The Weekly Update #4

For my first practicum, I joined Mrs. Stephanie Butler and her 5th grade class at Cedar Ridge Intermediate! I observed her mornings with math class and class meetings where the students would go through the daily plan and review class rules. I even got the unique opportunity to teach a small group of amazing students. During the practicum, my small group of students learned how to multiply with decimals, which was challenging at first, but by the end of it, every single kid was rocking those decimals. To begin the lessons, I would have students pick out some problems to do as a group on whiteboards; as the hour went on, the students went at their own pace and my job was to give them guidance when they got stuck. I learned tactics to grow a team and student leadership and how to use different systems to keep students engaged, which I will be using in my future as an educator.

In my first 3 week practicum, I am in a third grade classroom with Mrs. Haley Engle at Cedar Ridge Elementary. I have loved every second of it. I’ve taught several small group math lessons and have helped Mrs. Engle with filing and other things she needed. I observed how students take a test at this age and how they study for that. I’ve seen how they do specials and transition times. Overall, this has been an amazing experience!

I loved my first practicum. I was placed in Ms. Lee’s first grade class at Cedar Ridge Elementary, and I absolutely loved being a part of this class. All of the students were so warm and welcoming, and I instantly connected with each and every one of them. My mentor, Ms. Lee, was super kind to me from the first day I walked in. She showed me around and let me introduce myself to the students. I was able to work with small groups of students as well as one-on-one to help them understand their work a little more. Leaving this class is definitely sad, but I'm so glad I got to spend my first three weeks with them.

Following professionalism bootcamp in first semester, GO CAPS Education associates get to participate in three, 3-week practicums with teachers and grade levels of our choice. For my first practicum, I am with Mrs. Segura, who teaches theater at Branson Junior High School for both 7th and 8th grade. During the first week of this practicum, I observed classroom management, learned all the kids' names, and started making connections with them. I soon took away that Mrs. Segura is very laid back with her kids while still having a very structured classroom and schedule. Her kids know what to expect when they enter the classroom and enjoy the class a lot. I had the opportunity to teach a whole class lesson during my first practicum, which I loved. I learned so much during this practicum, and I definitely want to have more experiences in theater education.

The past three weeks in my first practicum have been absolutely amazing! I am in Mrs. Davis' kindergarten class at Cedar Ridge Primary, and I absolutely love it. I’ve learned so much about classroom management when it comes to a kindergarten classroom. These students have been so fun to work with, and I am going to miss them so much when I have to leave. I look forward to making more connections with students and mentor teachers!

In our first practicum, we got to choose where we wanted to go and who we wanted to job shadow, and I chose to shadow Mr. Paul at Branson Junior High. I learned so much from Mr. Paul throughout the past three weeks. Mr. Paul showed the students how to fit two different types of pipes, how to read veterinary medicine labels, and how to administer different types of medicine. Then, we went into electricity in ag. mechanics, and students learned different types of circuits and how to set up a house based on the circuits. I will use this in the future, because I want to go into agronomy and possibly teach agronomy. I have learned so much about teaching and overall knowledge about agriculture.