Over the Shoulder Miscue Analysis (OTSMA), I hadn't even heard of this when it was on my syllabus to do. Every classmate nodded their head, oh yeah, we got that. I sat there just thinking how out of my realm I was. How was I going to do this well if I didn't even know what it was to start with? So I did what every good student does, I read all of my material, I asked every teacher I knew questions about the process. When I started comparing it to my work on assessments I felt much more confident. That was something I had experience with. I have taken multiple classes on how to do that. I forgot the important part where assessments aren't in reality helping the student at all. They are looking for what they know or don't know. This analysis was to actually help the student with what they are making mistakes on and helping them to figure out how to fix them. What a novel concept!!
I was able to work with a student in the Behavior Focus program at the school I am at. My hope eventually is to be a teacher in this program so I'm trying to work with as many students there and get as many experiences as possible. Both teachers in the program are my friends so it is fairly easy to set up experience. That didn't really change the fact that I was worried I would make a mistake. Upon reflection what was the worst that I could do? She was willing to read for me and we were going to work together to find some strategies that would be best for her future reading. This was going to be a success no matter what we did.
She chose the book she wanted to read. Of Mice and Men, this is a hard book under any circumstances, I was hesitant for sure. I read the book myself in high school and had no idea with the limited knowledge I had of her if she was going to be able to get through this book at all and understand anything she was reading. I explained to her what we were working on. This was more a test of me and not of her. Those reassurances seemed to put her at ease. My office is set in a quiet place so I knew we should be good to go.
Within about five words from starting, she had made a mistake. She didn't slow down though so neither did I. I promptly wrote the mistake on my sheet, what the correct word was and what the mistake one was. Before I knew it she was doing it again, and again, and again. I had no idea now what I was supposed to do. I was trying to fake that I had some clue and some authority, that's harder than a person thinks, and here she was making errors and I didn't know what I was supposed to do.
I was able to write quickly, trying to assess why she was making the errors that she was making. I had some vague recollection that I was supposed to be making lessons along the way, how was I going to add that in? I knew the errors that she was making, she was reading way too fast. So I casually said, "let's slow down just a bit" she heard me, didn't make much of an adjustment though.
At this point we were nearing the end of ten minutes. I found a wrapping up point and then we sat down to figure out what we had come up with. The first thing we did was talk about what had happened. I was interested in hearing from her what her take was on the information portrayed in the opening scene. It is a picturesque opening and tough to grasp all of the concepts. She was very clear about what had happened, when pushed a bit she mentioned that it was similar to a park she knew in her own life. I was impressed. We presented with some techniques of slowing down a bit, making sure she truly knew the word before she moved on to the next one.
I am excited to use this assessment format in my own classroom. As with most anything that I do I suspect I will be nervous the first 100 times but I know that will practice comes comfort and ease. This is such a great way to include the student in the learning process!!
Sunday, February 23, 2014
Wednesday, February 19, 2014
Who Me?
The last week has been a whirlwind of activity in my personal life. While this post won't go into my teaching, my classroom, or my environment there at all, I am finding the need to post this reflection. A couple of months ago I received word that I had been nominated for an award. I have coached most of my life, I love what I do, I enjoy watching the kids succeed when they didn't think that they could. I do not however coach for the accolades that it might bring. This award seemed like fluff to me and I wrote it off. After much pressure I was asked to reconsider so I filled out the paperwork and sent it in. I thought nothing of it. Then I get the email, I open it considering that it will be a basic; thank you for your application but we have decided to go with some more highly qualified candidates. The email didn't say that at all. In fact it said that I was one of eight finalists for the award.
National Coach of the Year. One of eight finalists in my sport. How?!? I have had some successful teams but it isn't about the coach, it's about the kids, the athletes. My school where I coach is through the roof about how exciting of an honor this is. I'm still hesitant. Then the news channels picked up on the story. They go ahead and decide to honor me with the Ed Thomas Coach of the Week. I have linked the story on my page but I had to think long and hard about putting it up here so that it can be seen. Ed Thomas, what an amazing coach. After he was killed his family wrote a book about his coaching philosophies. I HIGHLY recommend the book to any coach that I know. The Sacred Acre; A coach who coached based on his philosphies, his life with God and what would make boys into men. Not an in your face coach who preaches fear but one who preached acceptance, forgiveness and love. To be even up for the honor myself was humbling. To win it was beyond anything I could have ever expected. I can only hope that I would be a small light for my athletes.
So now I stand, with a bona fide coaching honor, one among eight finalists for national coach of the year. I don't rethink my coaching philosophy because that hasn't changed but if it brings in a kid who might not have gone out for a sport into my program and it helps to better them, then I am all right with that. I am confident in who I am as a person that I know this coaching award isn't anything more than what I have always done and always considered the way to do things.
Just two days later I helped to coach our boys team to a state runner up finish. As the assistant to the program I am able to build a different relationship with our team and hope that our kids will look back on these days with fondness and friends that will last a life time.
"Sometimes it isn't about what you are doing, but about how you are doing it."
National Coach of the Year. One of eight finalists in my sport. How?!? I have had some successful teams but it isn't about the coach, it's about the kids, the athletes. My school where I coach is through the roof about how exciting of an honor this is. I'm still hesitant. Then the news channels picked up on the story. They go ahead and decide to honor me with the Ed Thomas Coach of the Week. I have linked the story on my page but I had to think long and hard about putting it up here so that it can be seen. Ed Thomas, what an amazing coach. After he was killed his family wrote a book about his coaching philosophies. I HIGHLY recommend the book to any coach that I know. The Sacred Acre; A coach who coached based on his philosphies, his life with God and what would make boys into men. Not an in your face coach who preaches fear but one who preached acceptance, forgiveness and love. To be even up for the honor myself was humbling. To win it was beyond anything I could have ever expected. I can only hope that I would be a small light for my athletes.
So now I stand, with a bona fide coaching honor, one among eight finalists for national coach of the year. I don't rethink my coaching philosophy because that hasn't changed but if it brings in a kid who might not have gone out for a sport into my program and it helps to better them, then I am all right with that. I am confident in who I am as a person that I know this coaching award isn't anything more than what I have always done and always considered the way to do things.
Just two days later I helped to coach our boys team to a state runner up finish. As the assistant to the program I am able to build a different relationship with our team and hope that our kids will look back on these days with fondness and friends that will last a life time.
"Sometimes it isn't about what you are doing, but about how you are doing it."
Monday, February 10, 2014
Classroom Space
Until I started this blog, this class, I never really thought about what my classroom should look like. I certainly didn't think about how it would look in addition to how it would function for a learning environment. Then I start talking with classmates, I start reading Debbie Miller's book: Teaching with Intention and I discover I not only have a lot to learn but I am eager to learn it. Miller has so many things I didn't think about and I'm going to try to touch on as many as possible that relate to my beliefs.
I believe that every student can learn.
A classroom should be set up to have different areas for every student. Even working in Special Education exclusively there can be areas that each student can excel in. Carpet work areas, team areas, soft bean bag chairs, and rocking chairs. There should be music if a student chooses so a place for headphones and selections of music. Technology should be in play so there should be communication aids in terms of visual and talking. There should be a variety of ways that students can have hands on activities through the course of their learning day.
When doing some research on classroom environments for this blog and by the suggestion of my teacher I looked up Reggio environments. I came up with this quote, "The learning environment is itself a teacher. It communicates to children and adults many possibilities and invites multiple responses." What an amazing thing to think about. If we think of the environment as an extension of our teaching tools, an extension of our curriculum and an extension of ourselves, then we can come up with the best place ever for students to learn and grow as human beings. Even at the high school level we can find that students will thrive if their environment is one that they can be creative in. We should be concise about what we are using in terms of lighting, organizational tools and just about anything else.
I believe that students can learn better when they have a relationship with their teachers. Having the students help in the planning can really help this considerably. Planning the classroom is important, how it is going to look and what the ideals are but it is important that students know they have say in the process as well.
Waldorf education is a completely different aspect and yet has some similarities when looking at how the environment is critical in helping kids to learn and teachers to teach. The ideas behind this philosophy came in 1919 and was incredibly forward moving. It had four main parts to it: 1) that the school be open to all children; 2) that it be coeducational; 3) that it be a unified twelve-year school; 4) that the teachers, those individuals actually in contact with the children, have primary control of the school, with minimum interference from the state or from economic sources. While some of these have become more structured over time they stand strong with what I believe in.
I'm excited to continue to explore what can be used in my future classroom and how it is going to look. I'm excited to learned what I have in just a short amount of time. Now to start accumulating all of those things that will hold over time and won't be superficial and will help make the learning environment exactly what it should be.
A classroom should be set up to have different areas for every student. Even working in Special Education exclusively there can be areas that each student can excel in. Carpet work areas, team areas, soft bean bag chairs, and rocking chairs. There should be music if a student chooses so a place for headphones and selections of music. Technology should be in play so there should be communication aids in terms of visual and talking. There should be a variety of ways that students can have hands on activities through the course of their learning day.
When doing some research on classroom environments for this blog and by the suggestion of my teacher I looked up Reggio environments. I came up with this quote, "The learning environment is itself a teacher. It communicates to children and adults many possibilities and invites multiple responses." What an amazing thing to think about. If we think of the environment as an extension of our teaching tools, an extension of our curriculum and an extension of ourselves, then we can come up with the best place ever for students to learn and grow as human beings. Even at the high school level we can find that students will thrive if their environment is one that they can be creative in. We should be concise about what we are using in terms of lighting, organizational tools and just about anything else.
I believe that students can learn better when they have a relationship with their teachers. Having the students help in the planning can really help this considerably. Planning the classroom is important, how it is going to look and what the ideals are but it is important that students know they have say in the process as well.
Waldorf education is a completely different aspect and yet has some similarities when looking at how the environment is critical in helping kids to learn and teachers to teach. The ideas behind this philosophy came in 1919 and was incredibly forward moving. It had four main parts to it: 1) that the school be open to all children; 2) that it be coeducational; 3) that it be a unified twelve-year school; 4) that the teachers, those individuals actually in contact with the children, have primary control of the school, with minimum interference from the state or from economic sources. While some of these have become more structured over time they stand strong with what I believe in.
I'm excited to continue to explore what can be used in my future classroom and how it is going to look. I'm excited to learned what I have in just a short amount of time. Now to start accumulating all of those things that will hold over time and won't be superficial and will help make the learning environment exactly what it should be.
Friday, February 7, 2014
My Beliefs
When I'm asked to come up with my beliefs I automatically come up with quite a few. I'm not one to dilly dally and waiver over making decisions. But then I have to think about what they mean, what my core beliefs are in relation to what my practices will be. This takes me back a step, what are my core beliefs, how do I come up with them when I haven't taken a step in a classroom and everything I have done has been based on book work? I certainly have done teaching in different formats and the last couple of days has made me really step up and think about how I am making impacts on students every single day. So what are my beliefs? In an effort to be thorough I have come up with a few of my core beliefs and while I do know they may become farfetched over time this is what I have right now.
1. Every student has the ability to learn something new. This is broad I realize but one that I firmly hold to. I have worked with special needs students for a long time and going back to school as an adult I know that it is hard. However, every student has the ability to learn something new, something from a different perspective.
2. Teaching/learning is fun. This is a core belief and one that has to be stretched by both the students and the teachers to hold true. It may be boring material but the process can be fun. Holding with my first belief I feel that that process of learning and teaching can sometimes be the most important part of the process.
3. A relationship can be built in even just a short period of time. Impressions are made in just a few seconds, relationships can be formed off of each of those. It is important to give the pair, whomever that pair may be, time to form and build a lasting relationship. The teaching should be personalized as much as possible which will help this considerably.
4. I believe in my students. I believe they can do anything they put their minds to. I believe they are creative, imaginative and successful and will go many places with the right guidance.
And this is it. I'm sure there will be many more over time. I'm sure that the way that I put these in to practice will continue to grow and adapt and change over my career. I do know that these core beliefs I hold and will hold for my future.
1. Every student has the ability to learn something new. This is broad I realize but one that I firmly hold to. I have worked with special needs students for a long time and going back to school as an adult I know that it is hard. However, every student has the ability to learn something new, something from a different perspective.
2. Teaching/learning is fun. This is a core belief and one that has to be stretched by both the students and the teachers to hold true. It may be boring material but the process can be fun. Holding with my first belief I feel that that process of learning and teaching can sometimes be the most important part of the process.
3. A relationship can be built in even just a short period of time. Impressions are made in just a few seconds, relationships can be formed off of each of those. It is important to give the pair, whomever that pair may be, time to form and build a lasting relationship. The teaching should be personalized as much as possible which will help this considerably.
4. I believe in my students. I believe they can do anything they put their minds to. I believe they are creative, imaginative and successful and will go many places with the right guidance.
And this is it. I'm sure there will be many more over time. I'm sure that the way that I put these in to practice will continue to grow and adapt and change over my career. I do know that these core beliefs I hold and will hold for my future.
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