Week 7

This week for me has been both challenging and rewarding. At Washington this week, I worked one on one with a young first grader who was really struggling in both math and reading. It was really frustrating for me to try to help her and just have her unable to fully understand what I was teaching her. It was definitely a learning experience for me because I know that in my future classroom, I will have these children who just don't seem to get it no matter what I do. I know that it is important for me to always have patience, and be willing and ready to work with these students no matter what because I believe that every student has the potential to do great things. In class this week,
Digital Media Day was today and I gained so many incredible technology resources that I can't wait to try out in my own classroom one day and in my clinical placement! I know one thing that really stood out to me was the virtual reality tools that we talked about after our meeting. I have been familiar with virtual reality and Google Cardboard for a while now, but up until today I really didn't know how to utilize it. I have seen so many neat things that a teacher can do with VR. I know that in my classroom one day, I will most likely not have the funds to take many field trips each year, so I can use virtual field trips as a way to get students interested and involved in what we are are learning. Using VR also connects to standard 4 of the NCTCS that teachers integrate and use technology in the classroom. It is also a way for teachers to use a variety of instructional methods. Instead of just having students research on the computer different places, students can actually see different places like they are actually there.

Outside of class, I have been looking at ways to integrate art into other content areas. I found an article that was published in Kentucky on integrating art into social studies.It was really interesting to read because it gives guidance on how to integrate and also gives a few examples of different activities that teachers can do. I know that in my future classroom, I want to integrate art, music, and theater because I know that each of my students will be different and learn in different ways. Just like standard 2 of the NCTCS says, teachers must establish a respectful environment for a diverse population of students and as a teacher, I will need to embrace diversity in learning in my classroom, as well as adapting my teaching style to better benefit my learners. Here is the link to the article that I found.
http://www.kentuckyteacher.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/Integrating-Social-Studies-Arts.pdf