I have decided to change the way that I am reflecting on my student teaching. I am trying to create a variety of ways to respond, but honestly, I feel like when I am writing about my day, the words just spill out on my blog without me being able to control them! Therefore, these next few posts are mainly my thoughts and feelings :) (Which I have many of)...
I have made it my special time during the day to check in with a student that has had a rough past few days. This one child acted up in the classroom, resulting in some time away from school to reflect on what was going on and to have some “time out”. I agree that the consequence was correct because we needed time to create a safety plan for this child. However, I felt the need to make sure the student understood that all of the staff is on the child’s side and that we only wanted what was best. With the new safety plan intact, I have started interacting with this child more throughout this week, talking and positively influencing his day to see if this would help the child’s adjustment in the classroom. I have seen this child open up to me talking about his day and what he enjoys and dislikes. I have started noticing what he reads when he has free time, and when I have one-on-one interactions, I make sure I ask him questions based upon the book choice, which is usually bugs or animals, and try to get him to express himself by showing off his skills of knowing SO MUCH about bugs and animals. I have truly enjoyed my time with this child, and look forward to many more interactions as my involvement grows in the classroom.
Today I realized the importance of practicing a lockdown drill. Don’t panic, we did not have a real-life incident, however, if we had not practiced, I honestly think that our students would not have known what to do! We made sure that the students understood the severity of a lockdown, and why one shall occur. I have mixed feelings about this situation. I completely agree that there are bad people in this world that could compromise a school, therefore the students should be prepared. However, I remember back in my elementary school days that when we practiced a lockdown, I freaked out because I really did not understand what was going on. Because of this, I tried to make sure that the students were relaxed, but listening, to what was going on. I also realized that when you have a classroom full of 31 children, there are not very many places to hide!! We did our best, and I was the pretend intruder trying to see in the classroom, and I was not able to see, nor hear, any of the students! So success was our result, and I believe that the students really understand the severity of the situation if one occurs and the importance of listening.
Lastly, this week I have realized the importance of starting a new day with a fresh new outlook. I’m not going to lie, this week has been a little rough with the class being chatter boxes in their own worlds! However, I see that the next day, they have forgotten about the day before, and come in with a smile on their faces ready to learn and make better decisions. It is always such a joy to me to hear them come in during the morning with a big “good morning Miss Denly”. Those sweet voices make me realize that I am doing what I was meant to do. Some students come up to me on a regular basis telling me something random from horseback riding the day before to what they had for breakfast. While I understand that they cannot come up to me every morning, and surely not everyone can walk up to my desk because there are 31 of them and we would have a line out the door, but I really enjoy their little comments on what they want me to know about what they did or how they are feeling. I have learned that the more you let a student talk to you without interruption, the more you learn about that student, not only academically, but emotionally. In my classroom in the future, I want to establish time during my day where I have students just come talk to me. I have heard about teachers who have done this in the past, and the classroom community really grew because the students felt comfortable. By arranging time during the day for a student to have one-on-one attention from a teacher, I believe that the student will benefit greatly. I know the time during the day is precious minutes, and there is not extra time, however, by making this a priority, I believe that I will be able to fit this in a schedule!! I look forward to my future classroom and any suggestions that anyone has!!
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