The Importance of Welcoming a Student

Confusion is a feeling that should never be present in a classroom. It is very important to welcome students the first day of school in order to "reduce their anxiety level". The first day of school is full of chaos, everywhere, students don't know where to go and "find the fact of searching for the correct classroom frightening". Many times the students are new to a school and don't even know who to ask,  compared to returning students who might be familiar with the school staff. Welcoming students also builds a trust between the teacher and the student. The students acknowledge that the teacher is the guide that will always lead them through the right path. Likewise "what you do on the first day may determine how much respect and success you will have for the rest of the school year." In my own classroom I would definitely want to establish trust between my students and me by welcoming them and making sure they are in the correct classroom. It would definitely allow me to get to my students in an easier and faster way. As an effective teacher, I would also post my expectations for the entire school year and have an assignment ready so all my students can see how important their success is to me and how we will reach it together. I will make sure my students are comfortable and successful at the same time by setting my expectations as soon as they walk through the door.

A Teacher's Reputation

All students talk about their teachers and how they're either so nice or so mean. A teacher creates his/hers reputation with their attitude and the way they chose to manage their classroom. Just last year I was talking to a classmate and she was telling me about an English teacher who was so strict and even scary! I didn't even bother asking her who she was, I thought to myself, "if that was the teacher I was going to have someone would of told me about her already" , so I didn't even say a word I just felt bad for the students who were going to have her as a teacher. The next day I find myself a little curious of who that teacher might be so I go up to my classmate and I ask her what that teacher's name was and she told me the name I did not expect to hear. It was MY teachers name! I was no longer calm, no longer looking forward to going into her class. Her reputation now scared me, I felt intimidated by a person I didn't even know yet. Sometimes what people say about you, defines who you are, in the eyes of those who don't know you well enough. A teacher is sealed with a reputation and whatever the reputation might be, either good or bad, students and parents view that teacher by what others have said. As a teacher I believe the way to protect my reputation would be to act the same every year and treat all my students equally.

The most important factor in student learning: Classroom Management

After reading Unit C of the book How to be an effective teacher the first days of school by Harry K Wong he established that "the most important factor of governing student learning is Classroom Management." Classroom Management is the fundamental factor in a classroom, without proper classroom management the students will have no discipline and no self-control. In order to maintain an effective classroom management it "must begin on the first day of school." Students have to know that their teacher is a reliable person that can control any situation that may appear whether it concerns her lessons or a personal problem between students. When the teacher has an effective classroom management the entire school year will consist of a "productive working environment".

5 resourceful teaching blogs

1. http://theteacherbrain.blogspot.com
This blog belongs to a current pre-k teacher and in her blog she shares creative and fun activities she completes with her class. I chose to follow this blog because I enjoy how this teacher writes straight from her thoughts which allows the readers to connect exactly with what she is saying, most likely because the readers are teachers as well that have similar thoughts.
2.http://traditionslaughterandhappilyeverafter.blogspot.com
Mrs. Moore's blog consist of a lot of activities she has her students perform that are both effective and very fun! I chose to follow Mrs. Moore's blog because she shares both pictures and worksheets that I can get ideas from.
3.http://www.deannajump.com/2015/10/making-read-alouds-come-to-life-creepy.html
This blog shows Mrs. Jumps daily routine through pictures and along with her description of everything that goes on during the activities. I really liked that Mrs. Jump included her student's work; I can truly see the result of her lessons.
4.http://rowdyinfirstgrade.blogspot.com
This first grade teacher includes some classroom management techniques along with some fun ideas and suggestions. Something that I noticed is that she included a technique my previous mentor teacher used to gain her student's attention and that I also used multiple times. I was surprised that other teachers find it very helpful as well no matter the grade level.
5.http://firstgradecrittercafe.blogspot.com
This blog shares great ideas for learning sight words and other important concepts. I really enjoyed observing the neatness and organization in this teacher's classroom, something that is fundamental in every learning environment.

Field Site Experience

Working with my pre-k classroom these past two weeks has been amazing! I can't lie, I still don't know all their names but they all sure do know mine. My mentor teacher also plays a big part in why I enjoy going to sites everyday I can; she is an absolutely great teacher. She is a teacher that truly values the age group she teaches and understands they're still children that want to play, but can absolutely be taught effectively at the same time. I clearly remember my first day of sites, when they showed me what they do after they eat breakfast, they dance! Most of the students speak Spanish as their first language as well as I do and the music that they dance to is regional Spanish music, much of which I also dance too. Last year I had a student who would ask about me and it looks like this year I have one too, my teacher told me it seems like I have a little admirer. 

My students are constantly reminded that they are champions and so they behave like such. Unfortunately due to time I'm only able to actually work with them for about 15 minutes. During that time I take out different pairs of students out to the hallway and practice sounds with them. I have been able to observe the students that have mastered their sounds and the ones that have not. I am also able to see which students really know what sound goes with what letter compared to others which just repeat the sounds as they hear them, something that I will work on with certain students. Overall I love my pre-k champions!

Top Ten Things I Wish I had known as a First Year Future Educator

1.) How to find the perfect grade to work with

Trying to be a future educator while being in high school is pretty tough, especially when trying to figure out what age group you want to teach. Personally I don't have a lot of experience with young children because I don't have little ones around me everyday, but I figured "why not try kindergarten, I do like playing with little kids. One thing I surely didn't take in consideration was the difference between playing with the kids and actually having to teach them something and have them focus for a long period of time. Probably my biggest challenge throughout the year, knowing a fun way to keep my kindergarten students focused through a lesson.

2.) Contribute to the classroom as much as possible

The only way to learn something is by actually doing it. Teaching works the same way, if us teachers do not try to teach new stuff then we will never know if it actually is effective or not. Not contributing to the class can cause you to miss out on a lot of great things that the students are able to do and think about.

3.) Set the thought that you're also another teacher

Some of your students will know that you are not entirely a teacher but a student yourself; most of them,if not all, should see you as an another teacher. I felt like the fact that my students knew I was a high school student gave them the idea that I wasn't going to be as strict as their teacher, so sometimes they tried to find a way to take advantage of that. Children are brilliant!

4.) Ask multiple teachers for advice

Don't feel limited to only be able to rely on your assigned mentor teacher. The more opinions you get, the better. Not every teacher has the same teaching method, even if teaching the same subject.

5.) Control emotions in front of students

Young children tend to ask many questions and sometimes they can be questions you don't want to answer. Also stress can affect you and you're students and can result in a horrible day where absolutely nothing will get done.

6.) Children are living recording machines

Everything said by the teacher will be repeated, be careful!

7.) How to reach out to all types of learning styles

Every child learns in different ways and at different pace. Part of being a great teacher is being able to incorporate all the learning styles into the same lesson in order to help every student master the topics being discussed. A good way to achieve this is by creating multiple activities for the same lesson and therefore reaching out to the need of every student.

8.) State requirements for every grade

It is crazy to see the list of test kindergarten students have to take in order to advance into the next level. I was amazed to witness the process in which my mentor teacher prepared her students for a test it was almost as if I was seeing my high school teachers teach me.

9.) Have good communicating skills 

Besides having to communicate with the children through lesson plans, a teacher also has to know how to correctly communicate with colleagues and all the school staff. The way one communicates can be the determinant of the outcome to a situation.

10.) Teaching is not as easy as it seems 

Before I experienced it myself, it had never gone through my mind how challenging it is to be a teacher. Most of the time it is not because of the students, it is mainly because all the regulations the state requires the teachers to follow. Teachers are not given the opportunity to actually teach their class as they desire. But one thing I do know, being able to make an impact on a child's life is all that counts!

http://www.loveteachblog.com/2013/05/the-top-ten-things-i-wish-id-known-as.html