1. Confidence and Independence
I felt pretty confident throughout the semester for this particular class. When I found
out that we would be guiding my former Tibbetts Middle School students through a unit on poetry I was excited.
I really enjoyed the freedom to choose my own lesson topics and focuses. I purposely chose a one of the groups I thought
would be more challenging and they prooved to be so at first. Over time, they realized that this was a serious chance
to learn something new and most of my group responded very well. I felt my own confidence increase throughout the semester
and felt like my students responded to my lessons well.
2. Skills and Strategies
I really appreciate the two pronged approach that Frances has chosen to take for this class. She
gave us a great opportunity to actually explore children's literature in our own way as the first prong, then challenged us
with a practicum experience allowing us to work with students in a poetry circle format.
I decided to read as much as I possibly could in all of the areas of student literature. By doing
so, I feel that I really gained an appreciation for all of the great material and genres available to me in my future
classroom. Although other classes stressed that it was important to have a classroom library, this class gave me
the opportunity to explore what would be good for it.
3. Knowledge and Content
I came into the class with a fairly strong background in Language Arts, especially on the
oral and written side. Having taught a semester in 8th grade previous to this I had many of the skills and strategies
I learned from that experience to draw upon. I feel that my weakest area coming in to class was in teaching reading
and the strategies and skills needed. I appreciated the time we spent with students as an opportunity to get better
in all of those areas, most especially in reading.
I've gained immense experience in this particular class by being afforded the opportunity
to read a diverse amount of children's literature and feel that this class has helped tremendously with that particular area.
4. Use of Prior Knowledge
The practicum experience gave me the most opportunity to draw upon my previous teaching experience in the
classroom. It also gave me the chance to apply the MANY things I've learned in my two semesters at UNM. Because
I've had the chance to take several of the methods classes already I felt much more confident when working with my students
for this class.
5. Critical Reflection
For the past two semesters I've remembered thinking on almost a weekly basis "man I wish I'd
had this before." When teaching students last year at Tibbetts as a long term substitute I know I had the drive and
passion to do my very best for the 90 or so students I was responsible for in Reading and Language Arts classese.
Looking back I know that I did my very best for them but acknowledge that there were many tools that I didn't have.
I can gladly say that I have them now. Many are still in rudimentary form, some much better, but I now know that thanks
to the class and my many others that I have them. I'm looking forward to next fall and completing the non student teaching
portion of my time with UNM so that I can gain even more techniques and skills for teaching students in the classroom.
Of the two semesters so far, I really have sensed a measurable surge in the tools and techniques at my disposal this semester.
I feel like there has been a real synergy in my teaching abilities by taking Children's Literature along with Oral and Written
Language and Special Needs. Thank you Francis and Coila!
