Countdowns and Critters

It seems like this week has been full of countdowns. Countdown to edTPA scores, countdown to spring break, and countdown to the end of the full ten weeks. Overall, this week has been pretty good! I would have to rate this week a 5 because it is so exciting to say that I passed edTPA and am FINALLY done with it! It has definitely been my biggest accomplishment of the semester.

In terms of meeting standards this week, I can definitely say that I met standard 2 in that I established a safe environment for my students. On Tuesday, while on the playground, a stray dog managed to get inside the fence. As I'm sure you can imagine, third graders went wild over the fact that there was a puppy on the playground. It was definitely hectic trying to make sure that no students actually pet the dog while another teacher was calling the office. THEN, on Thursday we had another run in with critters on the playground when some of my students found three baby rabbits underneath the slide. This then set students off again trying to catch and pet the rabbits. I must say that this excitement really made me work to get students focused back on math once they came inside for the end of the day. It definitely helped me understand that as teachers we work in a very complex environment and we will never know what might happen throughout the day! (Standard 5). It also helped me demonstrate leadership (standard 1) because for several minutes I was alone on the playground with two third grade classes that I was in charge of.

This week in math, I have really been trying to make my lessons more hands-on for the students. We are learning about segmented area right now which is really confusing for a lot of students so I have tried my best to make every lesson have a hands-on aspect to help facilitate learning for my students. I have to say that it has really helped get my students excited about learning all while I am following the standard course of study. It is my goal next week to make sure that my lessons are just as fun and hands on for my students. Based on the data I have seen both this week and in the past, my students really do retain more information when they have hands on activities.

Next week, I hope to spend less time stressing about my plans and more time enjoying the days with my students. I realize that my ten weeks are quickly coming to an end and I really want to enjoy every moment that I have left with my students. Right now, my largest goal is to get my portfolio completed. This week I have really worked on making sure I have a lot of videos from every subject to showcase during my presentation. Next week, I want to continue recording just as much. Right now, my CE and I do not need any support. Congratulations to everyone on getting completely finished with edTPA. I hope everyone is proud of what we have accomplished this semester. Be sure to make the best of these next few weeks!