What I learned

Over the semester i have learned how to be a better writer, I have said in the past that i am not a good writer but over the course of the semester i have came to see that if i work harder i can be better. I am taking away with me the idea of using different techniques that can further my writing skills like the writing process. I do think that i have become a better writer, but i know that i will not be the greatest writer in the world. I have learned to be proud of what i can do and work on what i can do and i want to be a good writing and reading teacher. I have learned that students learn well from cooperation with each other and the teacher and that it is important to have in the classroom. I had fun doing the blog and being in the class and i will take away a lot from the class in hopes that it makes me a good teacher.

Poetry

My favorite poem is The Road Not Taken by Robert Frost. I enjoy this poem very much and I could see using it in the classroom. Younger children might not understand it all but it would make a good activity to interpret what it means to each child and it could lead to start writing poetry, since it does not have a lot of rhyming words it would be a good poem to show children that not all poems have to rhyme. I just really like this poem because to me it shows something I want to do and that is travel the least traveled road. I think that it is important for me to make my own path in life, no matter how hard it gets.

freedom writers

What i thought was funny was the fact that i watched this movie over the weekend. The clip that we watched in class is one of my favorites of the movie. It is the first time that she is really getting through to the students and it is Revelation to her that she is going about her teaching all the wrong way. I think that as future teachers that sometimes we will have these moments. When we realize that we need to switch things up to get through to some of our students. Maybe not this harshly that she had to go to get the students to see something. I love that movie because I want to be able to make a difference in a student's life like that one day.

peer conferencing

Peer Conferencing was very helpful for me because they helped me find all of my mistakes and errors in my paper. It is not a common practice for me to let others read my work because I do not like people to judge my work other then my teacher. Pros to using it is students get to see their mistakes that they might not have found by themselves. It gives students a chance to practice their skills of editing and proof reading their papers and other classmates papers. It also gives students a chance to get ideas from others, and techniques to write with from other students. Cons to peer conferencing: One is some students might feel embarrassed by their writing and having another peer see it might bother them. A peer might suggest something in the paper and it be wrong and the other student changes it. I do think it is good to use in the classroom but not the only thing to use in the classroom.

Workshops....etc.

My experience with writers workshops and etc. have been limited to when I was in elementary school and i have not yet been able to teach one or participate in one since i have been college. I really do not like writer workshop because as a kid and now as an adult I am not a good writer and a lot of times things to do with writing, I do not understand it most of the time. I do think that they are definitely needed in the classroom and are a good thing but i think that something that teachers have to take in mind is the fact that some children are not going to be able to focus during these and some students do not work well with others. I do think that they give the "meat" to a student's learning. I have observed the 5th grade class that I am watching participating in writer workshops and readers workshop. The students do not really enjoy the process or from what I saw they seemed to not to pay attention and really did not care. I think that if you use these workshops and units, as a teacher you need to make them fun for the students.

Sahara's Special in my classroom

I would really like to use Sahara's Special in my classroom after reading it so far. The theme of the book is being labeled special. I think that characters play a big part in the story because the interactions of the characters make the story. I think that you could use this book to talk about differences and that it is okay to have differences from other classmates. I think that you could use this book to get children thinking about what they want to do in the future and to tell them nothing can hold you back from your dream, other than yourself. This could lead into a writing assignment to get the students to write about what they want to be when they grow up and what might they have to do to achieve it. It could be used during disability month, that many people do not know about which happens to be October. It could be a start that could lead into using journals in the classroom and encouraging the students to write what they want in there journals. I could have a big class discussion about what things that are different about people that they like. I could bring in other books that talk about writing or differences in learning. Just use the book to show that it is okay to learn differently.

half semester

I really like blogging when I remember to do it. I like to get my thoughts down so that other people can see and know them. I hope to continue wth the blogging after I get done with the class. I do think that there should be more blogs, if it is used in the classroom, but it is a good idea.

Teacher roles during language arts

I think that as a teacher that there are many roles that have you have to be. Some of the roles that it says that you have to be are organizer, instructor, and coordinator. As a organizer, you have to better prepared and organize the lesson and the environment so that it creates a language-rich environment. I think that this important because if you do not put thought into a lesson or the environment, the students are not going to get anything out of it. As an instructor it is important for you to explain language arts and instruct on how to use language arts. A coordinator is someone who works with people around them to create an environment that supports the learning of language arts for the students. As a teacher I think it is important to take on many roles.

let there be an effect on you, and there by having affect on them.

What I think that this means is that when reading someones work in your writing community let it change something in you, so that it has an effect on you and to show that you care. If someone know that you care, they are more likely to listen to what you say and let you affect them in what they do. A student will listen to you, if you listen to them and hear what they say. Someones writing can say a lot about them as a person and what is going on in their life. Teaching will be a lot easier on you, if the student's life have an effect on you. If you do not care about them, they will know and they will not want to hear what you have to say, so you will not get anywhere as a teacher. As a teacher you have to see what is going on with your students and if not you do not have a classroom, you have a group of students.

Writing....is it worth reading

What makes writing worth reading? Thought is important when you are writing and I think that when someone puts thought into their writing it can help make it worth reading. Grammar, it is important but there are many people who do not have good grammar. I do not think that it makes a paper unworthy of reading, but it makes a big difference when someone is reading it. A interest in what you are writing. When you read something, you can tell if they enjoyed writing it or they do not care what they are writing about. I do not want to read something that the person did not like and that tone comes through the paper. The knowledge of being able to write makes it worth reading. It is important not to take that for granted, when you are able to write something. I think that all writing is worth reading, but somethings can make it hard to want to read it and can dissuade you from reading it.

How I learned language.

I learned language through phonics. I remember as a young student going into a separate room and having to look cards that had sounds on them. I think as an adult I now spell things wrong because look at the word as each sound so that I spell things like they sound. As I teacher I do think that it is important to teach phonics because it helps children learn to spell. I know that in the stage where students use inventive spelling, it is important for them to know phonics to be able to do that. I also think that it is important to use other techniques in teaching to teach students language because it does lead to the reading and not every word is said like it is spelled. It is important to use whole language and balanced literacy.

Sahara's Special

Sahara's Special is a really good book so far of what I have heard. It brings to light a situation that is very real today in the classroom. A girl who has a learning disability, but the mother does not want her to get any help and does not believe that she has a disability. Sahara feels put out because she has to go to a special class and she feels like she is on the outside of everything. I believe that lots of parents do not want their children to get help because the child will be labeled. Parents see it as a bad thing to get help. In the book Sahara just wants to have friends and be part of a group. I look forward to seeing how Sahara handles the new tasks and problems that come at her. I do like the fact that she wants to be a writer, even if she has lots of trouble with writing and doing her homework. I know there is a lot more to come and I look forward to hearing more of the story.

Language Arts 1

I did not know that there were 6 language arts and learning that there, gives me a better understanding of language Arts. I do think that viewing and visually representing should be in the list of the 6 language arts and that is because some students learn through visually seeing things. It is important to consider these different learning styles. At the same time when a teacher is using media or showing visual things it is important to view the media yourself and decide if it is appropriate for your class. Does it send the right message? I do not think that by using the media that we are condoning the influences that they have on children. It is good in moderation.
One of the six language arts that really stands out in my life is writing. It stands at because I have had so much trouble with it for as long as I can remember. I have always had trouble writing papers. I hated spelling as kid and today I am not good at it and I contributed that to the fact that I hated writing and spelling as a kid. So I think it is important to push and encourage writing in the classroom, but do not make it a punishment for students. I encourage teachers to make writing fun sometimes.

My first Post

I am looking forward to keeping a blog. I want this class education 300 to change my mind about liking language arts. It has always been my worst subject and I want to become better so when I teach ,I will feel more confident in what I am teaching. I hope that I enjoy the class and that I learn a lot about teaching.