Role Play: Job Interview

Today during class, my colleagues and I participated in a "Role Play Job Interview." Four of my classmates were selected to fulfill the roles of administrators from different schools. They introduced themselves by informing us on their educational backgrounds, acquired degrees, and attendance at universities. Overall, I was impressed with the role play of the four administrators and how they spoke out to my class professionally. I liked that each administrator and interviewer sat and interviewed all four groups. I felt that their questions were very informative and I liked that they touched base upon Direct Instruction, Inquiry, and Cooperative Learning. I think that it was important to include the topics and lessons we have worked with all semester because these are the most important things we should remember and take with us as future teachers. The interview opened my mind in many ways especially with facing reality and being prepared in life. I learned that smiling, making eye contact, positively responding to the question being asked, being professionally dressed, and firmly hand shaking the interviewer are important keys when at an interview!

Teaching Children Economics

Today, it is important for student's to be aware of economics and its consequences. Economics is defined as the branch of knowledge that is concerned with the production, consumption, and transfer of wealth which impacts everyday lives and the lives of others. There are many business aspects to life such as making decisions regarding how much money to spend on certain things, how much money to save, and how much money to invest in things in the future. Students who are not knowledgeably informed about economics will face complex issues as adults. Their decisions may be based off of misunderstandings, incorrect assumptions, and fallacies. It has been said by many that the need for economic literacy is needed by students. Often school districts and teachers include economics within their curriculum but the focus is simple such as vocabulary words and distinguishing between Microeconomics and Macroeconomics. It has been brought to attention that many teachers are relying on sources outside the classroom for students to become more educated on economic content. If educators fail to acknowledge the relevance of economics within students personal lives this can result in misconception along the line. Teachers often say that economics is a subject best taught in high school however, not all students enroll in an economics course. With that being said, lack of knowledge in economical concepts will fail even in students everyday lives. 

Economic Decision-Making Model PPT

Teaching the class about Economic decision-making modeling helped myself and others become more knowledgeable about how to engage in Economics. I will definitely use this modeling process in my classroom one day. I feel that it is extremely beneficial for students to approach tasks using a step-by-step process. 

Giving Thanks, Feeling Blessed, Being Grateful

After spending the past week home for the holiday, I have been reminded how much there is to be thankful for. Coming home to the most loving and supporting family, to a cozy home full of health, love, and happiness always reminds me to be grateful for the life that I live. Thanksgiving is a time to give thanks, but it is important to know that we should always give thanks and be grateful throughout the year. Spreading thankfulness and gratefulness can lead one to live a positive life. After reading the article Choose To Be Grateful. It Will Make You Happier by Arthur C. Brooks, I have been reminded how significant it is to be thankful. For many it is hard to be give thanks and see how much there is in life to be grateful for. Some people live a life of selfishness and ungratefulness. Brooks spoke about how being thankful is easy when life is going well but this is not the only time we should give thanks. As I get older I become more grateful when I wake up each day; for the clothes I have to put on my back, the car I have to get me from one place to the other, the family I am a part of who supports me through good and bad, the friends I can turn to at any time of the day, and the school I attend to be a successful individual in the future. Giving thanks should become a morning routine.. wake up and think about how blessed you are to start your day on a positive note! Happy Thanksgiving to all!

A Chapter Coming to an End

With the Fall 2015 semester coming to an end, I am feeling stressed and anxious but I always try to remember that hard work pays off! In order to stay calm, cool, and collected while finishing the semester off on a successful note I am going to share some quotes to inspire ...

Current Events: What's Going on Around the World?

My colleague and I had to present a Current Events Project to our class. We had to choose an article from NewsELA. The project had to include a lesson plan, presentation, and an activity. We chose the task sequencing for our activity. Sequencing is taking events and putting them in a certain order. Everyday life includes sequencing although we may not realize it. We get up, wash our face, brush our teeth, get dressed, eat breakfast and go to class, etc. Sequencing an article is extremely effective inside a classroom. It allows students to read the article and then use sentence strips to sequence the order of events that has taken place. In our presentation we modeled sequencing before the students were assigned the task. Modeling is important because it allows the teacher to make sure the students all understand the instructions and content of the lesson being given. I will definitely use current events in my classroom in the future. I think it is important for students to be aware of world events and this also helps their reading, writing, and critical thinking. Current Events can be engaging by applying different tasks to the post-reading, for example how we used sequencing. Here is the link to our Current Events Project. Hope you enjoy!

Behind the The Tlingit Tribe

My classmates and I broke up in our fieldwork groups and were each assigned a Native American Tribe to research. We were assigned the task to discover the way of life these Native Americans live.

We explored the: 

• history 
• rituals
• geography
• culture
• clothing
• food
• habitat
• anxiety
• famous people

By assigning roles and responsibilities to each person in the group we had to research the Tlingit Tribe and create a presentation. We presented our tribe to the class that included many visuals, text information, and videos. When working in groups it is important to stay on track and fulfill your assigned responsibility in order to be prepare for presenting! The Native American Tribe project was very engaging and informative and I would like to use this in my classroom one day. Students can even be given the opportunity to dress up like their tribe to give the class a better aspect of their tribes history.

View our Tlingit Tribe Presentation!

Digging Up Artifacts!

Today in class we had to present our Artifact Bag Project. By doing so, our task was to create an Artifact Bag with three artifacts that tied together as hints to a specific explorer. My explorer was Henry Hudson because he played a huge role in my unit plan. I distributed my Artifact Bag and presented my Power Point to my colleagues. They were engaged by filling out an artifact 5 W's chart and by analyzing the three artifacts. In my bag, I included an ancient map of the Untied States, a compass, and a picture of a sailboat. Each of these artifacts relate to Henry Hudson because he used both the map and the compass to sail up the river looking for a trade route in the sailboat. The students would use their analyzation of the artifacts to conclude who the explorer was. In my lesson plan I explained how I would activate prior knowledge by going over what an artifact is, and how it can be applied to history. I explained how I would break students up into four groups giving them each their own Artifact Bags in which they would be given a task to investigate, complete the 5 W's chart, and finally submit a conclusion page based on their findings. The students would present their Artifact Bag for the rest of the class and give a brief synopsis of why the given artifacts led to the specific explorer, Henry Hudson.

Reflecting on the Artifact Bags: I enjoyed creating an Artifact Bag and the presentation on it as well. I think that this activity is extremely engaging for students and it is a great way for fifth graders to interact. Artifact Bags can also be used for students to introduce themselves at the beginning of the school year. The Artifact Bag was a great way to interact and further historical knowledge in the lesson!