Aside from the fact that I barely got any sleep this week and felt like homework was consuming my life, I had some great experiences. I finally learned what it's REALLY like to be a teacher...and it was awesome!
Monday I taught my own math lesson that I created last week. I made Number Story Books with my 2nd graders and when they found out they got to draw pictures and use colored pencils, they were thrilled! The lesson went well and seeing what the students could come up with was really interesting. I learned a lot about my students during that lesson from seeing which students finished first, what kind of stories they created, etc.
Wednesday was even better though. I walked out in such a good mood and so excited to be a teacher. My cooperating teacher let me do the Read Aloud and Word Work lesson in the afternoon. I read a chapter from Judy Blume's Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing and asked questions, had discussions, and implemented some things we spoke about in my education class the day prior. Afterwards we reviewed their math, social studies, and "Super Duper Fancy" vocabulary words. I called on students to give me a definition and an example of the word and then let them put them up on the designated wall.
It sounds pretty boring and ridiculous in this entry but it was really fun and I'm so glad I got to be the teacher for the afternoon. Next week I'm getting observed by my supervisor...definitely a little nervous for that one! I've definitely lucked out this semester with such a good placement and a great cooperating teacher who lets me do as much as I feel comfortable with.