Goodbye 255!

Honestly, the best part of this class was meeting amazing people and becoming such good friends with them.  I  became so close with the class and had so much fun.  We all started out as scared students, who had no idea what to expect, but together we all accomplished many things and grew as individuals.  I am going to miss this class the most, but I always remember the funny times and all the memories we made together!!  So I just wanted to say thank you to everyone in my class,  Freddie and Dr. Yang, for a great semester and for helping me become a better teacher.

Practical Experience

Over Thanksgiving break,  I taught group lessons for the Hudson Mohawk Figure Skating Club program.  This was an assignment we had to do for our EDU 255 class, but I usually always help out with the club whenever I am home.  Being a figure skater myself, I love helping out other kids what I know so that they can enjoy it just as much as I did as a child and still do today.  I have been teaching figure skating since I was in high school, but this time was a little different.  In Dr. Yang's class I learned the foundations of teaching and how to make a lesson successful.  This course broke the ice and introduced me to the aspects of what makes a good teacher, and how to be one.  Dr. Yang always stresses, "what's going to set you apart from all the others, what's makes you unique?"  Well this really makes you think!  What do I have that makes me different?  I think I am going to discover more and more about myself over the next few  years, and develop my own uniqueness.  I was able to put to use the things I learned in class, and apply them for the first time with real children.  It was A LOT different than teaching my peers!  Having an understanding on "how to teach" helped out during the sessions.  I gave cues, checked for understanding and gave lots of feedback.  The best part was seeing how excited the got in the beginning during the introduction and hook.  I learned so much this semester and I know my learning experiences will continue to expand.

STEP AEROBICS!

What an experience....I have never been SO nervous for a lesson as I was for this one. The night before my lesson I was trying to fall asleep but all I could think about what was coming the following morning. I couldn't help have some doubt that this lesson could totally fail, or I could walk out of class that day being proud of myself. Luckily, I walked away proud and pretty happy. At first I was struggling to find a good topic to use for my Lab D until step aerobics was suggested to me. I thought it was a great idea because I love aerobics and I think it's so much fun and something everyone could enjoy. But then I thought about it and started planning in my head and realized I had no clue what to do with it to make it my own and stand out. I found a fun energetic routine online that I wanted to use because it was much more exciting and appealing to others than just teaching individual steps one by one...BORING! So I taught myself the routine, and realized it was pretty easy for me, but the question was would it be easy for others? And could I teach it to them within 15 minutes and still manage to hit everything else on the checklist? To figure out if it would work or not I tested it out on my friends to see if they could learn the routine. Next step was to make it my own. I thought it would be really fun and to help get the students excited about step aerobics, I designed my lesson to have the class broken up into four separate teams: pink, green, blue and yellow. After I taught them my routine, I set aside time for them to break off into their groups and come up with their own creative routine to show to the class. This was the best part of the lesson because I taught my peers/students something and then I was able to see what they were capable of doing from my teaching directions. The students were really excited when they received their blue star award for completing their own routine. I was also able to incorporate the Wii Fit into my lesson for the technology portion of the lab. I told the class that I would reward it to students with good behavior but it turned out that it actually helped the students who were having trouble with the rhythm and the pace on the steps. The one thing that didn't work out was the YouTube demonstration on my laptop. I wanted students to see the routine because the instructor was so energetic and hilarious, and I thought it would help the interest in my lesson. Unfortunately I didn't set the internet up before the lesson, so I was unable to show it. This was when I lost some time moving the students back and forth across the gym. I struggled with giving lots of feedback but most of my comments were related to my cues. Things come up unexpectedly all the time and you have to be prepared and ready to roll with what you're given.

Lab D packet

Class spreadsheet

Class spreadsheet

Go team: PONCE DE LEON

I thought this activity was a lot of fun. My group was running all over and seriously sweating in about 5 to 10 minutes! The idea and concept behind the scavenger hunt was very creative and exciting. I think my favorite activity was taking the pictures with the faculty staff. They were caught off guard but were happy to join in and take the picture. My group was extremely exhausted but still motivated to win. I can take a lot from this assignment and use it in my future lessons. Scavenger hunts are always fun and I can find ways to incorporate technology into the lesson either with the heart rate monitors or maybe viewing a powerpoint for the next clue. If I did this with elementary students I would try to keep the clues within the gym or use it during warm weather and go outside. The history behind the lesson was a great idea! It taught kids about Christopher Columbus and all the ships. I thought creating your own flag was a great way to help the kids be creative on their own and it added to the excitement. GOOD JOB FREDDIE AND DJ!!!

TRUE LIFE: It could happen to you!

What I assumed to be going so well, turned out to be the exact opposite. Pretty good introduction, se the hook and got the activity going fast. Students were moving all over the court so I thought I was in the clear for a little while! You can check out my time coding for this lesson. Then it dawned on me, where did half of my class go? Students had left the gym! I had my backed turned at some points in the lesson, and that gave some of the students and chance to slip out. Very sneaky...but realistic! Take a look at my transcript for this lesson to see what I said to the students. These things happen all the time and as a professional, you have to be prepared to deal with anything at any point in time. Next time I'll be more on my toes, but I am a little nervous about what could be thrown my way when it's my turn to teach again!

A big badminton WOOPS

In my first attempt at Lab C, I would say I experienced a big badminton woops! I had my students begin at the pre-control level by sitting on the ground executing the “snap-it” cue for the overhead clear. Their partner tossed the birdie, and then the seated partner’s job was to use their wrist to snap the birdie. However, this activity was actually forcing the students to perform more of a drive or drop shot because of the seated position. WOOPS! I realized you have to be careful and aware when picking your tasks and activities and make sure they match the skill you are aiming at for you students.