Final Noteblog!

Final Notebook Action Plan

What are at least three steps you will take in the fall to get to know your students as learners and as people?

1. I think first thing in the year, along with my MT it would be a good idea to do an icebreaker/get to know you activity such as the “Where I’m From” poem or stranded on a desert island activity that we did. 2. It could also be a fun activity, since I am in a middle school classroom and students tend to be more aware of how they learn best, to let the students take the multiple intelligences survey to find out what type of learner that they are.   3. Next, I would have a few basic questions that I would have students answer on a note card and then keep for reference later in the year. This could ask them about things like what hobbies they have, what books they like to read, etc.

What are at least three steps you will take in the fall to learn about your school and its surrounding community?

1. Before school starts, I am going to make time to take a drive or walk around the community to see what different things are in it. If I am unsure of something I will either look it up or ask my MT about it. 2. I will talk to my MT to find out what she does to stay involved with the school and the surrounding community and try to get involved with her. 3. I will see what my students are interested in and maybe take the initiative to help out with some of their activities. (after school sports, clubs, etc)

What are at least three steps you will take in the fall to learn about your literacy curriculum?

1. First thing that I will do is ask my MT to see the books that she uses to leach literacy from. 2. Then I will ask her if there is any special ways that she teaches literacy to her students with special needs. 3. If I still have questions, I will go to some other teachers in the school to see what books/materials they use to teach literacy in their classroom.

If you were writing a letter to introduce yourself to your students' parents and families (which you should all do), what are three things you would want them to know about you as a person and/or a teacher?

1. As a person, I would like the parents to know that I am a very determined person. 2. I think it is important for them to know that besides learning for myself this year, it is my goal to help make learning fun for my students. 3. I love animals and nature and I would like to pull on students interests to help them learn best for themselves.

Once you get to know your students as people and as learners, what are three concrete strategies you will use to differentiate instruction?

1. I will make sure to arrange the desks and students seat in a way that is most comfortable for them and will optimize their ability to focus and learn. 2. I will create groups that are different based on what learning level the student is and the groups will change throughout the year and based on what subject is being taught. 3. Some kids look at negative space vs. the positive space. Can possibly put color overlays on it to make the words “stay” either. Instead of using stark white paper use off white paper to make the contrast less.

Revisit your work in this class (blogs, logs, New Literacies, etc.) and the topics covered in this class (leading discussions, comprehension, writing, emergent literacy, and so on).  What is the one area that we have talked about this semester that you feel you need to grow in the most?  What are three specific steps you will take to foster that growth?

Topic: Discussion lessons 1.  Be explicit from the beginning of the lesson that it is student lead discussion and that I will only step in if they really get stuck in the conversations. 2. Provide students with more wait time before I jump in. Students take longer to process things then we do so they need more time to think about a question before starting a conversation about it. 3. After introducing the idea of a discussion lesson, possibly assigning group roles for the discussion. This will give students more of a feeling of purpose and will hopefully help keep the discussion student lead.

Reflect on your learning in the course.  What are three pieces of knowledge, insights or beliefs that you have gained from this course specifically that you would want to pass on to future TE 402 students?

1. It is important to get to know your students before diving right into material. Students’ prior knowledge and experiences will change from year to year and it is a good thing to know what your students already know so you can teach them new things. 2. DO NOT underestimate students! They are a lot smarter and thoughtful then we give them credit for. 3. Literacy centers, if done correctly, can be a great opportunity for the teacher to work individually with students as well as tailoring what students are reading/working on based on their reading level.