Comprehension

" In the case of good books, the point is not how many of them you can get through, but rather how many of them can get through you." --Mortimer J. Adler


This was the opening to our literacy session today and I love it. I am not going to lie, I spent a lot of time during the session texting. I wasn't trying to be rude, it had just been a long day and in the advice of my CMA (core member advisor)...check out when you think you can teach the material. After working with Melanie and taking 6 courses of ECE literacy, I think I have a pretty good handle on it. I really like how the session simplified teaching reading comprehension. I wish I had this method when I first started! Here are some take-a-ways...

Process for creating lit. objectives:
(1) read the objective--what does it mean, what will students be able to do
(2) answer: what is the literary element focused on?
(3) Answer: What will students do with that literacy element? (What is the verb?)
(4) Answer: What reading strategy best supports performing this objective?

Defining key points:
WHAT: Definition of literacy element
HOW: Explanation of the process of applying the reading strategy. "In order to _____, good readers ________, so they can better understand the text."
WHY: Tell why using the strategy will help them better understand.

In TFA world defining key points helps teachers effectively structure assessments, connects to key goals, and ultimately frames the presented lesson.

Today was refreshing. I feel like I learned a lot to refine and improve my planning and assessment skills--mainly to think more critically about planning and actions in the classroom. I am excited for tomorrow when we begin to write our own plans!

Side note: planning and assessment are two of my weakest points as a teachers. I am lucky to have a natural instinct of what a well-put together lesson looks like and thus, over the past year I was very lazy in my planning. I would often write my plans after teaching. Looking back, when I slacked off on the planning my students got a "good" teacher. When I really planned well, my lessons would go better. That is when my students got a "great" teacher. Now, with this training, my students will have the opportunity to have an "excellent" teacher--one who is constantly developing. This is what they deserve. Nothing less.

Some fun shared on our TFA*Nashville page:

Have a good night...be glad you don't have to wake up at 4:50am like this girl :)

Institute Day 1: Those Damn Relentless Mosquitoes

My first long day! I have officially been up 16 hours and counting! Today was a PACKED day and I am pretty exhausted so I am going to write a laundry list of things that I found interesting/concerning/worth looking up today. Hopefully I will have the chance to expand at a later date, but that is doubtful given our schedule.

Here it goes...

Goals must be ambitious AND feasible. Ambitious=high, more than expected, challenging to students. Feasible= this has been done before/ is slightly higher than before.

My School Site Goal: ON AVERAGE students will achieve 100% of their individual growth goals.

"When we see it is possible, other people can do it"

I have learned more about the use of assessment and data in 2 days then I did the past 2 years. I am excited to combine my classroom experience with this new knowledge.

The Delta Institute makes up the 2nd largest "school district" in the Mississippi Delta.

In no way do standardized scores tell everything about a student. They do, however, provide a broad context of student achievement and the achievement gap.

Use data as a motivation/ urgency to build skills, mindsets, and habits.

All of us are responsible for students achievement. It is not "these" kids...it is OUR kids. They are MY kids.

Research points to 9th grade as a critical year to determine graduation rate.

In our classrooms we engage in rigorous and challenging activities AND we like it. We have fun doing it.

I believe that a child's teacher is the most important factor in his or her education. This does not mean there are no other factors, but it is a mindset that inspires achievement and prevents excuses for why students cannot/are not learning.

We want confident students so we need to be confident teachers. Teachers are climate setters for their classroom.

The front page of the local newspaper. Cleveland and Delta State have been  extremely supportive of TFA and incredibly welcoming! From fraternity boys and boy scouts helping us to unpack, Walmart's TFA section, to free ice cream and coffee I have definitely felt very welcome!

We had an inspiring session tonight that was the first time the whole institute was able to come together. We heard from TFA alumni, directors, current CMs and saw a welcome video from Wendy Kopp. The bottom line is that we are together, united under one vision: That one day all children will have have the opportunity to attain an excellent education. Like mosquitoes it is our job to work relentlessly (and effectively) to make this a reality.

Thy Loyal Children We Will Be

It's official. I am an alumni of the University of Cincinnati. An alumni? Where did the past four years go?

Today was a really hard day for me. While my classmates put on their caps and gowns, I was in Nashville far away from the celebration.  I spent a lot of time on facebook and the UC website trying to get a glimpse of the graduation festivities. The truth is I could have gone back if I wanted to. I could have gone back, and as much as it hurt to stay, I do not at all regret my decision.

I don't need a ceremony to celebrate my degree. I am living it. Right now I am showing the world what it means to be Proudly Cincinnati. Today, instead of celebrating my own success I was painting a new school STEM prep. This brand new school will very soon be the home to middle school students and the curriculum and culture of the school will be to introduce and reinforce the idea of going to college among students. Someday, the students at this school will be able to walk across a stage to receive a college diploma. Believing that I am a part of helping to get these students there (be it a VERY VERY VERY small part) is almost as good, if not better, as celebrating my own graduation. 

My "Senior" Picture with my Honors Medal

It was heartbreaking to leave UC before the very end of my senior year, but it was a great test of my school spirit. I can guarantee you I lived up to the test. I am pretty sure everyone here is sick of hearing about UC, but I can't help sharing the accomplishments and special qualities of my school. School pride is a big deal here and I could not be happier to show my Bearcat Pride. I have been singing this one in my head all day...

O Cincinnati, magic name, I proudly to the world proclaim;

No sweeter word ever charmed my ear,

None to my heart was ever so dear,

A fountain of eternal youth, a tower of strength, a rock of truth.

Oh varsity, dear varsity, thy loyal children we will be,

Thy loyal, loyal children we will be.

A Mississippi Girl Don't Change Her Ways...

I am headed to Mississippi tomorrow morning. After a rocky start things have really started to fall into place. I feel so lucky to have the opportunity to work with 100 talented, dedicated, and passionate individuals! I am sure that I will learn so much from them and am excited to get to the point where not only can I remember everyone's name, but really know them and make new memories with them.

All week (and really for the past few months) Institute (our 5week training program) in the Mississippi Delta has been something on the forefront of everyone's minds. I was excited to start training, but at the same time I was dreading living in the middle of no-where, dealing with way too hot temperatures, fighting mosquitoes, and living on very little sleep. I don't like to speak for other people, but I am pretty sure this was the feeling that many other CMs had.

On Friday, we had a session about what to expect at Institute. I had a pretty big reality check. The staff member that led this session did a great of explaining/ reminding us WHY we were going to the Delta. It is not about us...it is about the students that we get to work with in the Delta and when we get back to Nashville. It is always about the students. We start on the path to becoming great teachers at institute because we feel the pressure and urgency to make sure the students in the Delta have an excellent educational opportunity. CMs are not the type of people who accept mediocrity or failure...especially when we know students' lives and futures are impacted by our actions. We become great teachers by doing everything we can to give the students what they need. This session made me realize something very important: it's not about US anymore. It's about the students. As I head to Mississippi I am going to leave you with the Delta vision. In the Delta during summer school, TFA creates the 2nd largest school system in the region. We have the privilege to make a lasting impact.

The Mississippi Delta TFA Vision:

We see a vibrant Delta where students have unlimited choices and opportunities and are able to positively impact their communities as a result of a rigorous and inspiring education.

Flexibility should be the new core value

TFA has a set of core values that are supposed to guide and drive every action in the program and in the classroom. The core values are things that I immediately accepted and embraced. They are things that I believe are critical for teachers (and really leaders of all professions). Here are our core values:

- Transformational change
- Leadership
- Team
- Diversity
- Respect and humility

What is missing? Flexibility! The need for and appreciation of your own and other's flexibility has been constant during induction. There have been time changes, path changes, and the everyday experience of people collaborating with one another. I personally have made a few changes in mindset and planning thus far. The biggest change was inspired by the need for MNPS to better serve students who are English Language Learners. I decided to open my assigned placement to an ELL/Elementary placement and was recently hired as a 1st grade teacher in a school that has a very high percentage of students who are English Language Learners. It was a major decision that had to be made quickly, but it is a decision that I am happy with. I am ready for this added challenge and thanks to some encouragement from a family friend and my mentor teacher believe I can be very successful as a teacher with children who are ELL.

My flexibility paid off...I am the newest first grade teacher at a school in MNPS! My school seems like it has a strong place in the community and our principal seems very open, supportive, and aware of what is happening in his school.

Getting a job is one giant piece in the "flexible" puzzle I am living right now!

First days in Nashville

I finally made it to Nashville! It has been a long time coming, but I am finally here! It was really hard leaving UC and Cincinnati, but I am starting to really like it here. I will admit, I am a little bit homesick though.

One thing I loved about today is that we had a community panel with all different players in education reform. They gave me a lot to think about. In the interest of time...I have to be ready for dinner in like 10 minutes...here is a list of some of the things on my mind:

- How do you as a teacher and a Corps Member going to talk about the work you are doing?

- Public opinion's top issues in education: funding, discipline, parenting vs. our panel: teacher quality

- We need to re-professionalize the teaching profession...transform it into a career that others respect the weight and responsibility of this role; create a setting of healthy-competition; set up a system of leadership for professional growth.

- Many teachers who leave the profession say they wanted a setting in which team spirit, unity among co-workers, and autonomy is the norm.

- What is a teacher's role in education reform?

- "There is no pinnacle moment in teaching."

- "You have to cease any opportunity that you have to expose to others what is happening in your classroom."

- Tennessee legislation: charter school laws, the Achievement School District

- How can we make teacher effectiveness a standard. It is not ideal for programs like this one to have a bunch of "rock stars" into the classroom and have them leave after a few years.

Dinner time!

Sharing Relay with my students

One of the things I have learned this year is that it is important to let the students get to know you. In my other practicum experiences I was very distant about my personal life with my students. I would answer questions when they came up, but I never really shared with them. We spend a lot of time learning about our students' lives so it only makes sense to help them get to know their teacher beyond the classroom as well. My mentor teacher really provided me with a good example of how to share her personal life with students while still maintaining a professional separation between school and home. Following her lead, I began to share more about myself with my students. One of the major aspects of my life outside of the classroom is volunteering with the American Cancer Society as an event chair of Relay For Life at the University of Cincinnati.

My initial, very ambitious plan, was to host a mini-Relay at Fairview so students could experience a Relay did not happen. I just didn't have the time or energy to put the plan into action. I did, however, work with the school to invite families to our event and I did a special art project with my students in honor of the Cancer Survivors at Relay For Life.

Though my students knew I volunteered with Relay, they did not really understand what it meant. Before the art project I spent a few minutes talking with my students, in first-grade terms, what the American Cancer Society was and how we were able to help. My mentor teacher and I really worked hard this year to help the students realize how their actions contribute to others' feelings. This activity was a perfect reinforcement because we were able to talk about how good the Survivors at Relay would feel knowing that 20 students were thinking about them and were willing to share their art work with them!

Using our Fun Friday time and X-group's Friday center time my students tissue-paper collaged over top of Relay logos, signature phrases, and (in conjunction with our theme) the word 'hope' written in all of the different languages children in our classroom speak (8!). We had a lot of fun using the tissue paper. I was really impressed that all of my students were engaged and not a single student asked if they could keep their artwork. After they finished tissue papering, I trimmed the pages, glued them onto black construction paper, and connected them to make a banner to hang at our Survivor dinner. It looked AMAZING:

Our banner hanging at Relay!

After the event I brought in pictures from the dinner to share with the students. They were so excited to know that their artwork was put up on a real college campus!

I am not going to lie, this project was probably more for me than the students. It was important for me to connect two of my biggest passions. It also helped me begin to brainstorm ways that children can contribute to their community without even leaving the classroom. This is something I hope to continue. Maybe a monthly or quarterly activity? I will have to think about it!

For those of you unfamiliar with Relay For Life visit our event page:http://main.acsevents.org/site/TR?pg=entry&fr_id=32694 or watch a video about what Relay For Life at UC is all about: