Isa-Teachers Blog

My practicum with Growing Chefs is now complete and i’d like to share some take aways that I got from the experience.

I think it is important to start educating your children about cooking and nutrition as early as possible. Otherwise children will form eating habits that can be really hard to break down the road. I really appreciate that Growing Chefs teaches children about gardening, cooking, and nutrition. These are all important life skills that are being lost in the new generations. Letting children have fun when they are cooking are gardening will inspire children to want to continue using those skills because they are enjoying it! Growing Chefs implements their programs in a really fun way in order to leave a positive impression on the children. Their program is really hands on, gets the children involved, and includes a lot of sharing childrens own experiences (which children love to do). If a child is helping out in the garden or the kitchen at home, and if the child is making healthy eating choices they are MUCH more likely to continue those healthy habits in to adulthood , and what I love most about Growing Chefs is that they are addressing that.

Some fun things that children got to do in their classrooms where: grow vegetables in planters; bring vegetables from home and share about them; taste different vegetables; help out with making stir fry, salad, soup; read stories about vegetables and gardening.

I also think it is worth mentioning that because Growing Chefs is a charity organization and it is heart warming that the whole organization is run by volunteers who have good paying jobs at well known restaurants but give up their time to help out.

During my time with Growing Chefs, I have been able to help out the organization in many ways. I have also learned a lot about the great work that the organization does in schools.

Growing Chefs has volunteers going to different schools in many cities. The volunteers in the schools run the 7 lessons with a class. The volunteers do a lot of fun activities with the students that teach them about growing vegetables, gaining knowledge about different vegetables, nutrition, cooking, and eating! What I have been able to do it collect the kits that each school has to run the program, and sort them and clean them to have them ready for next year.

At the beginning and end of the program the volunteers also have the students take a quiz about what they know, showing that they have learned a lot from the program. I have been putting that information into a data base. I have also been going through photos of the program and creating albums. It has been really great to see these photos and see the lessons take place.

I have been helping the organization with a lot of background work. A lot of the things I have been doing take a lot of time and because the organization is a charity there are not many employees. It amazes me however, how many well established chefs and professionals volunteer their time to this organization. I have also been happy to do whatever I can!

An area where I believe there is room for improvement is using more inquiry in the classroom. During my practicum, I did not use as much inquiry-based learning as I would have liked. I see a lot of value in this type of learning, but I struggled with finding ways to implement it. I will work with other colleagues who have been successful using inquiry-based learning, I will keep myself updated with research about teacher education, I will read books that help me gain more insight into inquiry based learning, and I will also continue to attend professional development events to expand my strategies.

My inquiry topic is how to motivate students who are not motivated at school. This inquiry question focused mainly around one student because I saw that she was consistently unengaged and not motivated. I believe that there are several important tactics to increase students motivation.

SEL- When I first came into my practicum classroom, this student did not want to work with me or listen to any instruction that I gave her. Right away I began to focus on building a relationship with her. I strongly believe that if I did not have a relationship with her things would not be easy between us. Now that we have a good relationship we work well together, and she is much more positive and hard working.

Autonomy- This student really surprised me several times when she had her own initiative of what she would do during a lesson. For example, she was one of the most creative poets during our poetry unit because she got to choose what she could write about. During art lessons she usually tends to lean away from the norm and also takes initiative to do her own thing. She really enjoys being different, and she takes pride in her unique creations.

Collaborative learning- This student becomes much more engaged during collaborative work time. Especially if she gets to choose who she will be working with. Students were to make their own fairy tales with a partner or their choice, and her partner and her were getting so much done together. She usually struggles very much with anything that has to do with writing or reading, so this was a big hurdle to tackle during the fairy tale writing process. They were on task, and having fun with the process.

Technology- This student really enjoys working on laptops in the classroom and enjoys viewing things on the projector screen. She is much more motivated to do any reading or writing when it is on the laptop. When it comes to picking up a pencil and writing on paper, it is frequently a struggle for her. However, when writing is done on the laptop she is much more motivated.

I also think inquiry based learning is a good way to motivate students because they are often exploring topics that they are more interested in, it is more hands on (inquiry of objects), and it gives students autonomy. I strive to work towards incorporating a strong inquiry based model in the classroom. Therefore, in order to extend my inquiry project, I want to improve my teaching practices by strengthening my abilities to teach through an inquiry framework. I hope to encourage students not to simply look for immediate answers but enjoy the process of thinking critically, investigating and exploring different possibilities.

During my practicum, I planned two activities where students used controlled inquiry (teacher chooses topics and identifies the resources students will use to answer questions). The first one was for Science. Students were given a nocturnal animal and were told to research the animal and find out its  nocturnal adaptations. I gave the students resources/ websites to use to answer their questions and find additional interesting information about their animal. Students also used websites that they found on their own. Students put their information into Google slides and each group shared their findings with the class. The other activity was for Social Studies. Students were researching Canada joining confederation. Again students used the websites provided by the teacher to get their information. Students then held a teacher led debate whether or not confederation was a good option or not.

To help students inquire, educators should pose open ended questions. Asking open ended questions provide students of all ability levels and from different backgrounds with an opportunity to participate in discussions (Alvorado & Herr, 2003). These questions require more than a yes or no response which can catalyze further discussion as more ideas and opinions are introduced. In my teaching, I have learned to use higher level questioning on Bloom’s Revised Taxonomy. Higher level questioning is important because it helps expand students thinking, and gets them to think deeper about a topic.

Furthermore, when students are able to develop their own inquiry questions it is important to provide students with open topics so they can choose a question that is of interest to them. Self generated topics are pursued more deeply and with greater interest than those that students perceive as imposed on them.

Strategies for implementing IBL
Many strategies can be used to implement IBL. The list below is a non-exhaustive list of strategies that can be use in IBL based on my experiences and research:

Experiments

KWL charts

Journals

Forming and evaluating predictions

Wonder walls

Visual representation of findings

Thinking maps

Object analysis

Field trips

Guest/expert speakers

Group work

Allowing students to struggle (within reason)

Demonstrations

Active learning

Use of technology and research

Communicating results

For my mini inquiry, I looked into fair assessment for a classroom with many levels of learners/ abilities. Basically my findings were that teachers should try to give the same assessment to all students but make it open ended so the student can give as much information as they can depending on their ability. Such assessments may be KWL charts, learning journals, exit slips, 3-2-1, and minute papers. Using these type of assessments students can either write a lot or a little bit. Students should also be given a lot of choice when it comes to representing their learning. Not all students do well during testing. Having other assessment strategies like posters, oral presentations or PowerPoint slides work great too.

Community

I strongly believe in having a classroom that has a strong community, focused on building positive relationships and an environment where all students feel safe and accepted. This goes for the teacher too. The teacher should open up to let her students get to know her. Students should be able to build positive social relationships in the classroom where they show respect for others and take responsibility for their actions. I want to give my students the tools for future relationships and emotional health. Having positive relationships is also important in the classroom in order for students to respect the teacher, have effective classroom management, participate more thoroughly in class activities, and for an all around enjoyable atmosphere.

Collaboration

When students have a positive classroom community, they can work together in an enjoyable and effective way. Furthermore, collaborating assists students into thinking deeper about their ideas, brainstorming effectively  with others, and allows them to get to know a variety of opinions. When students get together to talk about ideas, they think more critically and thoroughly about the topic. Classroom collaboration may include think-pair-share activities, group activities, or whole class discussions.

Explore Curiosities

Additionally, students should have the opportunity to explore their own interests and develop a love for learning in the classroom and all throughout  their life.  Learning should be memorable and meaningful. When they are exploring their own interests, they can form curiosities, develop questions and think in a meaningful way about their learning.  These students are empowered by their learning, and take pride in their abilities/interests, and go on to be lifelong learners. Inquiry based learning also improves students critical thinking skills and gives them a sense of autonomy, which are both important life skills.

Active Learning

I also think that active learning is important to keep students engaged and motivated. Students don’t find a lot of excitement in worksheets, but when active learning is used students are much more intrigued and will probably end up remembering more about the lesson when compared to have completed a worksheet.  Active learning is also more accessible to the many levels of learning abilities a class holds. Active learning may take the form of using manipulatives, learning games, experiments, and  class discussions.

Formative Assessment

Formative assessment is an essential to keeping on track with how much your students are learning. Checking in with students learning regularly helps the teacher get an idea of exactly how much students are getting from the lessons, and if necessary what needs to be looked over again. This is also essential for students because information that students don’t understand will only keep accumulating if the teacher moves too quickly through a unit. Teachers need to be working at a pace where students have a good understanding before moving forward.

Innate qualities that I hold that I believe are important for a good teacher are my ability to care and tend after others, my good morals and values, and my unique talents that I wish to share with others.

I had a positive experience with my past job, which was ABA therapy for children with autism. I had the opportunity to teach children age 3-5 essential skills that their parents did not have time for and which their daycare didn’t provide. It was so rewarding to see the impact I had on their development. Even though it was extremely challenging st time, building a bond with the children and guiding their growth was a priceless experience. I knew I wanted to continue making a difference in children’s lives.

Qualities that I saw in myself as I went through my practicum were my ability to never give up, lose hope, and to keep working on myself. Even when I felt discouraged or disappointed, I strived to do better and improve. I saw the importance of reflection when something goes wrong, and I implemented the changes necessary to make improvements. I also saw that I was willing step outside of my comfort zone and to take risks. I felt so accomplished not only as a teacher but as an individual when trying new things. I am also very organized, and I saw how important this is as a teacher because having 30 students take on multiple assignments on the daily utilizes a lot of materials and prep work. Additionally, I realized that when the teacher is preparing lessons that students will enjoy, the teacher will enjoy them more also. This also works in reverse. When the teacher is more passionate about a lesson, the students are also more engaged in it. This also applies to attitude and energy. When the teacher has a positive attitude and has energy, the lessons will go smoother and the students are more willing to engage in discussion, and take their learning seriously.

What motivates my teaching beliefs is that I want to share my talents and abilities with the world. I think that our purpose in life is to make a change in the world. I know that I am bright, caring, and that I have a lot of great ideas. I want to share all of those qualities with others. It is such a rewarding feeling when you see learning happening in the class that you have initiated.

I joined Growing Chefs as part of my community practicum experience. Right when I read what Growing Chefs was about, I knew I wanted to spend my practicum with them. Over the last few years, I have devoted myself to health and nutrition. A few years ago I made a commitment to eat only raw food. This was such a powerful experience for my health, and I’ve learned healthy habits that will last me a life time. I started a raw vegan Youtube channel called Bela Rawfood, and an Instagram account called @bela_plantfood where I have the opportunity to share raw vegan recipes that I’ve created.

My family and I also take a lot of pride in our garden. Every year we enjoy growing tomatoes, zucchini, cucumber, kale, beets, and much more. It is such a wonderful feeling to be able to pull a variety of vegetables from your garden and make a meal out of it. I hope that through my blog entries I can share my love of cooking, gardening, and healthy eating.

In addition, I will be working with Growing Chefs to enter scores obtained from the programs they have run at the schools into their data base. I also be packing up, organizing, and prepping materials for the program to have ready in the fall. I hope to apply some of the lessons Growing Chefs uses in my classroom when I am a teacher. I look forward to anything that I can contribute to this wonderful cause. I believe educating children about health and nutrition at an early age sets the stage for a lot of their lifestyle habits later on. As we see fast food and processed junk increasing, it is vital for children to be as informed as possible about healthy choices.

I am continuously learning more classroom management strategies. Unfortunately, because I have a few students in my practicum class are not responding to classroom management strategies as the majority is, I have to keep digging and finding new ways to try to manage their behavior.

On top the the classroom management strategies that I am already using (praise, circulating the room/ proximity, touch, the look, counting down, clapping) I am picking up more. The most recent ones that I have picked up are providing the student choices. Some examples include ” You can work quietly at your desk, or move the back table alone”, ” You can place the object on your desk, or put it on mine”, “You can work in your group responsively, or work alone”. Responses should always be followed by a thank-you to keep things positive. Additionally, the choice is not an ultimatum or punishment. Example, not “Do it or I’ll…”. I think choices are a great management strategy because they put the responsibility in the students hands.

Another useful strategy is setting up rules for expectations as much as possible. Before starting lessons where the students have a lot of independence, it is important to set rules so the students know exactly what they should/ should not be doing. Good times to set rules are doing group work, computer work, watching presentations or when using manipulatives. Each rule should have a rationale, roles and responsibilities of students should be stated, and rules should be stated in a positive way (E.g. Treat others with respect versus don’t put people down).

An additional challenge for student teachers, and for any teacher who is teaching a lesson for the first time, is that often a lesson does not go how you planned what so ever.

I experienced this last week when I gave a math worksheet to the students that was unknowingly too hard for them. Hands were shooting up everywhere I looked, I couldn’t give anyone the attention they deserved because there was too many people with questions, scanning the room was nearly impossible with so much going on, and the students on the lower end who needed extra support hardly got any. I ended up having to stop everyone and just go over the worksheet as a class. I was very disappointed with how this lesson went, and I wished I could do it over again. I know that if I did I would tweak a few things and everything would have gone a lot smoother. It is sometimes difficult to find that perfect level of stretching the students knowledge, without making things too difficult.

A lot of things in life are not perfect the first time you do them. Things don’t always go as planned, and there are frequently unexpected speed bumps.

I am still learning what makes a good lesson plan.

At the beginning of my practicum, all I thought that a good lesson plan needed was to stick to the curriculum, a hook, an activity, an assessment, and a plan for early finishers.

I have slowly been learning that there is a lot more to lesson planning to keep the students engaged.

An activity is the main part of the lesson plan, but I have learned that it needs to be broken up into chunks, with variety. For example, some lecturing, then play a video, then do a brain break, then do a think pair share, then a short individual assessment.

I also learned that it is important to take the attention off of the teacher for part of the lesson. The teacher cant be talking to the class for 75% of the lesson. Kids need to gain some independence by having group discussions, or by doing research on the computer.

I also didn’t realize that every lesson doesn’t need an assessment piece. Some content may take a few days to get across, and sometimes assessment can be as simple as a thumbs up or down.

I am also starting to see the value in brain breaks. When students have been working hard, they need a break. Additionally, when they are a bit wound up, they also need a break to get their energy out. In this scenario its helpful to follow with a breathing activity or something to get them settled after.

So much to learn every day. I never imagined practicum being as educational as it has been!