Learning to teach while planning a wedding

During the next two semesters I will not only be working toward getting into the Elementary Education program while also juggling the planning of my wedding across three states. Working to get into the Education Program will be no easy feat and I often find myself worrying about whether or not I will make it into the program for next fall. On top of all of the school stresses I also find myself attempting to contact my bridesmaids who go to school as far away as Pittsburgh. This makes the stress of school seem all the greater because of the time constraints on both the schoolwork and the wedding contracts. Learning to teach the next generation is not only about what to teach them out of a book but also what to teach the children from real life. What would be a good lesson for young students to learn that can not necessarily be learned from a textbook? I know that the standard answer for this question for those under the age for kindergarten would be learning to share, but for older students the lesson that teachers use often become redundant. Students can learn little nuances from the adults in their lives but would a teacher offer that much influence in the life of younger students? Or would the little nuances just become a part of the student's personality because of the repetition of the said nuances on a daily basis. What are the changes potential teachers can make to the nuances they possess to minimize their impact on their impressionable students?
-Emilie

Learning to learn again

In many of my classes this semester I am being asked to take a step back and learn what is like to be a child learning these things. In my Teaching Math in Elementary School class, we are revisiting the reasoning of the elementary school child when asked to measure a distance. The explanation of this reasoning gives educators a look into the mind of someone who is learning the material for the first time. For most of the material it is simple reasoning for why the graph fits the story or vice versa. But for learning about counting in bases other than ten there was no clear reasoning for the change. Our class had problems conceptualizing the difference between the bases until we wrote out a list of the numbers used in the different bases. We also used the small blocks, which children use for counting, to help us conceptualize the new numbering systems. We are also learning how children are being taught to add and subtract, which is called the expanded algorithm. How can this use of multiple numbering systems help children to conceptualize numbers better? With the use of these multiple numeration systems, would young students get confused about which system they are counting in normally? How does the expanded algorithm help the students with adding and subtracting, besides taking away the need to carry?

Emilie

Teaching without teaching

I have noticed that while I am home I end up inadvertently teaching my five-year-old nephew, Jonathon, something new. I have not attempted to teach him anything new for at least a year, since my family lives in Ohio and I only get to go home a few times a year. When he was younger I would teach him his colors and how to count in multiple languages and now that he is getting older he has a hunger for learning. When we ask him if he wants to go to school, he always answers that he wants to go "Right now." I have also started to teach my one- year-old nephew,Clayton, how to start talking since he is just learning. Both of my nephews are bright for their ages and we are optimistic that they will learn quickly when they start going to school. Jonathon will be starting next fall in Kindergarten and he should excel in his class once he learns to share, he's an only child. Clayton has a few years yet before he can go to school but he will excel once he starts school as well. Have you ever taught a child something without meaning to? What experience have you had with teaching children of a younger age? Do any children in your lives have a hunger for learning without having ever been to school?
-Emilie

Teachers who touch students hearts.

There are teachers in everyone's life that have helped them through tough times. I had two teachers in high school which helped not only me but my whole family through one of the toughest times in our lives. During my sophomore year, my mother and brothers were hit head on by a drunk driver not a mile from our home. the two choir teachers at my high school helped my come to terms with the accident and also helped us through the long coma and recovery process. These two teachers touched my life through their kind words of encouragement and the way they took care of our family through that time. That is the type of teacher I want to be, I want the students I teach to feel that I am someone they can talk to. I want to be able to provide a home away from home feeling for the students, giving them a sense of security in our classroom. How can I provide this sense of security for students when there are so many unknowns in the world today? How, with the economic problems, can the student's parents afford to provide the students with the supplies they need for school? I know that being a teacher means being selfless when with the students and having a firm hand when it comes to the classroom discipline. What teachers have you had that have touched your lives? Have there been teachers who, you have felt, have gone passed the duties of a teacher and helped you after they have fulfilled their teaching duties? Most importantly, how have your teachers touched your lives not only in a school setting but also outside of the walls of the school?
Emilie