December 9th-13th

Monday, December 9th
On Monday, we completed our High School Observations. We chose teachers we have never had before and ones that we were curious about. We sat in the classrooms and observed the teacher's teaching styles and techniques.

Tuesday, December 10th
On Tuesday, Mr. Rhymer was our guest speaker. He told us about his journey of becoming our principal and the education needed to get there. He also told us what he looks for in a person applying for a teaching job. He prefers positive, enthusiastic people who will make good role models. Mr. Rhymer explained the Skype interviews. He says they are more efficient because they do not disrupt the school day, and he can do them quickly if the person is not up to his standards.

Wednesday, December 11th
On Wednesday, we picked our groups and books for Reading Around the Christmas Tree. We chose children's books to be the theme of our Christmas Trees. "If You Give A...", "Llama, Llama", Dr. Seuss, etc. were chosen as some themes. My group chose to do "One fish two fish". It was a work day. We began making our ornaments and decorations for our trees.

Thursday, December 12th
On Thursday, we took our class picture for the yearbook. We had another work day to print out, laminate, and make ornaments.

Friday, December 13th
On Friday, we brought in our treats and Santa's Workshop gifts. We set up the silent auction items and gifts to sell. We made $300! After we set up we continued to work on our decorations for Reading Around the Christmas tree.

December 2nd-6th

Monday- December 2nd
On Monday we discussed some service hour opportunities and we planned for a fundraiser we were having that week. We also started on out flower encouragements for the month of December.

Tuesday- December 3rd
On Tuesday we talked about how we would analyze the middle school level books we read the previous week. We were assigned to do "burger books". Which includes the title, author, genre, setting, conclusion, main characters, plot, your favourite part of the story and a picture of it. In middle school, burger books are typically used to analyze a book or study main points. We also helped set up Christmas trees for our big Christmas project.
 
Wednesday- December 4th
On Wednesday we hung up the flowers of encouragement. This month's theme was Achievement. My quote was "Great achievement is usually born of great sacrifice and is never the result of selfishness" which I thought was a great quote because teaching shouldn't be about how much you get paid but about the students and your effect on them.

Thursday- December 5th
On Thursday we made an affinity diagram to think up of questions to ask high school teachers, guidance counselors, and administrators. We had five different groups of questions; classroom layout/management/student and parent issues, curriculum/certification/lesson planning, guidance/administration, questions you always wanted to know but was afraid to ask, and "what if" scenarios. There were many great questions in each category such as: how does a teacher establish authority, a teacher's worst day in the classroom, and how counselors deal with students that might not graduate. All of the question were in preparation for Friday's activity.

Friday- December 6th 
On Friday we had breakfast with some teachers and that was our opportunity to ask all of the questions that we had previously prepared. I had the pleasure of interviewing Mrs. Powell a US History and AP Government teacher. She had great insight on the profession. When asked if she regrets becoming a teacher, she responded quickly with a no. She said that she loves her job and that there is never a dull day.

"A good teacher can inspire hope, ignite the imagination, and instill a love of learning." - Brad Henry

November 18 - 26

Monday - We finished watching the Ron Clark Story.  Mrs. Turner was not here.  (She was sick) - and we missed her SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO much!  (yes - Mrs. Turner is writing this).

Tuesday  - Janet Kirby from Hillcrest Middle came to speak with the class.  She talked about the importance of loving the subject area you choose AND loving the children you teach.  Otherwise - the profession is not for you.  To be highly qualified for middle school, you need to get a middle school certification in two subject areas.  She is a passionate teacher who obviously loves teaching - even as an administrator.

 Wednesday - Kelly Weeks from Langston Charter School came to visit our class.  She spoke about what a charter school is and how to form one.  She described how Langston is built with a single-gender preference for classrooms and an emphasis on community service for students ....and parents.




Thursday and Friday - the cadets visited Hillcrest Middle and Langston Charter Middle to observe various classrooms.

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Monday - We had a HUGE discussion and planning class discussing ideas for fundraising, service hours and assignments.  The TC Article for Anderson and Portfolios are due tomorrow.  Also, pick out a middle school level book (or upper elementary) and read it by Tuesday, Dec 3.  We talked about fundraising ideas:  hot chocolate, baked sale, and Santa's workshop.  We will begin once we get administrative approval - hopefully next week!  We also talked about the Reading Around the Christmas Tree Project.

Tuesday - We visited our little buddies at Mauldin Elementary for a Thanksgiving Celebration.  Elizabeth read "The Night Before Thanksgiving!" - Then, we made little turkey cups with our buddies.  They attempted to spell some Thanksgiving words like:  TURKY and THNKSGVNG. Then we read with them individually.

"There is always, Always, ALWAYS something to be thankful for!"

- Sarah Turner, MHS Teacher Cadet