When I began student teaching I knew exactly the kind of educator I wanted to be. After all, I had spent two semesters in method courses which encouraged me to merge my own positive educational experiences and the growing body of research in the field. With this knowledge I developed an educational platform that I felt represented evidence based practices and my own dynamic personality.  After completing my student teaching experience I still stand firmly behind my platform, however, I now have a better understanding of what implementing my platform entails. Through this experience, I have come to understand the time commitment and long-term planning that fulfilling my own expectations requires. Additionally, I have had the privilege of witnessing the joy and success that a hands-on, child-centered education can create. The science circus on simple machines I developed with a fellow student teacher was an extremely rewarding event and a great example of the type of learning environment I enjoy most.

Interestingly, one of my favorite units to create and teach was Resources and Economics. At first glance, I felt that much of the vocabulary was abstract and of little importance to third graders.  Luckily, after some thought, I was able to find ways to relate terms such as economic specialization and scarcity to situations that actually effected my students. As we made our way through the Economics packet and the lesson plans I developed, it was evident that the students were excited and genuinely interested in what they were learning. However, when my lesson did not work out as planned or a particular concept was more difficult for students to grasp than I had anticipated, I found suggestions from my cooperating teacher and team members to be invaluable.

As a student teacher I quickly learned that working alone is often not the best strategy to use when surrounded by more experienced educators and a community willing to lend a helping hand. I found that through effective communication with parents (through notes and classroom newsletters) and by collaborating with other members of the school faculty, opportunities and resources were suddenly available that would otherwise have been impossible to obtain. For example, in working with the SHIP coordinator at Rawls Byrd, my students were able to participate in an interactive and educational activity each week. On one particular day, the students were able to do a geometric shape sort with the SHIP coordinator which prepared them for the scavenger hunt for geometric shapes they completed with me.  Because the students had already been introduced to shapes and all of their characteristics during the sort, I was able to use the scavenger hunt as an informal assessment of the students’ understanding of major concepts. From my assessment I was able to determine what areas of the subject needed to be revisited and what information they had successfully acquired.  When neccessary, I also developed  differentiated lessons or set up small groups to emphasize particular skills.

In addition, I used formal assessments such as results from county issued benchmark tests to make educational decisions for my students. With the guidance of my cooperating teacher, I went through the results of the writing benchmark tests and noted areas of my students’ strengths and weaknesses. After looking at the compiled list we discussed ways that we could work to improve the performance of our children in these categories. By setting achievement goals and making students aware of them, I helped students make great progress towards their individual literacy objectives. Through practice with the POWERS writing process, guided reading lessons, and interactive activities such as my Language Review, I feel that my students approached subsequent standardized tests with confidence.

As a student myself, I understood the importance of believing in one's own abilities.  Therefore throughout my time with the students, I tried to encourage a positive learning environment in which my students approached new subjects with enthusiasm and took great pride in their work.  For example, during one of my lessons I read The Little Engine That Could (by Watty Piper) and asked  students to discuss what motivated them most.  Following the activity, I emphasized the importance of viewing the classroom as a community in which we all worked to help each other. 

Although my students were generally very supportive of one another and sensitive to the needs of their peers, there were a few occasions on which I felt the need to intervene in order to prevent a conflict between students from escalating.  During these situations, I did my best to remain calm yet firm.  In sticking with my behavior plan, I reminded students of the common objectives we shared and the responsibilities we had within our classroom. 

Overall, student teaching was a time of reflection and growth.  I rediscovered how creative and patient I truly am and realized the value of planning and collaboration within the field of education.  As a result of my experiences I have a greater commitment to the profession.  While I recognize that the road ahead of me will be filled with a new set of challenges, I believe that I have been prepared with the tools to meet them head on.