ED357 REMINDERS AND MORE

Dear ED357 Students,

I'm pleased with the work that you've accomplished, knowledge that you've gained, literacy strategies that you've learned, and so much more!

In any event, it's that time of the semester again wherein we need to finalize all remaining course requirements. By now all assignments that you've submitted throughout the semester should have been graded. If I missed anything, please let me know as soon as possible.

If you haven't caught up, it is imperative that you communicate with me immediately. I have made considerations on a case-by-case basis with the understanding that quality work will be submitted.

Keep in mind that this Thursday we will be meeting in class. Be prepared to present your philosophy on the teaching of reading.  As a recap, the following are the remaining topics for our class:

MAY 2:                     

-Present philosophy about the teaching of reading

-Post Reflection in Class Blog at www.blogger.com  (http://ed357spring2013.blogspot.com)

MAY 7:                      

Moodle Session:

-Philosophy Paper Due

-Effective Literacy Website #1 Review Due

MAY 9:          

Moodle Session:

-Book Review #2 Due

-Effective Literacy Website #2 Review Due

-Post Reflection in Class Blog at www.blogger.com  (http://ed357spring2013.blogspot.com)

MAY 14:                    

Moodle Session:

-Final Self-Reflection Due

-Effective Literacy Website #3 Review Due

MAY 16:                    

-LiveText Presentation

-Learning Log Due

-Post Final Reflection in Class Blog at www.blogger.com    (http://ed357spring2013.blogspot.com)

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Be sure to also keep up with your blogging, as it is part of our online collaboration. You must reply/comment on your classmates' postings/entries as well.

I modified the lengthy LiveText Portfolio designing/submission in order to meet the needs of those who require additional time to complete the rest of the course requirements. Therefore, with regards to LiveText, you will only be required to submit the main artifact, namely the write-up for the presentation of the teaching aid, as this will be evaluated with an oral presentation rubric in LiveText.  You may submit this in LiveText now, if you haven't already.

Good luck, keep me posted, and I’ll see you on Thursday!

All the best,
Dr. Rivera

Book Reviews & Much More

      I really enjoyed today's class discussions, which were different children books, students with special needs, and classroom management. Reading different types of books to students is important, because it allows them to learn and be engage in the story. Everyone's choice of book was very diverse, i.e. fables (Jen's book: Doctor De Soto, Evin's book: The Ant and the Grasshopper), philosophical (Kelsey's book: The Giving Tree), science fiction (Amanda's book: A Wrinkle in Time), and child friendly (Rachel's book: Mouse Mess and Rhea's book: The Artist who Painted a Horse Blue). All of the books that were mentioned in class were great books that any teacher can incorporate in his/her classroom. I will definitely use these books in my future classroom, because they are fun and it will make the students learn.

     The next topic that we discuss in class were students with special needs and classroom management. I believe that students with a disability are capable of succeeding in life the same way a “normal” (as society perceives) person can. They are capable of doing what other people can do; the only difference is that individuals with a disability have a unique way of learning and living life. It is important that schools provide awareness or training to those who are working with individuals with disabilities, because it will allow them to understand their disability and provide accommodations.

     Classroom management is one of the most important functions in a classroom. It ensures that students are staying on task and continually learning material that is being taught. How a classroom is managed is a  reflection of the teacher and their ability to prepare for any situations that may occur in the classroom. 

Accommodating disabilities and classroom management

          In today's class session I shared my practicum experience from this morning, and my book review.  I shared the book Doctor De Soto with a second grade class at Price Elementary.  After reading the story, the students completed a story map that included the title, characters, setting, problem, and solution.  When they were finished with the story map, I asked them to write their own story continuing from where we left off with Doctor De Soto and his wife taking the day off.  I asked them to draw a picture to illustrate what they think the De Soto's did.  The students' stories were very interesting, some of them wrote about going shopping at Macy's and going to the beach.
          We also discussed disabilities and how we can accommodate our students with disabilities in the least restrictive environment.  Some disabilities we discussed were speech impairments, visual impairments, Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD), Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), and emotional disorders.  I believe knowledge about how we can accommodate these students are very important because they are mainstreamed into our classroom.  I like how Rachel and Amanda shared their ideas on how we can solve the problems that regular classroom teachers are faced with when teaching or dealing with a student with a disability.
          The last topic we talked about in class was classroom management.  It is very important to have strong management skills when it comes to your classroom.  It not only will encourage student learning, but it will also help the teacher as well.  Overall, I absorbed a lot of information from today's session as far as disabilities, classroom management, and the integration of technology.  Today's session also added more titles to my book list!

Special Needs/ Book Review

   Today in class, we discussed our book review #1 and explained how it will impact student learning. I thought all the stories were great and I will definitely keep them in mind to use in my future class. We also discussed how to approach students with special needs and what strategies work best. Inclusion is a critical part when teaching and allowing all students to be a part of the mainstream classroom is very important. We went over accommodations and modifications and the possible training that teachers need to be well equipped in the classroom. Our role as a teacher is to facilitate and we have create an environment that students will feel comfortable in. Providing a print rich environment is one of the many things teachers can do to make the classroom more inviting. Learning about all the different strategies and approaches to include all students, especially students with special needs is something that I will definitely keep in mind, and hopefully in the future I will take more courses on special education to enhance my knowledge.

Congratulations everyone! We finished the book! Hope everyone has a great weekend!

Books To Share

     Today we shares all our book review books. I really liked the books everyone selected. Some of the books shared was the Mouse Mess, The Lourax, Doctor DeSoto, The Giving Tree and the Wrinkle in Time. They are all great stories to put into our classroom library. I am excited to get a chance to read the books I haven't read yet.
     We also talked about SPED and having children with disabilities in our class room and classroom management. We discussed ways we can accommodate them in our classroom such as giving children more time or following BMPs. I am disappointed that not all education majors have a chance to be introduced to the basic information of SPED situations. I really think it is something important and we should be given more opportunities to gain some knowlege on the children with these special needs.
     As for classroom management I think it takes a good teacher a couple tries to get something down packed in their classroom. As we know every year is a new set of children and we are not always lucky to have the same method work with a new bunch. However we do need to always be ready with a back up plan the event plans A, B, C, and D do not work. Being prepared is key.

Book Reviews, Special Needs, and Classroom Management

   In today's session everyone shared their book reviews with the class. There was some books that were familiar like The Lorax and Dr. DeSoto, then there were others like The Artist Who Painted A Blue Horse and A Wrinkle in Time. I was pleased to hear about all the new stories that were discussed today and to also reminisce with those that I have read before.
   After everyone presented their books, Dr. Rivera started her lecture on special needs. She touched base with the different acronyms and laws that were associated with special needs and followed after were the different accommodations we can provide students, whether they have disabilities or gifted. The next discussion we had was about classroom organization and management. Things we discussed were how teachers are facilitators and decision maker and that it is our responsibility to provide a safe and comfortable learning environment. some factors that can create such an environment are to have age appropriate furniture (sink, toilets, counters, etc) and to also make it print rich. I feel that a classroom should be in a sense animated and eye-catching for students so that they will enjoy being in the classroom, but not to the point where it would be distracting during instruction.

Readers with Special Needs and Classroom Management

Great discussion today! The focus was on students with special needs and classroom management. It is very important to understand that students with special needs need to be included in instruction like everyone else. I truly feel that more training should be required of teachers regarding strategies and accommodations. We, as college students aspiring to be educators, also should take courses that emphasize this issue. Classroom management is also essential. Unless a teacher has a good hold of their class regarding behavior, learning will be affected. Behavior is becoming a big reason why students are struggling in school. I also enjoyed everyone's book discussions. There are so many wonderful books that we can use in our class so it was really hard to choose. What's important is that we utilize books that engage students and can help them meet learning objectives. Good job to Jen who did her practicum today. It sounded like the students enjoyed it!