Homework

The image to the left is a picture that I took in the corner near the door to our classroom. It is basically our homework station. The olive green contraption on the far left holds the papers that need to be returned to students. The light green, purple, pink, and blue boxes are today's homework assignments. (Green is for American Literature, purple is for 7th grade Language Arts, pink is for 8th grade Language Arts, and blue use to house the homework for the 9th grade Survey of Literature students' homework before they were rescheduled to another teacher.)

Above the chalk board is a sign reminding students to find their homework assignments on twitter and the agenda for each class is posted daily, on the chalkboard, below the twitter sign.

Integrating Technology

Monday the middle school students took a test over their first unit, Tuck Everlasting. Tuesday and Wednesday they were supposed to watch the movie version of Tuck and Thursday I was to introduce the second lesson but because of last minute scheduling changes from the administration we had to push back the unit introduction to Friday which worked out okay.

Before we began reading, I wanted the students to gather some background information on the setting for our novel, Esperanza Rising,a historical fiction novel set during the 1930's in Mexico and California. I also wanted to integrate a new way for the students to access background information other than direct instruction and their textbook. I also wanted to start integrate more technology into the units, so I made a mini Web Quest that included a pre-assessment, introduction to the novel, and historical background information on the Great Depression and Mexican Revolution. You can find the pre-assessment and Web Quest at: (You will not be able to access the pre-assessment at this time because I've closed it so that users outside of my classroom students will not skew the results.)

https://sites.google.com/site/esperanzarisingunit2/

While they were gathering background knowledge over the setting, I asked them to fill out a study guide that I gave them before we entered the computer lab. The study guide was designed to help them pick out main points in the readings as well as highlight certain events in history that play an important role in our novel. Familiarizing students with this information should help give context to our reading and help students understand some of the motives of some of the characters.

On the other side of the study guide I also created a tutorial to help students find their way to homework site on Twitter that my teacher created. I love this idea of having a web-based homework site so that if students are gone for any reason or forgot to write down their homework, they should be able to find their assignments if they have Internet access. This is one of the brilliant ideas I will steal from my coop and use in my future classrooms. (You can find the study guide and tutorial as an attachment on the "Resources" page.)

My goal for each class is to expose students to at least one new way of working with technology during each unit. I think it is important to continuously expose and familiarize students with new forms of technology no matter what level of comfort they may have using technology. For many of my students, both testing and gathering information from the computer were new to them. Some complained about it but most caught on. If they were confused or didn't know how to navigate through the Web Quest it was because they weren't reading the information on the site. Simply reading the computer screen and following directions was a new skill they were developing.

Thursday Night Madness

I'm currently watching the Husker Kansas State game. Taylor Martinez has forced our Kansas roommates into hiding in backrooms of the apartment. They are pretending to be busy grading papers or writing lessons. Meanwhile, I'm putting the finishing touches on my study guide for next week's reading assignments and listening to the Secret Service helicopters roam and rumble above our neighborhood. The Obamas are back home in Hyde Park. Their red brick mansion is just blocks away from our apartment.

I'm the substitute!

Thursday was my first day to be in charge of every class. My coop had to attend a professional development day on curriculum mapping so I subbed for all of the classes. Naturally, I was nervous to work with the sixth period sophomores but after I had spent time delivering the same instructions to first period, working with the seventh, eighth and senior AVID classes, sixth period had lost some of their intimidation.

I actually had more problems with the first period sophomore class. They were supposed to fill out a reflective survey on their writing process quietly and individually but many raced through the worksheet and talked to their neighbor anyway. I struggled to keep them quiet. (I feel like this is my biggest struggle in general!) Keeping them from talking while I'm trying to give instructions or while they should be working individually. Because many of them finished before the bell, I told them to work on other homework or read. No one did this. Instead they kept talking. (I find this really frustrating!)

Because first period talked so much, I decided to rearrange their desks into rows instead of pods, where their desks face each other. I hoped that would minimize talking. It worked. Also, I more or less bribed sixth period. Because most students were done with the reflection before the bell during first period and talked most of the period despite my repeated directions, I promised sixth period I would allow them to talk at a reasonable level for the last five minutes of class if they were quiet and worked the rest of the period. I am not an advocate for bribing students, nor am I a proponent of letting them have talk time during class but I felt somewhat trapped. I thought they would talk anyway and hoped this would keep it to a minimum. I wished I could think of something else to get them to work. I also wanted to use a type of reward, time to talk, rather than a punishment, threatening grades or phone calls home, especially because this wasn't my class yet. I don't know these students as well as my middle school students because I haven't worked with them as much. Looking back, I wish I would have found another way to get them to work quietly.

White Sox vs Red Sox

Wednesday turned out to be a great night. A few of my roommates and I, as well as some other student teachers in the Chicago Center program, went to the old Comiskey Park to Watch the White Sox play Boston.

The Plan and Explore tests

Tuesday was testing day so I didn’t teach my eighth grade class. One would think there would be little for me to report on this day because it is pretty boring watching students take tests all day. In reality however, this was one of the most stressful and upsetting days that I’ve had since student teaching. Our sophomore homeroom class was testing in our classroom for three hours and although they were told many times, by multiple teachers about the importance of these tests, as well as the rules for taking the tests, there were multiple students who didn’t take it seriously and decided to talk to their neighbors, read a book instead of take the test, and create unnecessary noise just to spite either the test or my coop, maybe even the whole system of education…I don’t know. They were simply rude and defiant just to be defiant. I couldn’t believe it! I realize that these test are not the actual ACT tests, but it has been strongly stressed to these students that they are important and that they have to work independently and quietly. I don’t understand why they acted in this way but it was extremely frustrating and disappointing.

Wednesday: September 29
One Wednesday morning, both my coop and I talked to the sophomores about what happened during testing the day before. I brought up the point that even if these tests do not directly effect their admittance into college or scholarships, that they are a practice for the ACT and that by practicing certain behaviors during these tests they are more likely to demonstrate those same behaviors while they are taking the ACT. I am 100% positive that about four of the students would have had their tests taken away from them during the test period and the rest of the group might have had their tests taken away at the end of the time limit when tests were still out and they were instructed not to talk but did anyway. It was extremely disappointing to see them handle the situation so lightly, without care when the stakes are so high for them. The school has projected that this particular class will struggle even more that past tenth graders. There are 3-4 students projected to get a 20 on the ACT, out of the whole class.

Monday

This week started out a little slow and rocky. Monday I decided to see how my eighth graders and I would adapt to change. We've done very well so far in class discussion so I wanted to see how we would handle group work. My idea was to cover the four chapters they read for Monday by assigning each group of four students a chapter. As a group they were to meet together. Briefly discuss the events of the chapter, pick an important scene in the chapter, illustrate that scene and report back to the group about the illustration depicted and why they chose that scene. My thought was that these illustrations could be hung up in the room and used to remind students of the plot line. The plan worked well in my head but somewhere between my instruction and their presentation, the plan fell apart.

The group work took longer than I wanted it to, illustrations weren't complete and we ran out of time to report back to the entire class. I was disappointed that the assignment didn't work out the way I had pictured it in my head but learned that I am still needing to work on refining how I communicate my transitions and instructions.

Book Club

I'm excited to report that I am now a member of Mayor Daley's citywide book club at school. The book club is offered to all of the secondary Chicago Public Schools. Our school partners with the charter school that sits next to ours on the DuSable campus. We will begin meeting in the library once a month on Friday afternoons. The students voted to select the seven books we will read throughout the year and our first book is Sharon Draper's Just Another Hero.

Last Wednesday I was able to help our librarian set up a webinar in the library featuring Sharon Draper in a Q and A session with the students of the citywide book club. The members met at ten o'clock, at our various school locations, and typed in questions (instant messenger style) as Sharon answered student questions through live video streaming. I thought it was a powerful way to connect students and get them excited to read her book. Incorporating different types of technology into lessons and after school activities is really exciting and fun for me. I am hoping to be able to incorporate different strategies to access information on the web and cultivate different technological skills in each unit that I teach. It's not only fun but essential for today's students. I could tell that the students enjoyed seeing their question posted on the web wall and watching her respond specifically to the questions they had submitted.

Week 3

So far, each week that I’ve spent with students at school has felt slightly different than the week before or following. Much of the first week was spent adjusting to life in the classroom with students. Whether working at an after school program, observing for a few hours in someone else’s classroom, or now, student teaching all day, I’ve noticed that I need a few days, initially, to adjust from my adult, relatively quiet life, to life with a roomful of noisy, rambunctious, bright, young, spirited students.

I spent most of the second week adjusting my lesson plans and feeling out my classroom management skills with the freshman class. By the end of that week I was feeling good about where I was headed with the freshman, in terms of pace and rigor. I knew that I had some pretty big steps to take until I felt like both the students and I were moving in the right direction and pace, but I felt like I could see the goal and was taking the right steps to get there. In terms of classroom management, the second week was filled with some challenges (bad transitioning on my part and disruptive students), a few victories (differentiating learning for different learning paces and styles), and an overall feeling that this classroom, these students, and this environment were right where I needed and wanted to be. Prior to my placement, I knew that I would meet unexpected and new challenges but I was and am continually thankful for this time to develop my management skills with other educators supporting me and giving me feed back. I know that these challenges will make me a better teacher and I am eager to learn how I effectively handle them.

This third week started out to be somewhat disappointing because of the fact that I had spent much of week two getting to know the freshman, restructuring lessons to fit their needs, and reevaluating my classroom management style specifically for the freshman only to learn over the weekend that I would no longer be teaching the them because of scheduling changes. I had taken a lot of ownership, effort, and planning in the freshman class and knowing that I would not to be able to see them all the way to the end of the semester felt anticlimactic.

In addition, I felt somewhat strange taking over the eighth grade class, which replaced my freshman class because I had to jump in and start teaching in the middle of the unit. I more or less piggybacked off of my coop’s lessons for the start of the week. Toward the end of the week, my lesson was structured slightly different from my coop (who is teaching the seventh grade the same unit). By next week I will be introducing a new unit with both the seventh and eighth graders and expect to feel more ownership in the lesson.

Despite a few set backs and some disappointment at the start of the week due to losing the freshman class, I don’t have much to report on teaching the eighth grader, in terms of classroom management. They are a dream! There are of course times I have to redirect and remind them to listen to their peers or me, but overall they are wonderful students to work with. From observation, I’m expecting that the seventh graders will also be a great class to work with and I’m excited to have two classes to compare and contrast what works and what doesn’t.

Husker Weekends

Learning To Be Flexible

This morning my CT called to warn me that our class schedule had been changed and that we would no longer be teaching the ninth grade Survey of Literature class. I knew that there was a possibility that schedules might change because class sizes are not ideal and case loads seem to be rather uneven among staff in the same department. I was excited to hear that our second period combined seventh and eighth grade class would now be split into a second period seventh grade class and fifth period eighth grade class. Because new students were continuing to register and show up unexpectedly throughout the first week, the class had grown from somewhere around 30 to 38 students in one week. It is kind of a relief to see the class split because there were so many bodies in that class that we were barely able to move about the room.

I think this definitely in the best interest for the students and in the long run it will be better for everyone however, in order to split the two classes we had to give our fifth period ninth grade class to someone else. This is particularly devastating to me because this was the class I had just taken over. They were my first students. I knew all of their names by Thursday and although we got off to a bit of a bumpy start, I was really enjoying learning how to plan in accordance to their learning styles. I felt like I was really starting to grasp where they were at and how much they could handle. I was learning how to manage disruptive students by being proactive and creating lessons that engaged all learning styles and paces in the room. There were some challenging students in that class and instead of being scared and dreading it everyday, like I was afraid I might be, I was really starting to embrace the challenge and learn from and for my students. I feel a little cheated because I started with this group but I'm not going to finish with them. I feel like there are things left undone. That being said however, in the long run I do believe this is best for students. I will adjust and focus on my junior high and sophomores now and possibly in the long run, it will be better for me too since I will have more time to devote to each class and student. If anything, I'm learning to be flexible and make the best of the situation.

Oppreation: New Plan is working!

Today was a good day! I restructured the class format from class discussion yesterday, which more or less bombed, to group work in pairs today. I gave each group a set of eight scenes from today’s reading and a piece of construction paper. Each scene was on a small strip of paper. Their task was to arrange the different scenes in the correct order in which they occurred in the reading. I modeled how I would go about deciding what order the scenes might go in based on some text clues and also encouraged them to use their book.

After about 20 minutes we regrouped as a class to organize the scenes. I had printed off each scene in big bold letters on a separate sheet of paper and used magnets to hold them up on the blackboard. In that way, students could see the scene but could also move the scenes around if they felt the scenes were out of order. Then we answered the questions I had tagged on each scene. I asked the students to glue down the scenes in the correct order on the construction paper and cite the page number next to the scene. With a few minuets left I handed out the study guide for tomorrow's reading and asked them to get started on it.

I felt really good about this lesson. Everyone was working and I felt like we were actually getting somewhere. We covered a lot more material today then we were able to on Tuesday or Wednesday. Those first two days felt like we were stuck in the mud. I think the groups of two allowed students to collaborate with another student to generate more ideas but also allow student to move and reason at their own pace. Some groups finished faster than others so I had them answer the questions tagged to each scene. Others took longer to complete the task so simply figuring out the plot line took most of the 20 minutes.

Because they were in pairs, I was able to talk with each student and help with them with individual questions in stead of focus all of my attention on a few disruptive students. I was also able to talk to the girls who were really disruptive (and almost punched each other) yesterday and I think we reached a little understanding. They were honest with me and told me they were not reading the material, which I was pretty much aware of even without the confessions. It was kind of cute the way one student asked me, before she confessed to not reading, "Mrs. L, if I tell you something, will you promise not to be mad at me?" :) I agreed and then she confessed her sin of not reading.

We are now done with the first part of the book and I feel like we're in a good place. I'm going to prepare a packet for them which will basically include the same elements that I wanted them to produce in their notes during class discussion, but I've decided they need a little more help getting to the finished product. Hopefully this packet will help them get there.

I think I've been so use to functioning at the college level and presenting lessons to other college students as practice that I struggled a bit in the beginning to realize what I can reasonably ask my ninth graders to do. It's not that they can't get to the place that I want them to get by the end of the unit, it's that they need more help, more direction and organization to get to that point.

New Plan!

I felt like today's lesson was rougher than yesterday's. Yikes! I want to be getting better each day, not worse. I felt like we took a step backward. Transitioning was livable but not great. I never felt like I had complete control over the class. I had more disruptions today and at one point I thought two girls might end up in a fist fight over a notebook. (They're very territorial.)

One student in particular is causing most of the interruptions. I think the others would follow along if this student wasn't so disruptive. She seems to be at the core of the disruption and then others follow. I think this student has a tendency to talk out and be somewhat defiant anyway, but I also learned through word of mouth that she and another girl are "testing me" and that "I need to know how it is."

Hmmm...interesting.

Knowing that they are "testing me", as well as teenage defiance in general, doesn't scare me like I thought it would. Surprisingly I find myself somewhat grateful for it. I guess if I'm going to learn to be a teacher and handle disruptive students then now's the time to do it. I've got a great Coop who is observing the situation and giving me encouragement, support, and tips on how to change things. I'm also living with other student teachers who are going through similar situations so I'm understanding that this is almost like initiation into the world of teaching. I may go through some hazing on the way.

Knowing this, I realize that I'm not special. Students test teachers but I do realize there are things I think I can do to gain control.

I'm realizing that the big group discussion isn't working well for them. Even though the majority can probably handle it, the few disruptive students are holding others back from learning. I felt really bad for the students wanting to learn. I could tell that they were annoyed with all of the disruptions.

Tomorrow they'll be working in pairs, placing a set of 10 scenes found in today's reading in the correct order. I'm hoping this will help those who've read or at least what to participate in class, understand how the plot is fitting together and will also keep others contained if not working.

Wish me luck!!

Tuesday: My First Lesson

On Tuesday I took over the freshman Survey of Literature class. We are currently reading The Alchemist. This is a wonderful book and I feel like if I can teach it well, then it can open up so many positive lessons for my students. Lessons that go beyond the reading and writing skill they should be learning in class. The book has a rich combination of moral lessons, religious symbolism, and connections to real historical figures and events. I'd love to be able to share these little nuggets of knowledge with my students and had originally planned to give more background and detail during my lessons. However, I seem to be hitting some roadblocks.

For starters, yesterday I made some tactical errors by not clearly thinking through transitioning from one activity to the next. I had them take a short quiz, which they had to move their desks so they weren't facing each other. Then I wanted them to come toward the front of the room and circle up. It ended up feeling like too much desk moving and some students couldn't see the board later when I needed to use it.

Lesson #1: Think through transitions. They're just as important as the activity!

Another error that I made, that I did not anticipate, was having too many sources to look off of. I had a list of questions that I wanted to ask the students but I also had my book marked up with important quotes and a few questions in the margin. The two sources, my book and questions, were designed to follow each other and be used together. This would not have been a problem if I were able to remain stationary, but because I had to move about the room taking advantage of proximity to get some students back on task, I found myself losing my place and not following my notes or making the connections to the text that I wanted. I think I'm going to just use my book from now on. Any questions I have for them can go on a hand out or be written on the board ahead of time.

Lesson #2: Be prepared to be mobile and alert while guiding discussion.

One roadblock that had anticipated running into was talking. This was something I was probably the most conscious and nervous about before taking over the class. I knew from past experience while working with kids that I do in fact have a teacher voice and presence, but since I hadn't practiced that voice and presence for a while, I wasn't sure how fast I would be able to find it. Luckily, I found it rather quickly and only had a few interruptions and obstacles. I had one student refusing to cooperate for a few minutes and a few interruptions but overall I felt like I had control of the class. I could tell they wanted to learn. It was empowering and fun to see that interruptions dissolve and students tuning into the lesson. (I love watching them learn. I could see the wheels turning and connections being made. That feeling is fabulous!)

Lesson #3: Remember to bring my teacher voice and confidence everyday and be confident in it.

The last roadblock, that I've identified, is simply figuring out where they are academically. I think I may have started out asking some questions that were a little too abstract. Also, I really wanted to connect some of the elements from the text to historical events, people, and cultural/religious ideas, but I'm finding that most of our time is being consumed with reading comprehension and basic plot lines.

Lesson#4: Start with the basics and then add the details?

I don’t know. I’m still working this out and could use some help.

I feel like the combination of these things are slowing us down. I feel like that is okay as long as I’m recognizing it and moving forward and because I felt like transitioning and keeping my place in the notes were my primary problems on Tuesday I tried to focus on these two elements for today's lesson.

This weekend

The rest of my weekend was spent preparing lesson plans for the ninth grade class that I'll be taking over this week, watching the Husker game at the Kirkwood Bar and Grill in Lake View, and waiting for the bus.

On Sunday morning a few friends and I waited for the bus for 45 minutes to take us to church. After patience and trust in the #6 bus wore out, we decided to find another path to God. We decided to walk to the University of Chicago's campus and attended University Church. The building was beautiful inside and I later found out that the congregation had a wonderful choir, but I had to endure 45 minutes of announcements and joys and concerns before hearing the choir or message. This church really values sharing their personal stories with one another.

Fatbook on Friday

Even though I had limited responsibilities in the classroom last week and spent most of the time sitting there in awe at my teacher's ability to gain control of a very loud and talkative class, I was shelled by the end of the week. When I came home on Friday I downed some leftover tacos and entered into a mini comma for a few hours. I awoke just in time to get ready for a concert at Reggie's Rock Club. One of the student teachers in our program was playing with his band there. I wasn't sure what kind of music to expect and I'm not entirely sure what genre they fit under but I'm definitively a fan. They have a fun brassy sound that reminds me a little bit of Maroon 5 at times or, one of my favorite older bands, Chicago. They name of the group is Fatbook. http://fatbookmusic.com/

Warning: I need to brag!

I just need to brag a little bit about my Cooperating Teacher (CT)! I haven't written a lot about her yet but just know that I am in great hands. I feel really lucky because I know that not all student teachers feel this way about their CT. I really don't think I could have asked for a better placement. Not only is she a great teacher for her middle and high school students, but for me as well. She models good teaching practices, she is positive, and always seems to be willing to go that extra mile for her students as well as me. I really appreciate her approach to management and instruction, as well as her encouragement. She seems to be able to give me the right balance of support and leeway as I make decisions and plan. I can't say enough good things about her.

Plus, she bought me a plant for my desk, a planner and a grading book. :)

I can do this!

It's day 3, I'm reading the rest of the letters that students have written us. These letters are cracking me up, giving me new perspective and respect for my students, and reaffirming to me that they want to learn and be successful. As I sit in the living room correcting some of their grammatical errors and commenting back on their ideas I think, "This is fun. I like checking their homework. I could definitely do this for the rest of my life." Ideas also begin to formulate in my head about exercises and Bellwork we can do that incorporate their letters, and other written work, for the students whose goals were to improve their writing and grammar skills.

I realize that I'm going to need to remember this day and these letters. I'm guessing that not everyday will be this encouraging and fun. When I'm in the thick of it there are going to be days that I need to remind myself that even though a student maybe arguing with me or not listening etc. etc., that deep down they really do want to learn. They need me to provide structure and focus because they want to be successful. They told me in their letters that it isn't their objective to cause trouble or be disruptive. Not one student wrote that they wanted to fail, receive a D or and F, or argue with me. Most included a note about wanting to be my "favorite student". Some included an precursor that explained, "I'm not a bad kid, but sometimes I talk too much." It makes me sad to think that they think they feel they need to explain to me that they are not "bad" kids.

(Side note: For some reason it seems that many girls, age 12-16, find it important to tell you their astrological sign, birthday, and favorite color(s). This amuses me.)

Day 2: Wednesday

Yesterday I left school feeling exhausted, parched, and, I'd be lying if I didn't say, a little intimidated (or really intimidated). Today however, I left feeling really good about the day and about the rest of the semester. At one point I wrote in my notes, while observing my coop introduce the activity for the sophomores, "Yay! The sophomores are listening and engaged! Yay! The sophomores are WORKING!!" Perhaps I misjudged my sophomores. (This probably won't be the first time.) Today they proved to me that they are capable of listening and working. I'm excited to start working with them. It's fun to watch their personalities surface.

As a homework assignment yesterday, each class was assigned to write my CT and me a letter introducing themselves and explaining what it is that they would like to get out of the semester/year. Tonight on my commute home I was able to read some of the letters that they wrote. They were hilarious, creative, and encouraging. Across grade levels, many students wrote about their long terms goals to go to certain colleges or pursue a certain career path. Still more expressed their desire to do well in class, complete all homework and reading assignments on time, and make the honor roll.

One student wrote, "one thing I can't stand is to do nothing because I have a tendency to talk." Bingo! As I start thinking about my own preparation for instruction, I continue to come back to a a core belief that I have had since I've started studying education, i.e. to keep students engaged at all times and to plan out every single minute that they are in my classroom. My CT uses Bellwork at the start of class. I love the idea of Bellwork. I think it prepares students, both mentally and physically, to start thinking and interacting appropriately during instructional time.

My biggest concern at this point is now the seventh and eighth grade class. We've been getting more students than we thought were coming just during the first two days. We now have 38 students in that class. One girl came in at the end of the period and because we didn't have enough desks, she had to sit at my desk.

The students are here!

Today the students arrived! In the past I had predicted that meeting the students this first day would help me gauge how well the rest of the semester would follow and now I'm a little nervous. My cooperating teacher and I have roughly 140 students split between a 7th and 8th grade class, a 9th grade Survey of Lit class, two sections of 10th grade American Lit, and a senior AVID class. (According to their website, AVID stands for Advancement Via Individual Determination and is a college-readiness system designed to increase the number of students who enroll in four-year colleges.)

I think I'm really going to enjoy the 7th and 8th grade class. I enjoy that age group and because I have had the most experience with this age, feel like I can definitely handle it. I am hopeful that this will be a good experience. I'll be taking over that class later, toward the 5th week of school with Pam Muñoz Ryan's Esperanza Rising.

Next week I'll start teaching the 9th grade Survey class with Paulo Coelho's The Alchemist. By week 8, or toward the start of the third quarter, I will start teaching the 10th grade American Lit class. We have two sections of this class and I'm already predicting that the sophomores will be my biggest challenge, especially the last section. In general, all of the classes seem really loud and talkative. They shout over the top of one another and it seems like my teacher is sacrificing her throat with each command to be "quiet and sit down" that she has to repeat. I didn't even speak that much today but my mouth and throat seemed irreversibly dry. I went through three Gatorade bottles of water and could not seem to quench my thirst (but I did visit the bathroom quite often). It makes me wonder if I will feel that I have to, or will even be able to, speak in a loud voice all day. What tricks can I invent to get around yelling and screaming just to get their attention?

I am shocked at the noise level and frequent interjection of students. In the past I would have chalked this up to shaky classroom management, but I'm starting to question that now. I've been told by different educators that the talking over others and loud voices is a cultural trait of urban African American students. The noise level is going to drive me crazy if it continues. I sometimes wonder how I will be able to handle it. I know I will need to be more assertive and I wonder if I have what it takes. I'm hopeful that as I establish a relationship with the students and get to know their names than this will become easier.

Dominating Technology

Friends, thanks to a stop at the Verizon store, a memory card, and my impressive ability to dominate technology, I have finally fixed the technological problems on my phone! I am now in the process of uploading these pictures to my blog pictures. Please bear with me as I now attempt to sort through and explain the many pictures I've taken over the past two weeks.

Passing the Peace

The weather was beautiful this morning on my walk to and from church. I visited Hyde Park United. It is a combination of Presbyterian, Methodist, and UCC congregations. When I arrived, I was immediately greeted by a sweet, older woman who, after learning that I am from Nebraska, started referring to me as her "homegirl" because she is originally from South Dakota. I also received a friendly hug. :)

Friendliness is something I love about UCC churches. Each time I visit a new one, within 30 seconds to 2 minutes, I am guaranteed to be eagerly greeted by a woman, generally within the age range of 45-70, who wants to know where I am from and why I am visiting. They usually want to hear my life story and upon the initial greeting begin feeling out whether or not I am willing to spill my guts. After the service they will also extend an additional warm smile coupled with a "nice to meet you. Good luck with such and such" proceeded by an invite to coffee fellowship.

I never get tired of this initial greeting and inquiry of personal information. It has become as familiar to me now as the liturgy in the service and I come to expect it. Without it something is missing from my communal worship experience. Perhaps I am drawn to this particular kind of interaction, specifically within the UCC church, because it reminds me of my grandmother who would have assumed this role in her home church in Pierre, South Dakota. Quite possibly I just became conscious of it today because the woman I met this morning was from South Dakota and reminded me of my grandmother in many other ways. Regardless, the friendliness factor is something I enjoy about Sunday mornings in church.

My Apologies

I was hoping to start this blog earlier but I've been experiencing problems with my phone/camera. Once I figure out how to get the rest of the photos off of my phone I'll be sure to upload them. For now you can enjoy the few photos that I took last Wednesday, the day I moved in. They are found in "recent photos" to the left.

FUN FACT:

I pass by President Obama's Hyde Park residence twice each day on my way to school.
There is not much to see because it is barricaded by large evergreens and security but from what I can tell it seems to be a very large brick mansion, humble enough yet suitable for a world leader :)

My First Day of School

Today has been a really special day for me. This morning I joined the faculty of Daniel Hale Williams Preparatory of Medicine (DHW) on their first day back to school. I met my cooperating teacher, whom I have heard nothing but great things about and can already sense now is going to be a great mentor, toured the building, and participated in the Teacher Institute Days. Today I began to literally see and feel the transition between student to teacher. Although, I believe most educators pride themselves on being life-long learners, myself included, and will continue to see themselves as students regardless of age or acquired level of educational degree, it is at this point in my education and career that I find myself at that middle ground where technically I am still the student but I am also taking on the responsibilities and persona of the teacher. Today is significant because it is the day that I officially begin to piece together all of the knowledge, training, and information I've acquired through my education courses, as well as other equally important courses. I am beginning to see a peek of what it takes behind the scenes to pull off a successful first day, first quarter, first semester etc., and successful learning environment.

For all of my Nebraska friends and other readers out there, I want to describe for you as well as I can how this particular school works. For me, DHW is both foreign and familiar. It is familiar in the sense that it is very small, which I love. The class size is very similar to the high school that I attended, ranging from approximately 65 seniors to approximately 90 freshman this year. Along with a small student population comes a small faculty population. There are roughly 16 teachers and administrators, myself and the other student teacher not included. I have always attended small schools and I really appreciate the community and atmosphere that small schools bring, so in that sense I feel right at home.

In every other sense however, DHW is quite foreign to my experience and understanding of the make up of a school. For starters, DHW is somewhat like a magnet school because it is not a neighborhood school and it specializes in certain areas (technically however, Chicago Public Schools (CPS) doesn't recognize or refer to it as a magnet school). The school specializes in math and science and is a medical preparatory school for minorities. I believe the majority of the students are African American, roughly 95%. This will be my first long term experiences as the racial minority, so I am looking forward to learning from that experience, yet it may not be a completely accurate simulation of the traditional minority experience as I will have the power differentiation as the teacher in my favor.

Possibly the most foreign of concepts for me is the layout of the school. Originally, The building that DHW is now located in was built in the 1930's to house DuSable High School. For many years it was famous for it's music program and graduated many famous jazz alumni. In recent years however the school struggled to perform academically and was eventually phased out in 2005. In that year the only students attending were seniors. After the class of 2005 graduated the school closed. In its place now sits DHW along with Bronzeville Scholastic Institute and a charter school, the DuSable Leadership Academy. DHW is housed in one corner of this large square building. Although it occupies all three floors of the building, it is contained in one corner. The library, large gym, auditorium, and lunch rooms are shared between the three schools but there are certain boundaries between the schools' hallways and classrooms that separate the students of the three schools. Each school also has its own school uniform as well so that security can easily spot which students are to be in which area of the building. I believe that the extra curricular activities and sports are also combined between the schools but the classrooms, administration, and staff remain completely separate.

I need to clarify something: Much like the phasing out of DuSable High School, DHW has been going through a phase-in of sorts. This is the first year that school has seniors! From what I understand the seniors this year were the first students to start at the school when they were seventh graders.