Reflection 4

     So I finished reading Learning and teaching for exponential growth and I couldn't help but noticed that one of the core themes in there was to love people and you will be a successful teacher.  And I think it's more then just a coincidence that one of the greatest commandments given to men was to "love thy neighbor as thy self."  God truly knows how to teach his children.  Jesus Christ taught only by and through love, and because of this he was able to teach thousands, and have thousands of followers.  So I believe that if us teachers would teach by and with love for our students, they will be successful.  I think this is because they are getting praise and attention from the teachers, which is a huge motivator. 
     Something that I also thought was interesting was the learn and then teach method.  It is so true that if you learn something then are able to teach it you now know it that much more.  And then if you have say your students teach it to other students in your class they will learn it so much more. This is something I think I want to try and implement into my own teaching style.  I really feel like if you know how to teach something then you have more of a grasp of what you have learned and then from there you can continue in further knowledge and continue to grow. 

Reflection 3

Today I went to a Jr. High School and was able to observe not only a teacher teach but also some counselors.  I was really impressed with how the class was managed.  The students know exactly what to do when they come in.  They pull out their pencils and note books and just started working.  Then they were able to flow right into the activity. and listen to teacher.
What really impressed me is how easy it was to figure out what was going to happen that day and what they were suppose to learn that day as well.  And it keeps going to what they need to know for that month to what is going to be happen each semester, with a diagram of how it was going to work out.  I just loved the organization, and the easiness to understand how the classroom was to be run by an outsiders perspective.  It really shows me how I would like my classroom to be set up. 

Reflection 2

So this I've been thinking a lot about teaching, and it seems a bit nerve wrecking.  But while I was reading from the "First day of school"  that every thing with being a good teacher is by having the right mind set.  If teachers are only looking to be people just there to do a job they aren't going to get very far in life.  Not to mention the fact that they are going to have a very bad attitude toward teaching.  They just want to clock in and clock out.   Its sad to see that teachers who do not care what they are teaching about also will end up having students that do not care about what they are learning about.  But on the other side teachers who care about their job, they don't think about their job as a job but as something to look forward to everyday.  They are the ones that are trying to learn while they are teaching.  They are the ones who will be the ones that will progress through their careers.  And their students will also enjoy what they are learning because the teacher is enjoying and also making their lesson plans more enjoyable for the students.  Moral of this story is its better to go in with a good attitude and excited about a new day at helping some one out.

Reflection 1

So to day was the first day that I taught the class.  It was about shutterfly a program online that allows you to make a photo book.  I feel like I was fairly confident in how I presented for my first time.  There is definitely a lot of room for improvement but regardless I felt good about how I presented the material.  Things I could definitely work on is engaging the class more.  It seemed like I was giving a speech more then actually teaching students.  So I'm going to work on getting the class more involved in what is being taught.  That seems to help me learn anyways. 
The next thing that has been helping me learn is a book written by Harry and Rosemary Wong called "The first days of school."  Its a great book that really does help teachers understand that the first day of school is actually the day that is the foundation to the rest of the school year.  One of the things that it talks about is to start off with making sure the students understand their boundaries.  If students don't understand the limits in the class then they could end up walking all over us as the teacher.  Another thing the talk about is how to present yourself.  If you present yourself in a professional way then you will be treated like a professional.  Students see their parents dressing up for their jobs every day, so  why shouldn't the teachers do the same?
Also something that struck me in this book is to be positive about your job! If your not happy about what you are teaching then the students aren't going to be happy learning it.  And this creates a bad environment in the classroom then there will be no learning taking place.  If teachers are positive, students are positive and so are their parents.
Lastly this book taught me to be a leader and an example to students and not a friend.  Doesn't mean don't be friendly but when you are on a friend basis they may ask favors of you that you may not be able to do because you are a teacher.  This may cause a bad feeling in the student/teacher relationship and that also damages the learning cycle.