Communication- This whole course up to this point has been focused around communication.  I have better learned the importance of communicating with professors, my peers, young students, and an audience.  Each group of people has different needs and I am always learning how to adapt to meet these needs.  I am most proud of using my communication through creative drama.  I am not very comfortable with performing for others and I believe that I have been successful in my performances.  I am glad to have been given the opportunity to really work on skills that are outside of my comfort zone.

Research/Content (genres/literary elements) - I have always had mixed feelings about poetry and we have obviously focused in on it thus far.  I have always thought of poetry as either you like it or you dislike it and over the past weeks of experiencing it I no longer believe this.  I now view poetry like music; we all like it, but just different styles.  I can now say that I am not afraid of poetry and I will use it in my class as often as I see fit.  Poetry allows us to experience words in unique ways that let us feel all emotions with stronger, fewer words.  Poetry is more enjoyable to me and I have learned how it can be used in the classroom in more than one way.

Technology- I have not had to use too much technology yet this semester but it is already increasing as we start our web pages.  I enjoy technology and I admire those who can do extraordinary things with it.  We had some technology issues when we had our performance but when it does not cooperate we need to learn to improvise and move on.  Things never go as planned and I have been less surprised and caught off guard when technology fails us.  One of the best things that technology has taught me is to be flexible.  You learn to think on your feet and keep things going.  In education there is not enough time to stop and be angry or upset that something did not work. We must pick up where we left off and keep teaching. 

Collaboration- The class has been working together since day one when we still didn’t know each other very well.  On the very first day of class we had to work together to give a performance.  Every week after we worked together to perform and work with students so that the final performance the students put on was successful.  Working with others can always be a bit of a challenge but I think that I have grown as a person.  I had to get to know new classmates and learn to work with middle school students.  I do not have very much experience with middle school students but I have learned how to work with them. 

Five Dimensions of Learning

Confidence and Independence- Personally I believe that I have really excelled in this area over my time in the UNM program.  I am a shy person and I do not usually speak out or ask questions until I am fully comfortable with my environment.  This semester I walked into the classroom ready to help with anything that I could.  I have been learning how to ask classmates for help and speaking up when I need advice from my professors.  I was ready to work with the students on the very first day that I entered the classroom.  I have been gaining confidence and independence in myself.  I am growing and really seeing for the first time what kind of teacher I truly want to be and how to get there.  I still need to learn a ton along the way but my identity as a teacher is becoming more and more clear.

Skills and Strategies- I have been gaining strategies and skills in working with middle school students.  I am not as comfortable as I would like to be with this age group but I now know that they are just mixed up kids who are not sure how to feel about life and their own identity.  To reach these students we need to use creative methods that allow students to be fully engaged in what they are learning.  Using creative drama is one way that is simple but effective in reaching students and helping them learn.  Poetry is not always everyone’s favorite type of literature especially when it is not cool to like it.  Using drama gives students a reason and a purpose to learn the things that they need to be successful.  Creative drama is very easily used in all grade levels and can be used for more than just poetry.  This is the main strategy that I have learned this semester.

Knowledge Content- When it comes to literary elements I sometimes get them mixed up, but with the help of games and songs I can better remember what I need to know.  The song that Frances had us sing during our performance helps remind me that students are never too old for music.  Songs are catchy and get stuck in the brain and I know from experience that they will be a great thing to use in the classroom.  I have always known that games are a good way to help students learn but again Frances has shown me a way to use the game Jeopardy in a PowerPoint format so I can easily make something similar in my own class.  I am not that comfortable playing games because I do not like the feeling of competition between friendly people, but I can see how students would enjoy playing games and feel more motivated to learn so they may have a chance to win.  These are just a few things that I have taken away from this course so far.

Use of Prior and Emerging Experience- The Education program has taught me so much about working with students and how to reach them and meet their needs.  I am more comfortable with the students than I was a year ago and I have learned to hold back less and be a part of my education and the education of those around me.  I know who I am and how I work but sometimes it is good to note the importance of stepping outside of the things you do well and get a new experience and remember how it feels to learn something new.  I have learned to make connections with students and how to work with students who are not as easy to work with.  My past experiences have helped me throughout this whole semester and they lead me into build new experiences.

Critical Reflection- I am excited about being a part of this class and am ready to learn more about children’s literature.  I worked hard with the students and have been very positive about my practicum experience.  I know that I am not perfect and that I need to work on further developing my own skills.  I need to work on my confidence and being more creative with my approaches when working with older students.  I will learn a lot of what I know throughout the second half of the semester and the things that I have yet to learn I will learn it by getting experience.  I am proud at how far I have come and am ready to keep moving forward.

I think I deserve an A because I have been working hard from day one.  I am outside of my comfort zone with performing and I feel that I have been giving my best when we have been working with the students.  I am ready to read lots of books and take a deeper look into the things that make up children’s literature.  I love to read and dive into books.  I don’t really know what the second half of the semester will go but I think the first semester has gone fairly smooth considering our short amount of time together.  The only thing that I wish we could have had was an extra week or two with our practicum class.  I feel like I didn’t really get to know them that well or get to help them as much as I would have liked.  Other than this I think that the class has been moving way to quick and I feel a bit crunched for time but it has been a good time.