Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
About Me
- Dr. Susan Ferguson
- I teach English Education, Foreign Language Education, and ESL Education, and I advise STEM Education Majors at the University of South Alabama in Mobile, Alabama--and I LOVE IT! I love to invite others to find the poet that is within them--I am certain a poet lies within each of us!
This past week was interesting. The students have been working on the steps required to complete a research paper, and my cooperating teacher and I have been aiding them during their trips to the library. My teacher took her journalism class to a competition on South's campus Wednesday and left me to teach the lesson. We began reading and discussing Poe's "The Fall of the House of Usher," and I was able to get the students to discuss and give me feedback on their interpretations of the work. Aside from the "phantom farter" in the 1st block, everything went great.
ReplyDeleteBrad,
ReplyDeleteI so cannot believe you just resurrected the term "phantom farter." It was well deployed though I must say.
It's kind of hard for kids' interest to not be piqued with Poe. I know you are probably getting some crazy interpretations from the students. What a great lesson to use reading strategies in!
This week was, once again, very incongruous for Ursula and me, but nevertheless, eventful. Monday, we got to see more lousy teaching. The regular class was bored to death with more monotonous assignments and the honors class got to continue reading "A Raisin in the Sun."
Then on Wednesday, the cooperating teacher did not show, and once again, it was about 45 minutes into first block before a sub showed up. Our CT left no notes for the sub so we let the regular class start reading "A Raising in the Sun" which they had been deprived of. How ya like them apples?
On Friday, our cooperating teacher returned just in time to promptly pawn us off onto another teacher. She said Ursula and I could spend the next 3 weeks (which is the remainder of the semester) with Mrs. Massey. That is probably the kindest thing that woman has done for us yet. Mrs. Massey is a breath of fresh air and the students love her. Maybe now we can actually start learning something!
Paige
I've been trying to incorporate a lot more of the "fun" activities to grade my students on lately. We did, for example, a newspaper write up today about things that have been going on at school, but they had to use present perfect tense. Many of them really got into it and were very creative.
ReplyDeletePaige, I hope your new teacher is a good one. I know what its like just having to work near some of the bad ones, I definitely wouldn't want to be stuck with a bad one for 6 weeks!
Good luck!
Hi Class,
ReplyDeleteBrad, I am glad things are going well for you in your placement. Paige, I am glad you and Ursula are happy about being with a different teacher. I have tried to get into other teacher's classrooms, but they are either showing a movie, taking a test, or there is a sub. My teacher did a little bit of teaching this week. She taught grammar, as she does everyday, and gave notes on Julius Caesar. The kids were copying word for word what she was saying. Ugh. Also, if you remember, I was saying in class last week that the kids were reading "Red Badge of Courage," and how they weren't "really" reading, just pretending? Well, they took a "reading" test this week and failed it miserably. There is a story behind this. I will tell it in class. TaTa!
Brad,
ReplyDeleteI'm glad to hear your students are responding to you and the lesson. Poe is always a great jump-starter for discussion. I read "Masque of the Red Death" with my students, and although they don't quite get it the first time through, we back up and go over the symbolism and history of the story. Once they realize the theme and develop their own interpretation of the meaning for the colored rooms, the kids are all into it.
Melanie,
I really hope your experience with a new teacher is helpful. It's important to have a good experience during your internship because that sets the tone for the rest of your teaching. I hope things go well with Mrs. Massey.
I am proud to say that I have finally taught a lesson that was not a disaster! I taught twice this week, actually. I taught the 11th grade Honors class some Harlem Renaissance. The English 101 class and I discussed sonnets, and I was pleasantly surprised at how well I was received. We had great converstaions and I was able to maintain an almost completely conscious audience. (Only one kid fell asleep, which, I have noticed, is pretty darn good for this class of Seniors!)
ReplyDeleteI do realize that I am not teaching normal kids, but to be honest, I needed a little confidence booster.
I am wondering why the teachers we are placed with aren't interviewed before placing students in their care. I have found it to be quite stressful sitting in a classroom where I am literally doing nothing. I did, however, appreciate the one on one time we spent with the students while our absent minded teacher was out. The students are very in tuned to the non-teaching this teacher seems to get away with. I have often wondered while sitting in her class if she really believes she's doing these kids any justice. One morning the kids were joking around and it seemed to really bother her. Not because it was disrupting teaching, but because we were sitting in the room witnessing the kids have some pleasure while being tormented sitting in her class.
ReplyDeleteAre principals ignorant to the fact they have hired incompetent teachers? Why does it seem okay for poor teachers to keep their jobs while students suffer the consequences?
I can only hope we all are seeing what we shouldn't be like. Take the lesson. Learn the kids. Forget about the teacher.
For everyone's sake that does not have a job yet. I hope you understand how hard it is to get a job in upper level languge arts. I have been teaching for almost 5 years and I am still in ninth grade. I still am yet to get an honors class in my school. Maybe you will be luckier than I am, I am a coach after all. I work as hard as everyone else, but its all who you know in the school to get an upper level class. The older teachers fight tooth and nail for those spots.
ReplyDeleteWell this week has been pretty normal overall. I am almost finished with what I am required to teach but I plan on reviewing and reviewing until the end of the year. My computer is dead which does not allow us to listen to the audio book. Melanie I am really glad your trying new things with your class. When I do something new with my class I get excited as well.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Michael. Your blog just reminded me how fortunate I am. I have such an opportunity teaching 10th and 11th graders and I should appreciate it more. I hope to spend the summer planning so I can be a better teacher next year.
ReplyDelete