Well, I have finally calmed down enough in my practicum to feel comfortable taking time to reflect about my experience. Before it was lots and lots of late nights developing lessons from resources that were not traditional textbooks. You know, it is pretty hard creating lessons from scratch. With more an more exposure, however, I think I am getting better at it. Admittedly I still have places to grow but man… what an amazing experience practicum has been so far.

TOC day. I got the call Sunday night. I had somewhat expected it as I figured Yvonne would like to see how well we prepared for the Monday, especially considering what a nice evening Friday was. Luckily I spent the time on Friday to leave, what I hope, was a very well described plan. It was quite length, a narrative almost, but there is so much consideration that goes into each lesson I find it hard NOT to write a lot of information down. Anyway, I will have to read over Madeline’s blog to see how the day went!

As for my experience in Amanda’s grade 3/4 classroom. First. When I heard I was going to Amanda’s room I was pretty excited. Beyond liking her as a person, I know as a professional she would be prepped/planned/prepared. I was not surprised to find the day thoroughly planned out. Her instructions were easy to follow and I did not have to ask Megan (her SA) much at all. In fact, Megan seemed quite content to give me full control. In many ways, it felt like a very genuine TOC experience. Megan was only in the classroom for a handful of minutes throughout the day.

I did not really have too many problems throughout the day. Amanda’s class was very respectful. It was a room full of athletes. It seemed as though every student had some news to share about their soccer victory over the weekend. One tool that I very much missed was the random group generator. I just find that tool is a great way to get students up and about. It is a chance for them to move around and interact with new students. It adds a breath of freshness to the educational experience.

It was really great to gain some experience with some younger students. I have to say that they were a lot of fun. I was slightly nervous heading in that I would not have the strategies to manage younger students. I quickly realized that I could manage. What was mild anxiety turned to excitement and interest as soon as the first student walked through the door. My curious nature means that any latent anxiousness is quickly counteracted by a question that pops into my head about any new people that I meet!

It is interesting to note the behavioral differences between grade 3s and grade 7s. Admittedly my experience with the grade 3s is more limited but I believe I noticed a few things worth mentioning. First of all, the younger ones are more prone to calling out. It seems, that for some, it is very difficult to resist sharing some little bit of information that they have. Whereas the younger students seem unaware of the boundaries they are pushing, grade 7s often actively seek to push boundaries. As a grade 7 teacher there are many students who want to be the “class clown”  in Amanda’s grade 3/4 class, I did not see any of that.

Another nice piece of the TOC day is having an opportunity to explore the culture of Surrey schools. I have long been curious about what my colleagues have been up to on the other side of the river. It can be somewhat isolating by myself at David Livingstone! It was really great to see some faces that I have not seen in a while and get exposure to the innovated district that is Surrey. Megan took a few minutes after class to show me Fresh Grade and how she uses it. I have taken some time on my own to “mess around” with Fresh Grade but you can only do so much when you do not actually use it in the classroom. Megan went through several of her assessments and explained where she saw value.

Overall, a very interesting and fun day. I definitely notice that the younger grades get a little bit more frigidity the longer activities go.  Going forward I really want more experience working with the younger grades. Younger students passion for learning is brilliant. You can see the emotion in the students eyes boil over when they figure something out for the first time. Anyway this was more long winded than I intended it to be. I think it is best to stop at this point. Maybe I will think a little bit more and post another reflection in time. I kind of wish we had more days to do the TOC thing though. The challenge is exciting and the change of grade a welcome experience.

Cheers!