Teacher Log

Quiz Bowl

2007-03-07T19:45:00.000-08:00

This year, myself and a buddy of mine, revived the Quiz Bowl Team at Olive Branch High School. We have a great group of students. They are all highly intelligent, and they are a lot of fun to be around. Two weeks ago, we hosted a late night quiz bowl practice. It started at 4 p.m. and lasted until 1 a.m. The kids had a great time. We had lots of tournament practice, but most importantly, we had a scavenger hunt of the high school. The hunt lasted a little over two hours. The kids had a great time. The minute it was over, the kids were begging to have another one. So, we are planning on having another one soon, maybe in May. Last Saturday, we went to a quiz bowl competion at Ole Miss. We placed in the top 24 out of 64 teams. I was extremely pleased with their progress. Many of our students have never been on a quiz bowl team, and for this to be the first year back for quiz bowl, I was pleased with our placement. In addition, the Thursday before our competion at Ole Miss, we took a group of Math Students (some my quiz bowl kids) to the Mississippi University for Women in Columbus for a Math Tournament. This was the first time we had ever participated in this competition. We placed 7th in the competition. Once again, I was pleased with our progress. I believe that with more time and practice, we will place ever higher.

A New Semester

2007-01-04T17:48:00.000-08:00

Oh, a new semester has begun. The students are energized and ready to go, and so are the teachers. WRONG! As always, our break is never long enough. However, this year, our break was even shorter. Our last day was December 20. Teachers had to report back January 2 and students reported back January 3. It just seems to get shorter and shorter each year. At least we did go back to a three day week! So, that makes Friday come much quicker and faster! It seems with each break, we come back to school and beging to plan for one thing, the next break. Everyone is now counting down the days to King/Lee Day, then President's Day, and then the biggie, Spring Break! Everyone is already looking forward to all of these. This new semester does bring about some good things though. As teachers, we can all set goals. We can try a new teaching technique, and we could try new student motivations and involvements. At times, the break does seem to refresh us all. It gives us a fresh start, and a sense that we do not have long to go. After all, we are half way there! To you first years, the hardest is over. This semester will fly by. I have already been back in school three days and they have flown by. After all, remember, just one more week and then we get a holiday :)

Blogging

2007-01-04T17:43:00.000-08:00

In the beginning, blogging seemed like a good idea. It was a way for all of us to stay in touch, and make sure that everyone was keeping "their sanity." In addition, it was a great way to get new and exciting ideas. We could see what techniques worked for people when it came to important issues such as classroom management and student achievement. However, as our second year comes to a close, blogging has become more and more of a challenge and a requirement. I use to enjoy expressing my thoughts and opinions on here, but now, it seems like we are all rushing to sit down right before the deadline to get these in. Don't get me wrong, blogging was a good thing, at first. Like I said, it was a means of communication and a way of "venting." Now, though, it becomes harder and harder. We have so much other stuff going on and we must try to find the time to submit a blog on some topics that we know little to nothing about or that we do not even care to write about. Thus, I believe that it might be better to end the blogging either after the first year or the first semester of the second year. This would make it better.

Quiz Bowl

2006-11-30T22:10:00.000-08:00

In my other blog, I spoke of the quiz bowl team that I
started here at Olive Branch High School. When I was at Ole
Miss, I helped moderate quiz bowl competitions for five
years. In addition my current roommate (and a teacher at
OBHS) helped moderate, as well. So, since my both had so
much knowledge of the quiz bowls, it would only seem
appropriate if we started a quiz bowl team. Also, a friend
of mine moved to Olive Branch, and he was actually in charge
of the quiz bowls at the University. (That is how we meet
him plus through a mutual friend.) So with all this
knowledge, of the competition we decided to start a quiz
bowl team. By the first of September, we had fifteen
dedicated students. They loved the competitions, and they
grew to love the practices. At times, they even refused to
leave practices. They wanted to stay and practice longer.
October came, and it was time for competition. With only
two months of practice, I thought that our time excelled to
a high level. I knew that we would be competitive, but I
never thought we would do as well as we actually did. We
placed 2nd in our bracket, and 9th in the overall
tournament. I was so excited for them. I know that as we
continue to practice, we will get better and better. Our
next tournament is in March. We are already busy at work
for this tournament. I love quiz bowl because it gives me a
chance to work with the extremely smart kids, and they all
have great personalities. In the end, it is one of the most
rewarding things that I have done since I became a teacher.

My Plans for Next Years

2006-11-30T22:07:00.000-08:00

My plans for next year are easy. As most everyone knows, I
am in this profession for the long haul. I am not one of
those who plans to teach for a couple of years and then move
on to that big fine office with the big leather chair. That
is not for me. I plan to continue to teach in Olive Branch.
In fact, I have every intention of being here for at least
25 years. I enjoy my job. I love the people that I work
with, and I have made lasting friendships at this school. I
have a very wonderful administration, and they support me
110%. Most importantly, I love the kids. They are always a
lot of fun, and they add interest to sometimes a dull day.
I plan to continue to coach our newly founded Quiz Bowl
Team. When I was at Ole Miss, I always helped with the
UMAIT and Brain Brawl Quiz Bowl Competitons. When I came
here to Olive Branch, I was shocked to discover that one of
the largest high schools in the state did not have a quiz
bowl team. So, I (along with some help) set out to found a
quiz bowl team. We did so, and they are already performing
extremely well. So, as for next year, I plan to continue to
work with them. In truthfulness, I am looking forward to
next year. I believe that as I continue to teach, I will
become a better teacher, and hopefully, one day, I will
reach that "Master Teacher" level.

Homecoming

2006-11-03T20:06:00.000-08:00

Well, after a long two weeks, the day has finally arrived. That is correct, today is homecoming. For the past two weeks, I have been helping with the freshman float. I was asked about three weeks ago to be the chairman of the freshman float. I graciously accepted the offer. Mostly because I love working on stuff like this, and it sort of took me back to my former years of high school. All week has been Spirit Week. It has been so much fun. The kids really got into it, but most of all, the teachers got into it (including myself). Monday was career day and I went as a farmer. Tuesday was Halloween Day and I went as Santa Claus. Wednesday was pajama day, and I was happy to go in my Ole Miss pajamas all day long. Thursday was 80 year old day. Yes, I came as an 80 year old with the walker and everything. Today was Blue and Gold Day. This year, the theme for homecoming was OB Pride (recommended by myself and another teacher). We decided to go with this theme since we recently split into multiple high schools. This would allow the kids to have a sense of what it is actually like to have OB Pride. The theme of our float was Take A Ride With OB Pride. It included race cars, and the kids waved blue and yellow checkered flags. The kids had a great time with it. The truth is, I think I did as well. The point is this. High School cannot be just about work. It has to promote a sense of duty and pride. To me, that is exactly what was done here today.

Mississippi

2006-10-29T08:55:00.000-08:00

I love Mississippi. I was born and raised here, and too many times, she is not treated with the respect that she deserves. All too often, stereotypes begin to play a key roll when people speak the name of Mississippi. But to me, these stereotypes are not true. Most people have a sense of fear when they come to Mississippi for the first time. It is that, “Lock the door when driving through there” mentality. They seem to believe that racism stills reigns, but I disagree. In fact, most of my friends are black. We all have a great relationship with each other. Hence, people should not automatically make assumptions about a certain place. The truth is that you will find genuine people who put other needs before their own. Mississippi is the most giving state in the Union, per capita. Morgan Freeman once said that “I did not choose Mississippi, but she chose me.” I totally agree with this statement. In fact, I am glad that she chose me. From the vast Mississippi Delta to the gentle rolling hills, Mississippi has so much to offer. This past summer, Matt Lochen and I took a 7 day tour of Mississippi. We stayed with people that I knew all along the way. We went through the Delta to Merigold, Yazoo City, Clarksdale, Belzoni, and many other small unique places. We then went down to Vicksburg and Natchez. We then headed down towards Jerry Clower’s home at Route 4, Liberty, Mississippi. We went to the gulf coast to see the area devastated by Hurricane Katrina. To say the least, it was a fun . Matt was able to see what all Mississippi had to offer, and I was able to see thing that I had never seen before. From this, I really saw what Mississippi really is. She is a wonderful state with great people who love and value each other.

Football, nothing else like it!

2006-10-05T18:50:00.002-07:00

As everyone knows, I love football. For as long as I can remember, I have been a huge football fan. So many times, football gets put under the microscope, so to speak. Many people do not believe that football should be held in high regards. While I agree with this, I also disagree with this. Academics are the most important things in a school. However, for so many students football is their form of "enjoyment" when it comes to high school. Football is "their way out, " so to speak. Anyway, football is important to so many students, and it gives them an opportunity to be actively involved in the high school activites.

This past Friday, the largest game in the state of Mississippi was played at Olive Branch High School. In fact, it was named as the game of the week in the USA Today. The number 1 team took on the number 2 team. That is right, South Panola High School took on Olive Branch High School. It was one of the most exciting football games that I have been to in a long time. We had to be at the school pretty much the entire day to help with parking and other things. By 5:30, the campus was packed and we had closed the campus. By 7:30 the stadium was closed as over 8,000 fans packed the stadium. It was so exciting to be there. Everyone was happy and cheering for their Tigers or Conquistadors. In the end, South Panola won 12 to 7. However, Olive Branch should have won the game. They lost due to a fumble on one of the last drives of the game. To say the least, it was a great game, and it provided a way for us to come together as an Olive Branch family.

Getting Kids to do Their Homework

2006-10-05T18:48:00.000-07:00

To get students to do their homework, this is never an easy task. I struggled for a semester with class averages in the basement in Pre-Algebra. Everyone told me with Pre-Algebra not to expect a miracle. They said that normally class averages would be in the high 60s, and I would have to accept that and move on. At Christmas last year, I decided to change that. At that time, I had two classes of Pre-Algebra. Both of their averages were in the mid 60s. Everyone kept telling me how good that was for those classes. The problem was that they were not doing their homework. Homework counts about 50% to 60% of my average. So, if you don't do your homework, you will fail. I decided to turn it into a class competition. I wrote both of the class averages at the top of the board. Each day, I updated them. I told them that whoever had the highest average at the end of the nine weeks, I would give them a pizza party. They didn't exactly understand the concept of how to get their averages to go up. So, I told them that I would make a deal with them. I told them that if everyone would do their homework and bring it to class, I would promise them that their class average would go up. If it didn't I would eat my notebook. So, the next day, everyone had their homework. The class average shot up by 2 points. The kids got so excited! Both class averages began to rise. The kids were doing their homework. By May, both class averages were in the mid 70s. This was a huge accomplishment. This year, I started out with the same procedure. As I look at my front board, my Pre-Algebra averages are 78, 77, 76, and 80. So, it is clear that this will work. Turn your homework into a class competition, and they will improve. If you only have one class of a particular subject, then set the bar high. For example, tell them that if they get an 80 class average, then you will give them a reward.

Computer Class

2006-06-27T17:22:00.000-07:00

Well, I guess I could say I was the lucky one in this case. This time, I got to sit back and observe what was going on. I guess you could say that I was on the outside looking in. As most people know, I did not have to take the computer class because I already had this class. I am extremely grateful that I have already had this class, actually. I took this class two years ago, I think. I took it under Dr. Clif Mims at the University of Mississippi. He was an excellent instructor, and he showed us so many neat things that we could do with the computer. Out of all the classes that I have taken to receive my master’s degree, I would say that this was definitely one of the most beneficial classes to me. He showed us how to build a webpage,shortcuts in Word, and how to do neat things with PowerPoint. I still use some of the stuff that the taught us. This course was so helpful to me. He taught us how to make animated figures pop up on the screen and dance. He also showed us some awesome websites were we could get valuable material. Do I remember everything that he taught us? No. But, I have used a lot of his methods in my classroom when it comes to technology. Some of us in Mississippi Teacher Corps do not use Power Point. Why? Because some people do not know how to properly use Power Point. They will tellyou that they do not know how to use it. This course (the one that I took) would have been so helpful to everyone! It is something that we can actually use in our day to dayteaching lives. The whole point of this program is for us to take classes to help us become better teachers. These courses need to show us new methods and ideas to carry backto the classroom. In short, if it won’t benefit me in the classroom, then I don’t need it. This is one class that was an excellent course to offer to teachers. Technology ishere, and it is the future. In short, I believe that it is my fellow 2nd year teachers who have lost out in this battle. They could have learned and used these valuable resources that they could have been taught in an actual computer course.

The Good Thing

2006-06-26T12:12:00.000-07:00

I can definitely say that I have seen a lot of things in summer school at Holly Springs. A lot of things: Some good, some bad, some even worse than that. But, I am going to say one thing that I enjoyed about this whole experience. I enjoyed getting to watch other teachers teach. At times,was it boring, yes. It wasn’t their fault. They were not boring. It was just the simple fact of sitting there all day long. I don’t see how the students do it. It is torture. I mean, there should be some compensation in their grade for torture pay. I did enjoy watching others teach. For nine months, I sat in a classroom, and every day, I taught. I never got to leave my room to go and watch a fellow colleague teach a subject that I would actually teach. I had no way to gain information or new ideas. Now,I have a few that I can use. I already use a lot ofdifferent teaching methods in my classroom. I have some different ideas and projects that I can implement into my room. In addition, next year will be my first year toactually teach Algebra I. (It will also be an inclusion class) So, this summer has better prepared me to teach Algebra I in the fall. I now have a whole year worth of lesson plans, work sheets, and activities. This is the bright side of the coin. I have two notebooks jammed full of information that I will not have to worry about in the fall. I would say that 70% to 80% of my planning has already been done for me. I am also teaching Transition to Algebra and Pre-Algebra in the fall. I taught these subjects last year, so I should be pretty prepared for nextyear. Hopefully I can take the time to implement even more teaching methods into my room next year since I have so many things already done for me. I guess the main thing that Iam excited about now is JULY! I need a break. I am beyond burned out.

Summer School Experience

2006-06-26T12:06:00.000-07:00

Where do I begin with the summer school experience….. The first week was unorganized and chaotic. No one knew what to do. The lunch schedule was a nightmare. Fifty minutes with kids, food, and idle time does not make a good environment for anyone. After two days of this, the lunch schedule was finally smoothed out. The extra twenty minutes of review/remediation proved to be very useful. Overall, the kids have been great. We have had little to no discipline problems. However, here are a few suggestions for next year:

1. We need an MTC Administrator on sight at all times! No one knew who to report to with a problem. Joe wound up doing this role without the title. We had no one to report to with issues. In addition, we had no one to check in with each day.

2. You need at least two second year teachers in every room. If this is not possible, then give this room an extra first year teacher. I only had myself and another first year teacher for the first two weeks of class. So, it was difficult to do everything! I wound up doing double the work of all the other second year MTC teachers. I had to teach almost twice the amount of lessons. Plus, I had to be in the room at all times. Thank goodness I had Tiffany andAdryon. They were a lifesaver! If it should arise that a second year teacher has to be in the room by themselves, make sure that ALL of their first years will be here the first week. This would have been so helpful to me instead of waiting two weeks to get another teacher. But, who knows, next year, the person in my shoes may not have a lifesaver!

3. Have registration in advance. This will give us the necessary information before we ever enter the classroom. This will allow us to see how many students are in every section, and to see if we can eliminate sections, or if we need to add sections. This will eliminate having 28 students in one section of Pre-Algebra and 8 Students in one section of Algebra I. It will also eliminate having five teachers in one section for two students! This way, we could hopefully even out the numbers a little better next time. In addition, it is not fair to switch a teacher to a different subject after they have spent a week doing lesson plans.

4. Second year teachers need more incentives. We have already taught for 9 months (really longer than that if you count summer school last summer). We are tired and burned out. We are not getting paid for this, and now, we do not even have laptops to use. We are getting a $200 stipend (thatwill probably be taxed). We got a huge stipend last summer, so what about this summer. I mean, this was added to our program. So, can’t we get a little something out of all the work that we did? Can’t we keep the laptops or something? It appears that the morale among second years is lower here than it is on the war front in Iraq.

5. The computer class should not be a computer based class. I will have a separate blog about this.

These are just some of my thoughts about summer school. Overall, the summer school experience has been a unique experience. I think next year will be better. It will be better organized with more time and thought put into the entire process.

Effective Lesson

2006-06-15T12:02:00.000-07:00

Lots of lessons are effective because there are many different ways to teach. Some students learn through listening, others by seeing, and then others by doing. To me, the best way to get a student involved in learning is to learn by doing. If a student is physically involved with the learning, then they are sure to learn and remember the information better. This past year, I taught Transistion to Algebra. At the end of the year, there is a unit on geometry. Geometry is one of my favorite math subjects because it involves so many real life situations. In addition, with the students that I am teaching, this is what they need to know about. Most of these students will not go to college. So, they will need to know about real-life applications.

For example, they will need to know how to calculate the area of a room to see how much flooring to lay down. They may need to know how to measure lumber to cut it to an exact length. There is a lot of neat and fun stuff that you can do with geometry. For example, when you teach the Pythagorean Theorem, you can bring a ladder to school. Tell the students how far the ladder is up on the wall and how far away from the wall that it is. Then, the students calculate the length of the ladder. It is a great hands on assessment. This can be used to see how far a ladder needs to be extended to reach a certain point on a wall with so many feet from the wall. Furthermore, I developed a neat way to use measurement. I divided the class into partners. Each group was given a tape measure and a list of items in the room. It included everything from the floor, the door, to the clock on the wall. They had to measure these items, then calculuate the area, perimeter, or the circumference. It worked great. The kids greatly enjoyed it, and they were actually learning using hands on activities. Plus, they will remember this stuff because they were involved in the learning.

Corporal Punishment

2006-06-12T12:02:00.000-07:00

By growing up in Mississippi, I was always use to corporalpunishment. Since the first day of class, I remembereveryone being afraid of getting a paddling. Hence, therewas order in school. To this day, I continue to supportcorporal punishment. I have come to realize that corporalpunishment does not work in all situations. At times,corporal punishment does work, and it does get the job done. At other times, though, there are more appropriate means ofpunishment. For some students, it is no big deal to get apaddling. In fact, some students prefer to get a paddlingrather than be suspended for a day, go to in-schoolsuspension, or do community service. On the flip side,though, there are those students who never want a paddling. They would much rather sit in in-school suspension or pickup trash outside. I taught this student one time who triedto get community service. He enjoyed going out of schooland picking up trash. I guess it gave him a sense offreedom. So, he would try to do minor things at school toget put in community service. Everyone eventually caught onto what he was doing. He wanted to get written up so hecould pick up trash. He did not, however, want a paddling. So, in his case, corporal punishment did work for him. Onthe flip side, sometimes, corporal punishment is a way forstudents to get out of doing punishment. For example, I hada student one time who was given community service at lunchtime. Hence, he had to clean up the cafeteria aftereveryone had eaten. He hated that. There was no way he wasgoing to do that. So, instead, he decided that he wouldrather take a paddling than have to perform this lunchcommunity service. So, here corporal punishment would notwork. This is what he wanted. In short, yes, I do supportcorporal punishment. Is it always appropriate? The answeris simply no. Corporal punishment works for somesituations, for others not. In addition, corporalpunishment works for some students but not others.

My Student, Sam

2006-06-08T17:14:00.000-07:00

I remember the first time that I saw Sam. He was a tall boyof about six foot two inches. He was only in the ninthgrade, but I understood that he was an outstanding footballplayer and a leader on his Junior Varsity team. I laterunderstood the rest of Sam’s story. Sam came from amiddle class family. His father worked in the constructionbusiness, and I am not exactly sure what his mother did. His parents worked hard, but that was the end of it. Thesupport that Sam received at home was zero, or maybe lessthan that. I had to constantly push him to do well. Forseven hours a day, I was trying to pull him up while hisparents were at home telling him that he was worthless. Needless to say, I had to start all over and try to undo thedamage that his parents had done the night before. The sadthing was that Sam was and is a good kid. His grades wereexcellent as long as he had somewhere there to brag on him. One time, I had to have a parent conference with hisparents. His mother did not show up, but his father wasthere. The conference was required, so Sam had done nothingwrong. It was mainly to talk about Sam’s future plans. Iknew that as sad as it was, if Sam left behind his home andparents, he would be a success in life. Their main role wasto unfortunately drag him down. Another teacher and I beganto brag on Sam and the excellent student that he was. Itold his father that he was a true success story if I hadever seen one told. At the beginning of the year, Sam didnot care much about his grades, but as the year went on, hebegan to care more and more. I believe he was finallybeginning to break free of his parents. As we told his dadhow proud we were of him, his dad began to laugh and tell usthat the must be talking about a different kid. He saidthat there was no way for us to be talking about him. Samleft that meeting lower than every before. I finally sawwhat he had to deal with every day of his life. The verbalabuse was insane. How could a parent hate their kid? Howcould they set them up for failure. It was beyond me. Yetonce, again, as I walked Sam back to class, I began my joball over again. I began to undo what his father had justdone.

Summer School, so far

2006-06-08T17:12:00.000-07:00

Wow, it is hard to believe that the first two weeks ofsummer classes has already passed. It is even harder tobelieve that the first week of summer school has alreadyended (Thank goodness!). Now it is time for the 1st yearsto begin to take over the reins with us as 2nd years in thepassenger seat, but still close at hand. I have not met oneof my first years yet. She will be here on Monday, Ibelieve. I hope so because she is missing out on watchingme teach so much. The first week of summer school was alittle rocky at first. There was some confusion with theadministration, and the entire running of the summer schoolprogram. After 4 days, it appears that we finally have thelunch system figured out. I hope that it will stay the samefor now. Everything inside the classroom is running well. Adrian, Tiffany, and I work extremely well together. (Thank goodness that I have someone that I can work with and havefun with. ) In addition, we have two verydedicated first year teachers who I believe will be a hugesuccess. Jamilia and Hunter work well with us, and theyappear to have a great excitement for teaching. To behonest, the summer school program is a little difficult tohandle. Maybe I’m just getting out. Since I am the only2nd year in my room, I have had to already teach elevenlessons. That was a bit much for me in the first week. Iam okay with teaching eleven lessons in one week, but whenit is eleven different lesson (especially four differentlessons in one day) it is a bit much to handle. But, Istill pulled it off some way. Anyway, as this progresses, Ibelieve that it will be very beneficial to the first years. Most importantly, they need to get the most in classroomexperience, and that is what they are doing. I believe inthe end that it will be beneficial to them once they get theswing of things.

The First Year

2006-06-02T09:17:00.000-07:00

It is hard to believe that the first year has already come and gone. What did I think about it? It was great! I got to meet some great people, and I love the kids. The first year was very tiring. In fact, sometimes, I didn't know if I could do it. Some days, it was impossible to keep up. I felt like a dog running after a car at times. But, not matter what, it was worth it. Was everyday great? Of course not. Not everyday is perfect. At any rate, it was fun! I have finally learned that I love to teach. I can only imagine what the next years will be like. Right now, I plan on teaching forever (yes, this is coming from a first year teacher). I can't wait to get started on everything next year. I can only imagine what it will be like for next year.

The Last Weeks

2006-05-31T06:21:00.000-07:00

I would like to say that my last weeks at school were great, but they were not. They were extremely difficult. The difficulty did not lie with my kids, but with me personally. One of my best friends and co-workers lost his 15 day old baby in mid-May. So, I was with him for two days. It was extremely difficult for me to hold it together the last few days. It was as if I was on an emotional roller coaster. After that, I then began the process of closing down two classrooms. I had to finalized the grades for both my and his classes. In addition, I had to give two finals every single period. I was giving his final and my final. Trust me, I am not complaining because I was glad that I could help out a true friend. At the same time, it was an extremely diffciult time for me. My body was at the school giving finals and wrapping up end of the year items, but my mind was elsewhere.

1100 Dozen Doughnuts

2006-04-03T20:29:00.000-07:00

Well, I never knew what it looked like to have 1100 Dozen
Doughnuts in one spot until last Friday. 

We have a history teacher here at Olive Branch High School.
Like me, he is a first year teacher and a Rebel Fan.  He
teaches just two doors down from me.  He and his wife are
expecting their first baby boy at the end of April.  About
two months ago, they discovered that the baby would be born
with a heart problem.  It would be as if the baby would be
born with only half a heart.  The baby will be delivered in
Ann Arbor, Michigan where he will have to have extensive
surgery.  So, I decided that something needed to be done to
help him out.  I approached the administration about the
idea, and we decided on a doughnut sale.  So, another
teacher and myself headed the doughnut sale.  I told
everyone that I wanted to sell at least 1,000 dozen
doughnuts.  Most people believed that it would never happen.
Well, it did.  In fact, we sold 1,100 dozen doughnuts.  We
raised over $4,300!!  The difficult job was finding a system
to give out 1,100 dozen doughnuts in a 1 hour and 50 minute
window.  But, we pulled that together, and it worked
beautifully.  In addition, the community was very supportive
of the drive.  My kids got actively involved, and they
enjoyed it greatly.  It really was nice to see a school and
community pull together and help a teacher in need.  In
addition, I felt good because I knew that I had help a
fellow teacher, and more importantly, a friend.

My Mississippi

2006-04-03T20:23:00.000-07:00

I Am Mississippi

I'm the land of the Choctaw
The hills of Vicksburg, and a cross-cut saw

Dinner on the ground and a muscadine vine
I'm a longleaf pine, and Mississippi's on my mind

I'm a banjo pickin' and all night sings
Azaleas a 'bloomin' in Ocean Springs

I'm a Gospel Singer and the old folks at home
And I'm the eagle on the top of the capitol's dome

I'm coffee in the morning and an ole smoked ham
Cathead biscuits and blackberry jam

I'm a Mississippi moon, a dusty Delta Dawn,
B. B. King, Magnolias in bloom

I'm an antebellum home on the Natchez Trace,
A rusty plow on the old home place

I'm Walter Payton catchin' a pass, Elvis Presley,
Coon hounds and bird dogs and tea of Sassafras

I'm Miss Mississippi and all her glory
I'm William Faulkner as he writes a story
I'm Jimmie Rodgers, the Singing Brakeman
John C. Stennis, a southern statesman

I'm the Mississippi River as it rounds the bend
I'm Gone with the Wind, y'all come back again

Well, I'm everything good you have ever dreamed about
Hush yo' mouth, I'm Mississippi
I am the South

These are the words that help me to describe Mississippi. Whenever I read this poem, I feel pride for the state that I love so dearly. In the words of native Mississippian Morgan Freeman, “I did not choose Mississippi, She chose me.” I am proud that Mississippi chose me. I love Mississippi. I was fortunate enough to be born in the great state of Mississippi, a place that is rich in history and culture. My great-great-great grandfather originally came to the area in the early 1800s after living in Nashville, Tennessee for a brief period to help build the Tennessee State Capitol. He chose Mississippi for its fertile soil and most importantly, its people.

Recently, Mississippi was devastated by the damaging effects of Hurricane Katrina when it came on shore near Waveland, Mississippi. Entire communities were wiped off the map. Mississippi was not often featured on the news. Why, you may ask. The reason why is because Mississippi takes care of itself. We do not sit and think that all is lost. Instead, we chose to help ourselves. Although Mississippi is one of the poorest states in the nation, we are the most giving state. We help ourselves. Even more importantly, we help our neighbor. Even when times are bad, Mississippians take great pride in their state and culture.

Mississippi has so much to be proud of. From the birthplace of Rock and Roll with Elvis Presley in Tupelo to the Birthplace of the Blues in the Mississippi Delta, Mississippi has a great legend of musicians. The Father of County Music, Jimmy Rogers, is from Meridian, Mississippi. Famous blues musicians such as B.B. King and Muddy Waters began their careers in their native Mississippi. Stars such as Faith Hill, from Star, Mississippi, and Charlie Pride, from Sledge, Mississippi, dot the Mississippi map with their careers.

Stars such as Morgan Freeman, Oprah Winfrey, Gerald McRaney (Major Dad), Jim Henson, and James Earl Jones are just a few that call Mississippi home. Mississippi produced some of the most beloved authors of our times. Literary legends such as Eudora Welty, William Faulkner, Tennessee Williams, John Grisham, and Willie Morris wrote about their beloved Mississippi. In fact, we could say that Mississippi made them famous.

Mississippi has contributed so much that has benefited the nation and world. The first successful heart and lung transplant was performed at the University of Mississippi Medical Center in Jackson. Coca-Cola and Pine-Sol were invented in Mississippi. The method of case law that is practiced throughout the nation was developed at the 4^th oldest law institute in the nation at the University of Mississippi Law School.

Mississippi is also home of some of the richest agriculture in the world. What other state can claim to have so many capitals? From the Watermelon Capital in Water Valley to the Sweet Potato Capital in Vardaman, Mississippi produces some of the finest agricultural products the world has ever seen. Belzoni, Mississippi is known as the Catfish Capital of the World because 70% of the nation’s catfish comes from that area. Cotton is still a major crop in the Mississippi Delta, especially in the Cotton Capital of Greenwood.

From the gentle rolls hills of Mississippi to the vast beautiful Mississippi Delta, Mississippi has something that is sure to satisfy anyone’s appetite. At the end of the long day, take a stroll across the sunny beaches of the gulf coast or sit under a shade tree at Rowan Oak. At any rate, take your shoes off and stay awhile at a little piece of heaven here on earth.

Not a consequence, not a rule............but a REWARD

2006-03-04T06:22:00.000-08:00

My 4th Period Class........ a nightmare. This was the firstweek of school. Fourth period was my first time to teach aPre-Algebra class (except for the one at Oxford MiddleSchool during the summer). There were 32 on roll with only29 desks. In addition, discipline problems across theboard. Terrible grades and even worse attitudes made up theentire class. Between talking out loud and police enteringthe room to arrest students, it was any wonder that I wasable to teach anything. As first semester went on, Ifinally had control of this room, some what. I thought, atfirst, that it might simply be a lost cause. Pre-Algebra isthe lowest math that 9th graders can take. So, the vastmajority of these students had extremely low math skills. Needless to say, I had a huge challenge before me. Since day one, I began using consequences with thesestudents. That worked for maybe two weeks. By then, theywere immune to the system. The only thing that seemed towork was the office. I had the full backing of theadministration when it came to this class. As I returnedafter Christmas, I decided to restructure this class. Idecided that the consequences were not working. So, Ishifted to the rewards. This reward worked great. I firsttold this class that if they entered the room each day, satin their seats, began on their boardwork, and classes wentwell, they would have some free time on Saturdays. This hasworked great! Basically, if they followed the procedures ofthe classroom, they would be rewarded. I can actually teachnow! Other things have greatly improved when it comes to my4th period class. I actually enjoy seeing them! They havegreat personalities, and we now have a lot of fun in 4thperiod. In additon, grades are coming up drastically. I amso proud of their last major test. In Desoto County, we useCMS testing. Normally, their class average on CMS Tests isabout 69. Which is about average for these students. Ontheir last CMS test, their class average was an 87!!! I wasSO PROUD! I have bragged on them to everyone that I comeinto contact with! I think that by enforcing the proceduresof my classroom, learning has drastically improved. So, forme, one particular consequence or rule did not do the job. A reward did.

Spring Break!!

2006-03-04T06:21:00.000-08:00

Well, Spring Break is just around the corner. Only one moreweek! I believe that the kids can even smell it! :) Thesaid thing is, I can too. I am ready for it! It seems likeeverone has a severe case of Spring Fever. It is beginningto get warm outside, and everone is ready to go SOMEWHERE! For Spring Break, I am going to California. I have neverbeen to California. I will be out there for almost a week. I am so excited. I think in the end, it will be a nicerelaxing get away for a little while. I think that it willhelp the overall attitudes in the classroom. The kids areready for a break, and I believe that the teachers are evenmore ready for it. The problem will be once we return fromSpring Break. This will be when we have some major SummerFever. We will have few (actually only one holiday) afterSpring Break. That is when we will be begging for summer:). For now, though, this is something to look forward to.

The Coordinate Plane

2006-02-03T14:09:00.000-08:00

Well, I certainly have used a lot that I learned during the summer in my classroom this year. During the summer, Lilly, Meredith, and I created a masking tape coordinate plane on the floor. It worked great in summer school! So, I decided to carry it over to this year. The kids loved it once again! When they walked into the room and saw the coordinate plane on the floor, they feel in love with it! They had a great time with it. We played games with it. In addition, it was a great review/ learning session for the kids. I am a huge believer in getting the kids actively involved. This way, it is easier for them to remember certain information. If you actually put a kid in something physically, they can easily remember it. It takes kids away from the norm of simply sitting in a desk and working problems. They are up and involved. Chances are that they will remember the information better.

Back to School

2006-02-03T14:07:00.000-08:00


For an entire semester, I heard that September would be the
hardest, then October, then February.  I totally disagree.
To me, January is the hardest.  You get back after 17 days
off, and the kids are crazy!  They are absolutely wild!  It
is as if you have to start over with day one.  At times, it
was as if the break was not worth it.  You have to remind
them of rules and procedures.  The discipline problems were
across the board.  Within two days of returning, I had 6
students in ALC (In-School Suspension).  Not necessarily
because I put them there, but because they were causing
problems in other classes.  I spoke with several teachers,
and they all said that the kids were crazy when returning
from Christmas.  Overall, it was discipline problems
everywhere.  Since I teach mostly freshmen, I was told that
they would mature greatly over Christmas.  WRONG, WRONG,
WRONG!  I have seen little to no change in their attitudes.
Most of them still do not care about their grades or
attitudes.  In addition, those students who had discipline
problems, still are discipline problems.  The only sure
thing that I can say is that my 4th period class is much
better.  Overall, they are finally under control (knock on
wood).  I finally have a grasp on them, and I can half-way
begin to give them a little edge.  So, I am pleased with
that.  Since we have been back for almost a month, things
are greatly improving.  My classes are beginning to get a
little smaller.  At December, I had 169 students.  I now
have 149.  So, that’s a good thing.  February is already
getting off to a good start.  So, I am looking forward to
the next months.

I can't wait (December Blog)

2005-12-16T15:53:00.000-08:00

Well, the semester is finally over! Thank goodness! I think the kids were ready for a break, and I know that I was was, as well. Although, I will enjoy the nice long break, I am also ready to get started with the new materials and objectives. I feel like January will be a fresh start for everyone. The kids will be rested, and I will as well. In addition, we will probably all be ready to get back into the swing of things come January. Right now, though, I don't want to rush anything. I simply want to sit back and take it easy for the next few weeks. To say the least, teaching is a very exhausting job. It takes alot of you, physically, emotionally, and MENTALLY! I can't wait to get started back though. As I said, I think that it will be a good new start for everyone involved. January should bring around new things. In addition, since I have one semester under my belt, I am looking forward to the next semester. Since I have a little more experience and know my kids well, then I should have new and great ideas for them. I can't wait.

This Semester

2005-12-16T15:51:00.000-08:00

Wow! The semester is finally over! It is hard to believe that I have been teaching for a semester! Being a teacher is just what I expected and much, much more. I never dreamed some of the things that would go on. When I started teaching, I had 128 students. I now have 164! I guess that is what I get for living in the fastest growing county in the state, and one of the top ten fastest growing counties in the nation! I heard that on average, 7.5 families move into Desoto County each day. That is crazy! I come from a small rural town where things do not move that rapidly. So, I have had some major adjustments to do in that area. Anyway, back to teaching.... I keep late hours. I work about 12 to 14 hours every day. Things are always rush, rush, rush. At some times, I feel as if I do not have a life except to come and teach. But then again, that is my life :).

Things went extremely well first semester. I feel as if I am a true success. Overall, my students are learning math. In addition, I KNOW that I have made a difference in some kids lives. So, I feel successful about that. Everything that could have happened did happen this year. OBHS played for the North Half Championship for the first time in history. So, that was exciting! Overall, everything went well in my classroom. I had a few problems, but nothing major. A student ate paper and a pencil one day. Later, he set his pants on fire in my room. To say the least, things were always interesting. It never failed that I would have a little excitement in my room. My first semester has been a great one, though!

My Changes Since Summer

2005-12-03T08:43:00.000-08:00

Well, since the summer, my attitude has changed just slightly. First, my students still come first. If all of my students are not with me in the lesson, then I do not move on. I do what is best for them (in a certain time frame). In addition, I still love teaching! It is the largest challenge that I have ever faced in my life. Some days you want to cry, others you laugh. In the end though, it is worth it because I am reaching some kid.

Earilier, I said that every child was teachable and capable of learning to a certain level. I still believe this to be somewhat true. Every child is teachable, but I am not sure if every child WANTS to be taught. I have one student now who has a discipline record as long as my leg. He is constantly getting into trouble!!! It seems as if one day I have him within my grasp, and the next thing I know is he in the office! He is currently on his third out of school suspension. He has been in ALC (in school suspension) 3 times already this year. I now believe that he may be a lost cause. I know what no child left behind says. But come on! Can I really get this kid on board while 161 others may be getting left behind because I am dealing with this one kid! Anyway, let me get off my soap box for now.

I still believe that teaching is a rewarding career. I am already reaping those benefits. I work with overall great kids, an excellent staff, and an ever greater administration. Overall, my thoughts since summer are the same. I am a lot more tired now, but I still love what I do.

Success Story

2005-11-04T20:13:00.000-08:00

My first months of teaching have been filled with many success stories. My 5th period inclusion class is finally going smoothly. I have gone from 18 not doing homework to 3. I have finally created a plan that works for them.

In addition, I have been working with a young man who had a 37 average in my room first nine weeks. I talked with him on several occasions. It finally occurred to me that he simply needed some positive praise in his life. All of his teachers have met with both his mother and father (they are divorced). His dad took his truck away from him. This finally did some good. However, his mother became a softy and gave him the truck back. So, we were back to square one. Anyway, to make a long story short, I talked with this kid, and he now has a 72 in my class! No, it is not great, but it is certainly a huge accomplishment. Needless to say, I consider this a success.

The actual success that I want to talk about is a young man in my Trans. to Algebra class. He is an inclusion student, and he does not have a good home life. A few months ago, he told some of his teachers that he greatly enjoyed my class. So, I was asked to serve as a role model for him. He does not have a good home life by any means. His strategies class is third period, the same period as my planning period. So, from time to time, I go into his strategies class and help him out if he needs it.

On Monday, we took a test in my room. He made a 100! I was so excited. I went into his 3rd period class, and I told him the good news. He was so excited. In addition, his strategies teacher bragged on him over and over. He was so proud. Since he had done all his work, his teacher told him to go with me to my room to help me out. When we went back to my room, I calculated his average. He had a 102 in my room! He was so excited again! During class, he ran up to the strategies teacher and asked her if she knew what his average was. He was so proud of his work.

Yesterday, we actually got to sit down and talk. He told me that in his life, he had moved 16 times. Most of the times, he did not remember. In addition, he told me that he never really understood math; however, this year was different. He said that it was as if I explained math in a way that he totally understood what I was talking about. I finally realized that this was the one success that all teachers hoped to reach. I had actually finally reached a student.

Another Success Story (October Blog)

2005-11-04T18:17:00.000-08:00

In my previous blog, I talked about a huge success story. In addition, I briefly discussed another success story. This success story is with my fifth period Inclusion class. To begin, this is Pre-Algebra. Nineteen of the 28 kids are inclusion students. Those who are not inclusion students are behavior problems. I had tried everything with them. Nothing seemed to work. They wouldn't do homework, and they simply didn't care about school. They were simply out of control.

Finally, I decided that the madness had to stop. So, I got with the inclusion teacher that is in my room during that period. I knew that something had to be done. So, together, we figured out a plan. We divided the room into two teams. Each of the teams were pretty equal, according to ability range. They instantly began to compete against each other. At random times, I check to see if they brought their books to class. In addition, I check to see if everyone did their homework. If everyone has their book or homework, their team gets 10 points. Overall, this is going extremely well. When they compete against each other, they begin to tell their classmates to do their work and bring their books to class. Things are going extremely well with them.

In addition, we managed to secure another room. The inclusion teacher takes one team to another room about twice a week and I keep the other team in my room. It is much easier for us to work with half the class. We trade up teams each time. That way, the teams are getting both of us as instructors. After I teach a lesson, we often break them up into teams. Things go a lot smoother this way. In addition, they seem to be learning a lot more material. I consider this a huge success!

Yes, It Can Be Fun! (Sept. Blog)

2005-09-30T22:34:00.000-07:00

Well, next week is Nine Weeks Tests Week at OBHS. It is hard to believe that this year is already 25% over. It seems like we just started yesterday. I believe that during these past 9 weeks, I have learned more than I have in my entire life. I have learned so much information from the staff at OBHS. They are great! I have a great administration, and the teachers are excellent. They are always so helpful. Must more importantly, we have fun! I love talking with all the other teachers. We have such a good time together. I think that it is important for us to enjoy each other's company. I look forward to seeing the other teachers, especially during lunch in the teacher's lounge.

Much more importantly, I greatly enjoy my kids. Overall, I have great kids. I have a great time with them. Teaching is FUN! I greatly enjoy my kids. Each day, I look forward to seeing them. Much more importantly, I have a good time with my kids. I greatly enjoy teaching. I have always heard that you are suppose to enjoy your job. I never knew that I could enjoy a profession this much. My kids make my job fun and interesting. I always look forward to a new day. I look forward to their stories, and much more importantly, I look forward to them being themselves.

Inductive vs. Deductive

2005-09-30T17:44:00.000-07:00

There are several ways to instruct students. Two teaching strategies are deductive and inductive. Both of these strategies can be very beneficial inside the classroom. For example, deductive instruction often works best with students who have a difficult time learning a concept. In addition, deductive strategy often works well with students who have difficulty learning at a high level. Most of these students tend to want to know exactly what they are learning early on in a lesson. Deductive strategies often do not allow students to think at a very high level. It does not allow students to know what discovery is like.

Inductive Teaching Strategy, on the other hand, allows students to discover certain concepts. It allows students to think at higher levels. It allows students to look into the unknown and to try to see things that are not visible from the surface. With inductive strategies, students begin to think and look deeper into their thoughts and knowledge. Overall, inductive strategies are an excellent tool in teaching. Sometimes, inductive teaching strategies take up a lot of time. It takes time for students to explore and learn from their findings. In addition, students must have the ability to think at high levels.

Overall, my students seem to work best with deductive strategies. They seem to work best with "straight-forward" teaching strategies. Some of my students have trouble discovering their thoughs or developing a hypothesis. As the year goes on, I hope to expand their minds and begin to use more inductive reasoning.

Classroom Management Plan

2005-09-06T13:41:00.000-07:00

As I look back upon this past month of teaching, I also begin to look at my classroom management plan. Overall, I believe that I have a good classroom management plan. In my classroom management plan, I said that every child is capable of learning. I still believe this to be true. I am teaching an inclusion class this year. To say the least, it is a challenge. Most of them failed Pre-Algebra last year. In fact, some of them are taking Pre-Algebra for the third time. With this class, I find myself slowing down a great deal and having to find different ways to teach them. However, they are still learning but at a different level. Hence, my classroom management plan still holds true. Each of my students is learning something about mathematics.

Overall, my consequence system has worked. My consequence system is first a verbal warning, second a written explanation, third a phone call home, and lastly an office referral. I HAD a problem with one of my classes. They would constantly talk, normally the entire class. I found myself having to put the entire class on warning. It seems to be the only way to control them. However overall, this has worked. Thus, instead of giving out individual warning, I have to give out class warnings. So, I had to make minor changes to my consequence system for one period.

My rewards system seems to work extremely well, expecially when I withhold rewards. Every Friday, I draw student numbers for rewards. I got this idea, of course, from Ms. Monroe. It really works! Most of the students want to know on Friday if we are going to draw for prizes. I have to explain to them that the drawings are not "automatic" on Fridays. They have to earn them. Hence, it encourages them to behave throughout the week.

Overall, I would say that my classroom management plan has been a success. I have had to make a few minor changes; however, I believe that it is a good plan. I know that my classroom management plan will continue to benefit me.

August Blog

2005-08-31T18:33:00.000-07:00

Well, nearly a month has gone by since I began teaching. It seems as if I have finally gotten into a ryhthm that I can actually tolerate. At first, I was grading about 300 papers a night (one for boardwork for each student, and one for homework for each student). Needless to say, I realized quickly that this would NEVER work. So, I now simply "check" their homework in class by walking by their desks. I often have the students check each other's papers on boardwork. This works much, much better. That way, when I get home, I only have to deal with the lesson for the next day. So, I finally got that figured out.

I believe that all my kids have finally realized that I am serious about them learning math. They finally see that I really mean business. It took me writing up about 10 students and giving out more than a dozen writing assignments to make them realize that I really mean business. It seems that most freshmen have a very difficult time adjusting to a high school. Most of them do not think that it is necessary to bring a textbook to class. I mean, "Hello! This is math. You need your book every day." In addition, most of my students got a huge wakeup call when it came to their first test. Most of them did not do too hot. When they got their tests back, they wanted to know when the makeup test would be. I told them that there would not be a makeup test. Most of them were shocked! I informed them that in life there are no makeup exams. So, coming to high school from middle school has been a huge adjustment for most of my students. Overall, my students are doing well. I have mostly A's and B's. So, I'm very proud of that. Either I'm way too easy or they are actually learning. I am leaning toward the fact that they are actually learning the material.

I never knew that teaching could be so much fun! I am enjoying each day that I teach. I find that the students are interesting and funny to listen to. I greatly enjoy being around them. In fact, sometimes I think that they actually teach me something.

Veteran Teachers

2005-07-24T15:59:00.000-07:00

On Friday morning, the Mississippi Teacher Corps Veterans spoke to us about our first days of school. In addition, they gave us some good pointers about what to do and what not to do. Friday was our second day of workshops. We still have workshops on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday. Up to that point, the Veteran MTC Panel has been the most beneficial. All of the workshops have been excellent; however, this one stood out to me. It was the most interesting and fun. The role plans were excellent! They gave me some really good ideas of what to do and not to do. I think that this will be very beneficial.

To me, my greatest resource has been those who have already gone through the program. They have been in our shoes before. They know how busy and stressed out we are at this time. They understand that it has been difficult to balance everything. In addition, they have already been though the first days and year of teaching. They have been to the front lines (so to speak), and they are now returning to tell their stories. We can learn from them. We can learn from their mistakes, and more importantly, we can see what worked for them.

As I arrive at Olive Branch in a week, I believe that veteran teachers will continue to be my greatest resource. I will learn a lot from the veteran teachers at Olive Branch. They will know the ends and outs of the school and students. I know that they will be just as helpful as the MTC Veteran Teachers have been.

My MTC Experience

2005-07-24T14:22:00.000-07:00

As I look back upon these last two months, it is hard to believe how far I have come. It seems like just yesterday that we-all sat in Guyton Hall, not knowing hardly anyone. The summer has certainly passed rapidly. Time has flown by, and now we stand rapidly approaching August. It is hard for me to believe how much we have done in two months. We have had classes, wrote lesson plans, taught school, team taught, and now workshops. I feel that this program has prepared me for my first days and year of school. I know that I have progressed as a teacher. In short, I know that this program has transformed me into the best teacher that I can possible be. It focused on my qualifications and characteristics, and it allowed a teacher to emerge. I fully support the Mississippi Teacher Corps. I believe that it is an excellent program.

This program did more than teach me the do’s and don’ts of teaching. I feel as if I have made lasting friends. I know that as we continue with our years of school, we will keep in touch with the people in our program. They are our comfort, so to speak. We have all been in the same shoes from day one. We all walked into the School of Education, hardly knowing anyone. From there, we all learned together, and we shared ideas. Together, we will progress into our first days of school. Together, we will make the best teachers for Mississippi.

Team Teaching

2005-07-18T15:28:00.000-07:00

As I reviewed my taped lesson, I saw both good and bad qualities. I realized that over-all, the lesson was pretty good. However, I also noticed some items that I need some work. My lesson was on the Distributive Property of Real Numbers. I began the lesson with boardwork about the previous lesson. I believe that the boardwork is very beneficial to the students. I gave good descriptions and directions regarding the boardwork. However, it took a little too much time. This is one of the items that needs some work. I believe the most simple thing to do is to set a timer for 5 minutes. After that, we will have 2 or 3 minutes to discuss boardwork. We will then need to move on to the current lesson.

I believe that my lesson had some really good qualities. During my set, I told the students something about myself. Since the lesson was on the distributive property, I talked about a distributor on a dairy farm. When I was young, my uncle owned and operated a dairy farm. I remember that he used a distributor on the farm. It would evenly distribute the feed to the animals. So, I drew a parallel between this machine and the distributive property. Thus, I was telling the students something about my life.

I had good movement around the room, and I evenly called on the students to answer questions. I also checked for understanding by telling the students to raise their right hand for one answer and their left hand for a different answer. I believe that this will be very effective. In addition, I also showed great excitement about the subject. I had excellent hand gestures, and I tried to get the students involved, as well. I had them working at the board and calling answers out to me. I have been told numerous times that I fit the teacher persona. To be honest, when I reviewed my tape, I believe that I do have a good teacher persona. I have a very strong voice, and I can be heard by everyone in the room.

As I said, there are some items that need some work. The boardwork took too much time. I need to learn to "cut it off" and move on with the new lesson. In addition, while I was using the overhead, part of the board was not erased. Thus, it became a little confusing to the students. I need to make sure that the board is fully erased when using the overhead. I also need to work on some of my math terminology. I need to make sure and distinguish between simplify and solve. If a student is simplifying a problem, there is not an equal sign. I just need to make sure that this is clear to the students. Watching this lesson provided me with some good feedback. I believe that as time moves forward, I will become an even more effective teacher.

Student Teaching

2005-06-28T21:33:00.000-07:00

Student teaching was definitely a unique experience. The first day, Lily, Meredith, and I were simply told to sit in the back of the classroom. We were not even introduced to the class. This went on for several days. The kids did not even know our names! We simply entered the room and sat in the back of the room in our chairs each day. We figured that our teacher did not understand our role in the classroom.

After three or four days, we were given the Pre-Algebra class of five students and our own classroom. The teacher continued to write the lesson plans; however, at least we were actually teaching. After a couple more days, we approached the teacher about us writing our own lesson plans. By now, she was beginning to get more comfortable with us being around the room. She instantly gave us both periods of 8th grade math and the Pre-Algebra class. So, we began writing lesson plans for all three classes. Between the three of us, we each taught five class periods per week. We were even making worksheets and tests for the students. We were also grading all of their work. The teacher was simply recording the grades in the grade book and planning for her new home. While we taught and graded, she shopped for kitchen tables, chairs, and silverware.

Student teaching, however, did prove to be very rewarding. We were actually in front of the room teaching each day. In addition, we were preparing for the upcoming day. So, student teaching was very beneficial to me in that fashion. In addition, I realized the struggles and obstacles that teachers are faced with each day. Many of our students could not simply add and subtract negative numbers. In addition, some of them ha d trouble with simple addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division. I constantly wondered how we were supposed to build upon a foundation that was not stable and contained many cracks. Our job proved to be very difficult. Math is a building process. If students do not master one concept, how are they supposed to move on to something new? At the close of this month, I did have a sense of pride and fulfillment. I asked myself this simple question, “Did my students know more now and have a better understanding than they did from my first day?” My answer was “Yes!” Thus, I knew that I had a made a difference in their lives.

Meredith, Lily, and I made an excellent team while student teaching. We were all very supportive of one another, and we seemed to compliment each other’s weaknesses and strengths. We worked extremely well together. We had a lot of fun with the Pre-Algebra class. Since it was a small class, it was easier to do activities and get to know them better. During the first days of class, we made and used a masking tape coordinate plane on the floor. This proved to be very helpful and beneficial to the students. They actually learned the concept of the coordinate plane. On the last day of class, we made “the yarn web.” On Monday, we stayed after class and draped yarn over and everything that would sit still. Each student was given a different color of yarn. They had to unwind the yarn throughout the room. As they progressed, there were math problems attached to the yarn. It proved to be a fun activity for the kids.

Indeed, student teaching taught me a lot about being a teacher because in a sense, we were the teachers. I learned about the ups and downs of being a teacher. In the end, though, I am still glad that I decided to become a teacher. It is worth it! I have always heard that you never forget your first students. I will never forget any of these students, especially the five Pre-Algebra students. Each of them had unique situations with different problems. I know that Meredith, Lily, and I made an impact upon their lives. As I continue to teach, my goal is to impact every student in some form or fashion. I hope that my future years of teaching are as successful as this past month. I will always remember that my teaching experience began at Oxford Middle School with those five students.

Video-taped Lesson Plan

2005-06-28T20:23:00.000-07:00

I have never liked to brag on myself, but this time, I may have to. As I watched the video, I saw someone that I had never seen before that day. I was actually watching myself as a teacher. I suddenly realized that I was teaching the future generations, and I thought that I was doing a pretty good job of it.

As I watched the tape, I noted many items. I began the day with five problems for boardwork. The boardwork was review problems from the previous day’s lesson. I spent a great deal of time on boardboard. I actually spent a little too much time on the review of the previous day. I guess I wanted to make sure that the kids fully grasped the concept from the previous day because it was connected directly to my lesson. Next time, I will try to shorten my review some.

As I watched the video, it appeared that I had a lot of energy (although I was not feeling well that day), and I was excited about the material that I was presenting. In addition, I tried to bring the material to the student’s level. I always like to connect math to the real world. That way, kids cannot say, “I will never use this.” With this particular lesson, we were studying about solving inequalities. So, I used this analogy. We pretended that one of the students was a truck driver who hauled logs. The student had to cross a bridge with his loaded log truck. I gave the students the weight of the truck (800 pounds) and the weight limit of the bridge (2,000 pounds). I then asked the students to express how many logs could be hauled as an inequality. The students quickly realized that the truck could pass safely over the bridge with logs less than or equal to 1,200 pounds in weight. As I said, I like to connect the kids’ learning to real world experiences. This was the only one that I used for this lesson. I would actually like to have used more real-world experiences in my set.

As I taught the lesson, I got a lot of feedback from the students. I asked them many questions. I wanted to make sure that they understood what I was saying. I asked questions such as, “Why is this so?” I wanted to check for their understanding. I even assigned them certain problems to work. While they worked, I walked around the room and observed their work. I could then assist them one on one if they needed more help.

Overall, I believe that I did a good job of teaching my lesson. I developed the set, presented the procedure, checked for their understanding, and closed the lesson. I believe that I was fully prepared for the lesson. In addition, I believe that I presented the material in a form that the students could understand and grasp. I do, however, see some areas that need some improvement. I need to work with time management, and I need to offer some other words of praise other than “Good.” However, overall, I believe that my video of teaching was a success.

Cold-Calling Experiment

2005-06-26T21:22:00.000-07:00

On Thursday, I used the cold-calling experiment with 7th and 8th grade math. I began by writing each student’s name on a card. I gave them a worksheet to do during class. Once they completed (or were suppose to have completed) the worksheet, I used cold-calling to go over the worksheet. The students were sort of "taken off guard" by my experiment. Some of them began to frantically work through the problems just in case they were called on. In addition, I had one student who was beginning to doze off. As I began the process of calling out the names, he instantly "woke up, " and he began to pay close attention.

I found the cold-calling experiment to be very helpful and beneficial. There are many benefits to this method. First, every student is called on at some point. Thus, you do not get the same students answering the questions over and over. Second, it checks to make sure that the students have done their work. As I call on each student, I can see what type of responses they are giving me. Thus, I can gain a simple assessment of who did their work and who did not. Third, it encourages students to do their work. If students know that they will be called on in class, they are much more likely to do their work. Lastly, students have to actually pay attention in class because they never know when their name may be called. Because of all these benefits, I plan on using the cold-calling method in my classroom. I believe that it keeps a check on the students’ activities and knowledge.

My First Weeks

2005-06-19T16:11:00.000-07:00

Now, three weeks have gone by since I began the Mississippi Teacher Corps. Time really flies because we are so busy! Each day, I get up at about 6:15 to be at Oxford Middle School by 7:30 A.M. From there, it is rush, rush, rush! I teach from 7:30 - 11:30 A.M. each day. Some days, I teacher 8th Grade Math for the full four hours. Other days, I teacher Pre-Algebra for about two hours. Once I finish teaching, I run to grab some lunch. Then, it is off to Mrs. Monroe's class from 1:00 to 4:00. By 4:00, I am absolutely exhausted! However, my day has just begun. I then must go home to prepare for the next day. This normally involves me sitting at my kitchen table for a few hours writing lesson plans and making worksheets for the following day. In addition, I have to find time to read and write blogs :). Thus, it seems as if I have to remind myself that I need to eat and sleep!

In the middle of all this, there is a new house. For two weeks, I have been trying to buy a house in Desoto County. I never knew that buying a home was so difficult! Last week, I went to Desoto County three times. So, on top of everything else, I am busy with buying a house. I am on my third house now. Something keeps happening when I find a house. On the first house, someone wrote a contract 12 hours before me! So, it is always something! Now, I think I have finally found a house! The contract is pending on it. I went up yesterday (Saturday) to sign some more paperwork. We hope to close by July 15. So I'm excited! I'll have to have everyone up once I get settled.

These last few weeks have been extremely busy and challenging. Do I feel a little overwhelmed? Sometimes. The important thing is that these last few weeks have been very fun, and I will always have lasting memories. In addition, I have made lots of new friends through the program. It is always a lot easier to go through something when you see about 25 other people going through the same thing. These past weeks have flow by so fast! It is hard to believe that we have already been here three weeks. We only have seven more days of student teaching, and July is just around the corner. I am looking forward to the remainder of the summer. I think the rest of it will be just like the beginning, fun and rememorable.

The Reluctant Disciplinarian

2005-06-19T16:03:00.000-07:00

The Reluctant Disciplinarian by Gary Rubinstein is an excellent book. It contains funny, but accurate information about a teacher’s first years. As I read the book, I began to think back to how some of my former teachers handled their own classrooms. Since I decided to become an educator, I have visited with many teachers. They offered some of the same advice as Rubinstein.
In his book, Rubinstein mentions that all teachers need to perfect "the teacher look." Mrs. Jackie Carver, an educator, also told me that a good teacher look will be very beneficial to me. Mrs. Jackie Carver certainly possesses the teacher look. Although she never taught me, she did help raise me. I remember how Ms. Jackie could simply look at us in church, and we would instantly stop whatever we were doing. She definitely had a gift. When she would look at me, it would send chills all the way down my back. I knew to instantly act right, or there would be major consequences. To this day, I still dread the "Ms. Jackie Look." I hope to acquire this look and use it to my full advantage.
Also, Rubinstein says that yelling at students does not work. He is absolutely correct. A few months ago, I visited my former math teacher. (She actually retired this year with 30 plus years.) She said that yelling at a class never works. I remember that she never raised her voice in class; however, her classroom was always under control. She even had excellent classroom management skills. In short, yelling does not help manage a classroom. If anything, it helps to lose control of a classroom.
Gary Rubinstein’s book provides some major insight for first year teachers. It provides good advice, and it can serve as a guide for new teachers. It serves as an outline for what teachers should and should not do during their first days and weeks. The main thing to remember is that the ideas inside this book are accurate because Mr. Rubinstein has already seen his mistakes. He knows what does and does not work. Thus, as a new teacher, I will use his experiences and advice. I found that the answer section at the back of the book was very beneficial. It provides answers to common questions that first year teachers have. In short, I found that Gary Rubinstein’s Reluctant Disciplinarian is an excellent tool for new teachers.

The First Week

2005-06-09T14:05:00.000-07:00

This week, Lily, Meredith, and I have been teaching Pre-Algebra at Oxford Middle School. (II must add that the three of us make a great team. We work very well together :) ) Although, we only have five students, they each need individual attention and help. This week, we have been studying the coordinate system and the slope of lines. They grapsed the concept fairly well, but they all needed some reenforcement and review. In addition, we discovered that many of the students could not add or subtract negative numbers. This is a concept that should have been mastered at an earlier point. Thus, it seemed as if we were paddling against the current of the river. So, we took two days for reinforcement and review.

The first day, we put a coordinate plane on the classroom floor with tape. We also drew a coordinate plan outside with sidewalk chalk. We went outisde and played a game (that Lily designed) using the coordinate system. After the game, we returned to the classroom where we used the tape coordinate plane. We used the coordiante plane to reenforce the game and their knowledge of the coordinate system. They seemed to have a good understanding of the coordiante system. Now, it was time to go back to adding and subtracting negative numbers. We used the number line to visually show them how the process worked. They began to grasp the concept; however, they still needed help with the concept. Today, I actually taught a review. I reviewed all the aspects of the coordinate system and negative numbers.

I realized that students learn in many different ways. The coordinate plane on the sidewalk and classroom floor are excellent ideas. They Work!! They are great tools for the classroom. The war for them to master negative numbers has begun. Many battles have been won, but there is still work to be done. As the days progress, I hope that they will win the war and master the concept of negative numbers.