Are we Teachers yet?

       We are so close to being done with this class this semester! I am so grateful to have been put into this class, I have learned so much I still am processing it. I can honestly say that one more semester can go by and I will probably feel like I am prepared to be a teacher (well, how to teach effectively that is). When we were first starting off, we saw another peer's blog post and we were all so intimidated by what we were looking at. Here we are now, being able to write about our experiences this semester. We have all come such a long way and I am so proud to be apart of this amazing group.

       I can not stop thinking about diversity though. We went over how each students is so diverse from the next. Even sexual orientation is a factor into diversity. I have been informing myself on the different variations of sexual orientation so I can not only better understand it for myself, but also help others understand and sympathize with the students from where they are coming from.

       This is very true for me, I can be very shy. If I do not feel comfortable where I am I will not open up. But I have fortunately felt like I am in a safe enough environment to express myself and be outspoken. I want my students to feel the exact same way. I do not want them to feel belittled because of me or the environment I have presented. I also know I need to open up faster sooner, but there is a happy medium. I cannot open myself up right away until I have trust, from me and others. I am not sure where this happy medium is unfortunately, but I do know if I can't open up to my students. how can I expect them to open up to me?

Teaching Our First Lessons

      Today I had the wonderful experience of teaching my first lesson North Carolina has a requirement to teach 3rd graders. I did not realize how much work goes into a simple thirty minute lesson plan. I practiced and revised my lesson so many times I can not even count the number of times I changed everything around. I even paced the study rooms in our student center trying to figure out the best explanation. People walking by slowed down and stared at me while I was pacing, the room being filled with technology in every corner so I could look at them for pointers.
      When it came time for the lesson I must have talked very fast because when I was practicing I was perfectly on time. During the game when students acted out or fought during the game I was not completely sure how to handle it, so that is something I need to look into and figure out how I want to address these problems in the classroom.
      During all the madness I was able to pick up on who was struggling and where. Even though I did not call them out, pull them aside, etc. I was making a mental note who was struggling and where. I liked feeling in control during the class period. Things went pretty well for this being my first lesson ever. Even when I had time I needed to fill during the end of lesson time I quickly came up with something to further their knowledge of the topic.
       Another thing we are continuing on is diversity in the classroom. First of all, we must realize that being diverse is made up of so many differences in a student that there are no ordinary children. Each student has a factor in their life being the reason they act or learn the way they do.
        As a teacher, our biggest job is keep the children safe. They need to be able to come in the classroom and feel comfortable with being open and safe to express themselves in the class.