place information in a specific compartment in their minds. 


1. A question I have for my future students:
What engages you in most in a lesson?

2. A question for cooperating teacher.
Roughly, how many questions do you ask in a class period? Does this change when you are working in the ag mech shop?

3.  A question for Ms. Witte and Ms. Harris.
Roughly, how many questions do you ask in a class period? Does this engage all the students or only a select group?

"I Object" - Objectives are Important

Throughout my college life I have had classes where it was hard to determine what the purpose was for said class. Looking back I understand why it was that way. The professor(s) never clearly stated the objectives of what was being taught. Thus things did not flow nor connect content from one unit of instruction to the next. Through the readings that were assigned for this week I have learned several things that I can connect to my student teaching internship and #TeachAg journey.

3 Connections to Student Teaching

Writing objectives is more than just filling a requirement on a unit or lesson plan. Clear, concise objectives provide the teacher with a frame work to evaluate student performance. These objectives need to be announced to the students in order to start the cognitive process. We also need to take into consideration the cognitive level in the objective. If we want students to reach a high level we need to teach at a high level likewise with low level. If we don't follow that it will lead to students "giving up" before starting.

2 Connections to #TeachAg Journey

Having clear goals for students is more than just objectives. As learned in AEE 413, to have a successful program we have to first establish a scope and sequence of what we want our students to achieve in the four years they are enrolled in the program. We always need to start with the end in mind, making our goals broad then funneling them down to specific objectives. In AEE 100 we were taught how to write objectives with the three key elements for our micro teaching assignment. We weren't taught in depth about how objectives set the tone for the day, but that is why AEE 412 exists.

1 Triangular Connection

Without clear, concise objectives students do not know what is important. They are to guide students through the daily lesson or unit of instruction. (Zhou, 2017)

https://learninginnovation.duke.edu/blog/2017/03/learning-objectives/

Setting the Tone

Every teacher has plenty of first day of school stories. My practice version of the first day of school was our lab task this week. Planning a first day of school was difficult because I have never done it before. I did not know what was appropriate to do nor did I know what I wanted my classroom expectations and procedures to be. Even though there were drawbacks I think it went well.

Planning
Planning for this lesson was a challenge because I wasn't sure how I was to utilize the time wisely. I had planned a few get to know you activities so that I would become acquainted with the students and them likewise with me. I also wanted to clearly articulate my daily expectations and procedures to set the tone of business like behavior as well as not being afraid to participate in the classroom. 

Personal Reflection
When I was teaching my 10 minute portion of my lesson, I had realized several times that I was speaking to fast for my brain to keep up. This hindered my clarity with the things I was talking about. I have always had an issue speaking too fast. This is something that I must work on if I want to be successful in the classroom. What is a strategy to overcome this issue?

Classroom Management Reflection
I had realized that it is tough to manage a classroom of students that have different personalities and characters. I really need to put my best foot forth to learn how to effectively manage a classroom. Students are going to test my ability to effectively manage a classroom while trying to engage them in a lesson or activity. I am definitely new to this, and need to work on it before spring. What are some strategies to get engage students who refuse to participate?

Wrap-up
I am ready to take this challenge and become the best teacher I can be. My skills need to enhance to be ready for a classroom of my own, but the only way to develop them is to practice. 

How Does Uniqueness Matter?

Have you ever been told you matter? How did that make you feel? Often times it makes us smile and gives us joy. As educators we need to be telling our students that they matter. They provide a significance to the class, to the world. Their ideas are just as important and worthy as ours. 

Through this reading I have come up with several questions for certain individuals.

1) For your future students and/or future school administrators

My future students, What ideas do you have that I could implement into my teaching to make it easier for you to learn and understand?

2) For your cooperating teacher and/or university supervisor

What is one way you engage your students in the classroom and laboratory?

3) For one of your current virtual mentors (be specific!) and/or your cohort

Kristin, How do you make your students feel like they matter?

Thinking Big Picture

We all have those moments where we think about the big picture outcome of whatever situation we are facing or soon to be facing. Student teaching is no different. We have to plan for the end in mind. If we don't have a big picture outlook, how can we effectively teach our students? 

While I was reading the week three investment content there were three things that made me look at student teaching in a more clearer way. First and foremost we need to plan for success. If we want our students to get the most out of our class we cannot do surface level thinking, we need to dig deeper. Secondly, we need to plan with the end goal in mind. The big picture outcome. What is it? Why is it important? How do we get there? These questions need to be prompted in our minds to effectively plan. Lastly, writing plans helps us think and process the content to frame it effectively and clearly for the students. If we are not putting things in a sequential order it will be harder for the students to learn the concepts.

Looking back on my journey to this point in my college career there are connections between the information I read and the classes I have or currently taking. In AEE 413, we are being taught how to have a felt need to learn how an agricultural education program is effectively run. We need to have that felt need to know the content as we make our lesson and unit plans. That felt need is the jet turbine making it break the sound barrier. It gives us the motivation and power to see it through. Another connection I made is in AEE 100 we were taught basic lesson planing to perform a demonstration lesson project. We had all the essential elements but the plans were part of a unit. There are more connections that I could make, but it is important that I move on to why this is all relevant.

I found an additional article written by Todd Finley that was published on Edutopia. In it he talks about how to plan the best curriculum unit ever. One key thing I pulled out of the article is we cannot take a curriculum unit from another teacher or company and think that it will work for our students without revisions. We have plan for OUR students not for a general student body. 

Finley, T. (2014) Planning the Best Curriculum Unit Ever. Retrieved from
https://www.edutopia.org/blog/planning-best-curriculum-unit-ever-todd-finley