Today, Mrs. Turner introduced us to the middle school unit. She read us the poem "What Is a Middle Schooler?" I thought the poem was very interesting, and agreed with what it had to say. I agreed with it because middle school is the time in a child's life when they are just starting out who they are, and it's that in between stage. Then, we discussed Erikson's eight stages of development. Mrs. Turner also introduced our Burger Books. We are to pick a book of upper elementary/middle school level and reread it. We needed to pick a book by Wednesday. Then, we are going to create the books on Monday. The top bun will have the author and title. The tomato will have the characters and brief descriptions. The lettuce will have a summary. The cheese will have our favorite part of the book. The meat will have our opinion of the book and a recommendation. The last part is the bottom bun, which will have our name. Towards the end of class, we watch a video on Langston Charter Middle School.
Tuesday
Today, Mrs. Kirby was supposed to come and talk to us from Hillcrest Middle School, but instead, Mrs. Acton came. She teaches 8th grade math at Hillcrest. She shared with us about the education she got, and how she got into teaching. She told us that she subbed for a while before she became a teacher at Hillcrest. She shared with us why she loves teaching 8th grade so much, and about different kinds of activities she does with her kids. She said it's very important that in middle school, you keep the attention of your kids. She also told us about her interview experience. She said that it is very important to dress nice and make a good impression when you go for an interview. Lastly, she told us about a journal she does with her kids at the end of the year. She lets her kids write whatever they want to in it. She shared some of the things that the kids wrote, and told us that the reason she loves being a teacher is because of the things her kids write.
Wednesday
Today, Mrs. Ambrose came to talk to us about teaching middle school. She is a teacher at Ralph Chandler Middle School, and is the South Carolina History Teacher of the Year. She started of with asking us how we had changed since middle school, and talked to us about how middle school kids are unfinished. She told us that middle school kids are socially active, inquisitive, impulsive, emotional, and hopeful. She talked with us about the Star Tracker that she has in her room, and how the kids get stars when they do good things. It helps to boost their self-esteem. Then, she went around the room and asked some people why they wanted to be teachers, and it was great to hear what people said. She told us that if you are going to be a teacher, you need to be passionate about what you do, flexible, compassionate, creative, and have a good sense of humor. Then, she talked to us about how her middle school has teams, and all the teachers work with the same kids. Lastly, she shared with us about what she has learned being a teacher. She told us lesson plans are never done, persistence is as important as talent, be consistent, forgiveness is vital, and relationships are vital to success.
Thursday
Today was the first day of middle school observations. I was supposed to go and visit Mrs. LaColla's 7th grade Social Studies class, but she didn't have a first period. I ended up observing Mrs. Carswell's 8th grade Social Studies class. They were studying the American Revolution. They had just finished studying the French and Indian War. She had the vocabulary on the board. The kids were to pick some of the terms, and write the definitions in their own words. The kids did a good job with remembering the definitions of the words. Then, the kids took a few notes and it was time to go.
Friday
Today was the second day of middle school observations. I visited Mrs. Adam's English class. Homeroom ran late today because of careers. Career Day is in December at Hillcrest, and the kids had to sign up for what careers they wanted to go and see. They had a whole list of careers to pick from like entrepreneurs, vets, aviation, marines, police officer, and much more. After homeroom, her English I Honors kids came in, and it was test day. She gave the kids a few minutes to study, and then it was time to take the stems test.
Quote: "Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world." - Nelson Mandela
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