look at me, mom! i'm (almost) a real teacher now.

this week i began attending my practicum full time. that means i'll be there every day until the end of january. it's nice to not have classes or homework any longer, but i've still been busy with long hours at school, planning lessons, reviewing student work, and completing my worksample. in fact, i was so tired after school today that i spent my friday night taking a nap!

for those of you who don't know what a worksample is, it's a lengthy unit plan which must meet multiple pages of requirements prescribed by the oregon teacher standards and practices commission. all in all, i have over 55 pages in mine so far and continue to edit and add to it as i teach it throughout january. i spent most of last weekend working on mine, after which my dad remarked, "i hope they're paying you well for all of the hard work you do." very funny!

although lesson planning isn't often a fun nor thrilling experience, it is interesting and rewarding. i've been learning more than i ever wanted to know about mammals and the students are excited to research a mammal of their choice. during science this past week i've heard, "ms. r, did you know that...?" repeatedly. as a teacher and lifelong learner, academic talk is music to my ears!

in addition to science i've also been teaching math and pe. the students have been talking about the new nintendo wii non-stop, so i connected our math lesson with their interest by showing them a misleading graph comparing the product to other game systems. it makes me smile to recall how up in arms they were when i pretended to use the graph to persuade them that playstation was the most popular. this weekend i'll be figuring out how to teach 3rd, 4th, and 5th graders to play hockey. any experts out there?

overall, i'm feeling blessed to have this opportunity to fine tune my skills and try new teaching strategies with these amazing students. my teacher's and supervisor's feedback is helping me to improve and to provide welcomed assurance. it felt good to read my supervisor's note which said, "as you progress through your career always remember and appreciate the gift you have in making that special connection with each student."