This reading has really stuck with me because it reinforces the importance I give to growing as a teacher. I, personally and professionally agree with the reading when it says “When teaching and inquiry become synonymous, you have cultivated an inquiry stance toward teaching that will serve you, your students, and the field of educa- tion well for the duration of your career!” From the beginning, I have looked at this quite simply as if I keep growing as a teacher, only then will I be able to support my students to do the same. The article puts this into words quite powerfully, “teachers play a critical role in enhancing their own professional growth and ultimately the experience of schooling for children.” Essentially, this article has taken what forms my core beliefs as a beginning teacher into organized thought!
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Last week of CFE!
And just like that, CFE is over! These past three weeks flew by; I wish I had more time to spend at Outward Bound. It was definitely hard saying goodbye for now. I hope to get involved with them again in the near future.
This week was busy in the office. There were expeditions coming back at the beginning of the week and expeditions going out at the end. As a result, I was able to observe and be involved in the “wrap-up” and “prep” for these expedition programs. There were many parts of these processes that I knew nothing about, so it was a great learning experience to say the least. I think what stood out the most to me was the attention paid to detail. There were about 4-5 individuals involved in the process and the degree of review was amazing. For example, in the prep for the outgoing 2-day expedition, the team involved developed a 48-hour plan. They spent two days doing this. I was fortunate enough to be able to listen in on many of their conversations and be involved in their planning. What I got to see was a group of individuals working together as a cooperative team. They offered ideas, comments, and criticisms in an extremely constructive and positive manner. Similar to the topic of working as a team, is a part of the wrap and prep, called “pairing” and “de-pairing” conversations. At the prep for an expedition, the instructors involved engage in a pairing conversation. In this conversation, the individuals discuss anything about themselves as a person, their ideas or their thoughts that they believe would be valuable for the other instructors to know in order to provide the best expedition possible. They may discuss their strengths, weaknesses, interests and areas of the expedition they are really passionate about. In the wrap process, instructors have a de-pairing conversation. This is sort of relates to the closure or reflection portion we as teachers engage in. In this, instructors discuss the expedition – what worked, what did not work and how the next expedition could be improved. In a sense, these conversations serve to start and end the instructors off together in a positive way.
I see this as a great process for the school environment as well. Teachers as colleagues in the school or the teacher and students could engage in these types of conversations. As a teacher, I would want to have these kinds of conversations regularly throughout the year in the form of “check-ins.” I see this as being very similar to something I did during my practicum, class meetings. During these meetings, the class – as a whole – discussed pertinent topics, suggestions, and/or issues. We then addressed what was brought up by taking turns and offering insights. I believe this really helps nurture a sense of community in the classroom. In a sense, students come to realize that the class is not just a place to learn math or science – instead, it is like another home, another family where they can feel safe to discuss other life circumstances. And, I truly believe that once this is established, students are more comfortable in the classroom, which enhances their academic learning.
I would like to experiment further with this and change it up a bit. The class meeting was done as a whole. I would like to try check-ins with individual students as well. One of my number one priorities as a teacher is meet the needs of each of my students. I feel a regular check-in with each student would really help foster this. Even the check-in itself could be varied; it might even depend on the student. For example, some might want to have a face-to-face check-in, but others might want to write out a letter to me. The possibilities are endless but I believe there would be a great benefit for both the students and teacher.
I also had the chance to sit in on another meeting this week between Outward Bound and another outdoor education instructor. We discussed the new curriculum and how it will help teachers incorporate experiential and outdoor education into their classes. I learned something extremely valuable. Teachers do not have to feel like they are on their own in trying to provide outdoor education. Instead, what Outward Bound wishes to communicate through their teacher development program is that teachers can make use of many community resources to provide outdoor education. And, as a new teacher, this was great to hear. Because I would love to be able to provide my students enriching, experiential experiences and I feel I would be so much more comfortable doing so with the support of an organization like Outward Bound. This touches into the concept of being a “life-long learner.” Sometimes you do not have to do everything on your own to learn, it can be a collaborative effort – this will definitely help make the process easier, and may even be a more inspiring learning experience for a teacher..
It has been a great three weeks at Outward Bound; I feel there really are not words sufficient to describe my experience. I’m very thankful and consider myself fortunate to have had this experience!
A Motivating Week 2 – CFE!
Another week has gone by! Spending the entire week with Outward Bound has really allowed me to better understand the connection between this organization and education.
As a new teacher, I have been exposed to a variety of opportunities someone like myself can make use of to provide students the most enriching educational experience possible. For example, I sat in on a meeting to discuss collaboration of Outward Bound with educators from the North Vancouver district and these educators run a program called “Choices.” This program helps those students who are experiencing either social/emotional or behavioral issues. This program works in a variety of ways, catering to the needs of individual students. Students could be enrolled in one whole period where they work with Choices teachers or they could even just drop by whenever they feel need. For me, this was again an example of a successful program, which reinforces the concept of individualized learning. More specifically, it really helped me realize that supporting students through difficult times through individualized programs is possible and in fact successful. I have to say it was a very motivating meeting for me, I was really able to appreciate the difference dedicated educators can make for students not just academically but also in the bigger picture of life.
Really, I think the word that would encompass my entire experience this week is “motivating.” Because the motivation really did not stop at the first meeting this week. Later on in the week, I sat in on another meeting discussing a teacher development program to be made available to teachers for a professional development day option. This meeting included Outward Bound, education professionals and Metro Vancouver. In this program, teachers are going to be given the opportunity to immerse themselves in outdoor education such that they can really understand what the experience is like. As a result, I thought someone like me – a beginning teacher who may fear outdoor education – can actually grasp what they benefits are and understand that it can be a gradual process, not just a one time “all or nothing” thing. Being a part of this meeting, I was able to recognize that a lot of the time when seemingly “new” concepts – like outdoor education – are introduced, they are not in fact completely brand new. The point that was made at this meeting was a lot of teachers are already incorporating outdoor education into their classes, but do not just label it as “outdoor education.” So, the point of this teacher development is to help teachers recognize what they are already doing and how they can build on this.
Then there was the topic of the “new” curriculum being established. I learned that it might not even be as new as I or other teachers may fear it to be. One of the members in our meeting was an individual who is involved in writing the new curriculum. It was explained to us again that many teachers are already teaching in line with the new curriculum – but they might just not know they are doing so. When I reflected on this meeting later on, I thought of the word “change.” Being a part of these forward-looking meetings, I realized the importance of positive mentors and continued development as a teacher. Being around all these people who are looking to impact both teachers and students was simply very inspiring. Second, I always think of continued development as a teacher from the perspective of being a good role model. That is, if I, as a teacher, continue to learn and grow myself, then I can help my students understand the importance of the same. By demonstrating to them, that I am able to change – for example, with the new curriculum or outdoor education – I am framing change positively and I hope I can motivate them to be open to change as well. In the end, I consider myself to be very fortunate to have the chance to be around these positive mentors so early in my career. I feel the realizations I have made in just this week will really help shape my outlook on teaching and education in general.
Reflecting on the first week of CFE
Wow, what a week it has been! I was fortunate enough to experience two different settings of outdoor education – Outward Bound Canada and YMCA’s Camp Elphinstone.
With Outward Bound, I spent two days in their local office in Vancouver. During these days, I worked on a variety of tasks. This included organizing equipment for camp expeditions, taking care of participants’ program evaluations and records, and putting together first aid kits. Although these tasks were a great learning experience in different ways, I would have to say the most enriching aspect of my time so far at Outward Bound has been “conversation.” That is, listening in on and being a part of a variety of dialogues occurring at the office. In these, I have learnt so much about education in the “non-formal environment” (p.342) as labeled by Anderson, Lawson and Mayer-Smith (2006). Most importantly, I have gained a better appreciation for the complex process behind education in these different contexts. Having finished a 10-week practicum in the classroom, I definitely understand how much preparation is involved in just a day of school. I now know how this compares with education in other contexts. In just two days at Outward Bound, I have realized just how much of a collaborative effort education is. There has been a wide range of topics discussed; for example, organizing food for camp expeditions. To an outsider, this may seem like a fairly simple topic. However, when I witnessed this being discussed at the office, I quickly realized it is not. Coming back to the collaborative piece, there was not just one person organizing this – members of the office were involved along with another individual from outside the office, someone who had a lot of knowledge to offer. For example, there was discussion around what kind of food to purchase and more importantly where to purchase. This individual talked about so many details – the difference between local markets and chain stores, what time is best to buy, and where to get what. I also had the chance to listen to organizers at Outward Bound discuss participant needs. They literally talk about each participant and their background information in order to make the experience as beneficial as possible. This reminded me of differentiated instruction and reinforced the importance of addressing individual needs in any learning environment to enhance the educational experience. I believe I have a lot to gain from discussions like these, as I will get to learn about appreciating the variety of learners I will work with and how I as an educator/teacher can help each learner individually.
These conversations were a great transition into the rest of my week spent at YMCA’s Camp Elphinstone with my practicum class, where I actually got a peek into education outside of the school. I think the number one reason I chose Outward Bound Canada for my CFE was because I had never experienced the settings in which they work. As a child, I had quite severe asthma and this limited my ability to take part in any education outside of the classroom setting. I firmly believe only if I learn how to grow as an educator and individual generally only then will I be able to motivate students to do the same. That is, if I learn what it means to grow – the emotions, skills, mindset involved. And helping students to grow and recognize their potential is at the forefront of my teaching philosophy. Going to Camp Elphinstone, I was placed in a setting this is brand new for me. I had the chance to develop a beginning understanding of the fact that school is just a setting where learning occurs. But really the learning that takes place in this setting is a result of not just classroom material but also both the students’ and teacher’s experiences from a variety of contexts and settings. We all bring to the classroom a variety of skills, mindsets, and knowledge that have been acquired in vastly different places. Having had this experience, I have gained knowledge that I most likely would not have in another setting. Like Anderson et al. (2006) highlight the importance of “equipping educators with a wide range of skills that can be readily transferable across contexts, inside and outside of school settings,” (p.342) I will now be able to apply this knowledge to my teaching. For example, in the most basic sense, my school advisor and I were keeping a record of activities the camp counselors had organized for the students. These were great team-building and cooperative activities that could easily be brought into the classroom. In a more complex sense, I observed my students without electronics – something you do not get to see often these days. There were no laptops, internet, phones, music devices. I really did notice a difference in the students. I felt they were calmer in a sense. As a result, there were less little quibbles between the students which allowed them to better participate in the cooperative activities. This has now motivated me to look more into the use of electronics in the classroom; specifically, when they are most beneficial or the opposite – when they are the detrimental to learning.
I am so grateful to have had the experience at Camp Elphinstone and I look forward to the next two weeks at Outward Bound!
References
Anderson, D., Lawson, B., & Mayer-Smith, J. (2006). Investigating the impact of a practicum experience in an aquarium on pre-service teachers. Teaching Education,17(4), 341–353. Retrieved from http://www.tandfonline.com.ezproxy.library.ubc.ca/doi/pdf/10.1080/1047 6210601017527
TOC day – May 20/2015
The TOC day was an extremely valuable experience for me because it was sort of like a sneak peek into future reality. That is, in the near future, as a new teacher, life will pretty much be like the TOC day. Going into a new class of students, a new school, even quite possibly a drastically new community on a day to day basis. I have to say, it was a little nerve racking the night before but at the same time it was exciting. It is exciting in the sense that, as a TOC in different classes, you will almost never have the same two days. In the most basic sense, there will most likely be new students to teach, a new grade level, even a new classroom atmosphere. Can you just imagine the possibilities, they are endless!
I think for me, it was a little nerve racking because I knew I was going to be spending my day in a primary level class. Not only was that a drastic change from my upper intermediate class, but it was also different from my preference of an intermediate class. So I was thinking, can I really do this? My first plan of action was to keep the confidence I have in my own class, and second remain calm. I believe These “two C’s” – confidence and calm were really important for my TOC day and generally as a TOC in the future. A teacher once told me, being confident is key, because if you are not confident, the students will literally be able to smell your anxieties or fears. So, I think if you are conveying to the students you are not ready for the day, that will in a sense rub off on the students as well. Imagine being a student, and you notice your teacher is not very comfortable in his/her role, chances are this will throw you off, affect your learning. As a result, I will always have these “two C’s” in the back of my head as a teacher, not only for myself but more importantly for the benefit of my students.
The biggest difference I noticed between primary and intermediate – probably the most obvious – is the amount of guidance and instruction required. When I was thinking back to this difference after school on the TOC day I realized I almost treat my grade sevens like university students. I can explain concepts and ideas to them and then expect them to work on their own. Even when I am circulating in the class, most students do not require my help. For example, I am able to give the grade sevens their own inquiry project into Greece and they are able to come up with ideas that I feel I could not even produce myself. In the primary level, there is much more guidance required if you, the teacher, expect students work to be a certain way. For example, with something like spelling or grammar work, depending on the reading level of the class, the teacher needs to go through all the reading with the class. Instructions must be made directly clear to the students, even if they are written on the board or a worksheet, the teacher will almost always have to verbally review expectations beforehand. That being said, coming back to inquiry projects. After doing some thinking, I realized, if expectations are not completely fixed to be a certain way, a simplified form of inquiry is possible at the primary level as well. Yes, definitely the content and work produced will be extremely different from the intermediate level. However, it will still be something the students have created on their own, with a different type of guidance from the teacher.
This then made me realize again the importance of adapting and flexibility. This is so crucial as a TOC. You need to be ready to make the jump from kindergarten one day to grade six the next day. My SA gave me an excellent strategy to use as a TOC, which I used this past TOC day. At the beginning of the day, you write on the board “surprise” or “free time.” You explain to the students that this is something they can earn, a surprise or free time. However, if at any point the teacher thinks the students are not behaving as expected, whatever the expectations might be, a letter comes off. But these letters can be earned back as well – almost like a game, which I think is so motivating for the students. The point is to keep all the letters or a certain number of letters to earn the given reward. This works well for a TOC, because the strategy will probably be new to the students whereas in a regular class, using this strategy over and over would not make it as effective. So, whenever I found the students were misbehaving, I would just remind them of the word on the board, and this helped get them back on track. In the end, they were deserving of their surprise, and they got to to choose from pencils I had brought.
Being in the primary class also taught me a lot about myself. Although I have gone into primary classes before to cover preps, this was different as it was a whole day. I got to see my more nurturing side come out. I was much more patient with the younger students as I had to guide each student in different ways. Where in the grade seven class I usually guide students in relation to the content, in the primary class there was a lot of behaviour related guidance as well. For example, asking students to sit a certain way, waiting for their parents after school, helping students get ready for recess and lunch and so on. I almost felt like a mom to 22 little kids. This was something I had not really experienced before and I really enjoyed it!
In the end, I think this day was really enjoyable for me because it not only was a learning experience for the future but it also allowed me to reflect on myself as a teacher and my abilities. I now realize that with flexibility and new strategies, I am able to bring out my more nurturing side and apply this in conjunction with my teaching. I’m very thankful to have had this opportunity!
Henna Art – May 11, 2015
At the end of the day, we had a henna lesson. We started with a discussion of henna and the importance it has in the Indian culture. Students knew a lot about it and we related it to modern day culture. For example, we talked about henna parties in Indian weddings and the students connected this to bachelorette parties from Western culture – something I did not think of myself! I also had my friend who is very familiar with henna application come in and help the students and they were really excited to see a new face in the classroom. I had thought I would have to work with the boys much more than I had to. They were actually doing fine on their own. I think this was probably because I left the assignment quite open-ended and asked them to explore with their creativity. I allowed them to use their devices to search designs and had images of henna designs on the Smart Board. I had thought some students might not want to use the henna on their body so I gave them an option of applying onto thick Bristol board. It was great fun and learning!
Going to the Landfill! – May 4 2015
Last week our class went on a field trip to the local landfill and then a picnic at a close by park, Deas Island. I have to say, the field trip really surprised me. We had an employee of the landfill as a tour guide and the bus driver literally drove us around the different parts of the landfill. The most surprising part for me was how clean the landfill was, I did not expect it to be like that. There was a lot of wildlife as well – eagles and deer – something that really excited both the students and us teachers!
That being said, I now realize how field trips are not just a learning experience for the students, but sometimes for the teacher as well. When teaching about topics and ideas that are fairly new to you, that you do not know much about, a related field trip can be a good introduction for both the teacher and students.
In another sense, a field trip serves to answer a common question students have, “what does this have to with life?” or “when will I ever use this in my life?” Going on a field trip connects material from the class to places and experiences in the real world. Students get to see what they are learning about and how it takes place in the real world. I believe this is the most important part of going on a field trip. It provides purpose for learning so really a field trip can serve as an introduction to why we are learning a certain topic, a closure for the same reason or even right in the middle as a reminder.
As a teacher, you have the opportunity to interact with your students in a different atmosphere, an atmosphere almost completely different from the classroom. As a result, you get to make valuable observations about your students’ behavior and communication in the real world. For the students, this is a chance to essentially inquire deeper into a given idea/topic. For example, when there is a tour guide or even just the teacher, students are able to ask questions when something peeks their interest. When we were at the landfill, the tour guide left a lot of time for questions and the questions some of my students asked were amazing. Very critical and thought provoking. These questions again made me realize that field trips are very beneficial for students’ learning.
Although our picnic in the park got cut short because of the intense rainfall, I observed something really interesting. Light-hearted parts of field trips like the lunch at a park allow students to bond in a different setting as well. Something that I think is really crucial at this age level. Students get to realize that as they grow up, the classroom will not be the only place where they have to interact and communicate with others. There will be many more settings where they have to work and/or play with others. In the end, this field trip really opened my eyes to the benefits of taking learning outside of the classroom and I’m really excited for the field trips in this coming month!
Beginning Poetry with a Kahoot!
Today (April 30/2015) we began poetry! When I told the students we would be beginning poetry, I got the moaning and groaning that I had expected. But, I had my plan of attack. I tried to make this lesson as engaging as possible. However, I needed to keep the beginning somewhat calm, so I chose to have the students do a quick write about anything they think of when they hear poetry. They then shared their thoughts out-loud. But, I thought some students would be sort of sensitive to this as some aspects of poetry can be personal for some. So, I had to first explain that not everything has to be shared out loud, only what they are comfortable with. And to my surprise, the students had a lot of interesting stuff to share and in their quick writes. As a form of assessment for learning, this will really help me with deciding how the unit will develop in the upcoming lessons.
After this quick write, I thought I had to address the students’ fears and hesitations about poetry. I thought it was really important to emphasize the limitless nature of poetry. That is, there is no correct way of going about poetry. Coming back to the idea of always trying to give the students a purpose, I explained that this is a time they would be able to experiment with writing and language. I always think relating learning content to real-life is really important in establishing purpose. So I gave examples from my own life and understanding the position they are in, because I was in their position only ten years ago. Then they did something I had not anticipated, they calculated my age. It was a funny moment and I just took it to support my point further. That is, that I really do understand how they feel because I’ve been through it as well. I then got them to think about how we deal with our emotions – whether happy or sad – through expressing ourselves using language. This got us to talk about the importance of emotion and feelings in poetry.
This discussion was supplemented by a poetic license. I really tried to exaggerate and emphasize what happens when students get this license – almost like it was a real license. I told them they could break the rules now, that they were ready for poetry. I thought it is like a concrete piece of evidence that the students are ready to read, write, even analyze poetry. My favorite part of teaching is when the students surprise me with ideas/aspects of topics that I did not even begin to think about. For example, when we started talking about breaking the typical rules of English language and writing, the students began thinking about writing poetry on topics like food. Now, I know that food will definitely be a part of one of our poetry lessons. Then on the poetic licenses, it required students to write their names. When they came to this part, a couple of students were asking me “do we write our real name?” and I was actually a little confused. What they were trying to do was write a nickname as their poet name. I thought this was so creative, a sign of their engagement.
We then moved onto a Kahoot quiz I made about poetry terms, which really was a kahoot! I had expected the students to be pretty “hyper” about this interactive quiz. Although, I had a paper version in case, I did not need to use it. Because, I thought this is the first time we are using this program in class and they were definitely going to be excited because of the competitive nature of the quiz. However, I did need to give a few beginning instructions, like keeping their usernames appropriate, not yelling out answers and allowing enough time to get everyone connected to the program. I tried to let them just enjoy the interactive quiz. However, to make it more of a learning experience as well, I debriefed after questions I felt needed a discussion. This way students were able to explain their answers. During the quiz, the class was probably the loudest they have ever been. But they really were engaged and I would definitely use it again because even though they were loud, they were really thinking about the questions – just in a competitive manner. I ended off the quiz by explaining this is just the introduction to these terms and they got a vocabulary list they will be filling out as they learn about each.
We then moved onto the humorous poems by Ken Nesbitt. I chose these poems on purpose as well because I thought they would be a pleasant way to start off poetry and to demonstrate that poetry does not always need to be sad or serious. I was really careful with the poems I chose, trying to make them as relatable to the students’ lives as possible. And, as I receive the students’ analysis’ of the poems, a lot of their responses include how understanding these poems was easier because they poems relate to their life.
I had to change the brain break to the end because if I had done it in the middle of the lesson, it may have caused the students to become more distracted. Because of this, I had to incorporate the brain break into my closure, which ended up working really well, as the students were able to review. I also made sure to remind them about our Kahoot quiz and the ideas from our previous discussion. This was the first time I have had the students be so excited about something like the Kahoot. I could have asked them to quiet down, but then I thought what would be the point of the Kahoot if they were not excited, then it would be like any other paper quiz. So, I realized that sometimes we need to change our usual expectations of the students when we introduce new programs and ways of learning like Kahoot. Instead of looking at their behavior as negative, I saw it as very positive – a demonstration of their participation and engagement. This was a great example of how to include technology in your class to make a topic which students are hesitant about – like poetry – into something they enjoy!
Quick Math! – April 28 2015
Math can become quite routine and repetitive with the teacher teaching and the students just following along. So, I try my best to vary the activities in each lesson as much as I can. So, today I brought in math manipulatives – unifex cubes – to begin the lesson. I thought it was important to do this at the beginning of the lesson because then I can capture the students’ attention right from the start. Although I had wanted each group to have their own set of cubes, I had to change this because of time limits. So instead, I had students come to the front to manipulate the cubes. For math, I really have been trying to watch my voice and wait time because I feel these make a huge difference for students’ understanding of the new concepts I am introducing. So, varying my expression and repeating key terms and processes of solving for the mean, for example. Also, with wait time, I do say, “take a minute to think about it,” and sometimes I even have said “Come on, I should see more hands up then that.” This usually works, but if it does not, I have now begun to ask students myself to answer. I would like to keep working on my voice – especially experimenting with different tones and recognizing what works best when. For example, switching to a more softer tone when I have been using a stronger tone in order to get students’ attention. In a sense, sort of surprising the students with a completely different tone so they know something is about to change and I need their attention.
Teaching in other classes – April 23/2015
Teaching in another grade level (4/5 and 5/6) was a great experience. I thought the student behavior and attention level would be quite different from my own class, so I made sure to be observing for this. For example, some students at this age level had a harder time keeping a focus throughout the entire lesson. So, I tried to keep a global scan throughout my read-aloud and question periods by speaking from different locations in the class and making sure to stop to regain focus when necessary. Also, this is why I tried to break up the story and ask questions and offer comments through the read-aloud to keep students engaged. An indirect strategy like proximity would also work well as a gentle reminder for these students. I increased my wait-time as much as possible for this class to accommodate for the different thinking time and attention levels. It was really important for me to close this lesson by sharing connections students made and reviewing the importance of connection making. It is always really interesting to see the difference in quality/quantity of work in the different grade levels and within the same grade level as well.
Something else I noticed was the difference in participation in terms of gender. In my grade seven practicum class, there is usually more participation from the girls compared to the boys. However, in the younger grade levels, I observed the opposite – more participation from the boys than the girls. I thought this could have something do with the age difference. Particularly, in the upper grades, the students begin to care more about what their peers think of them. Therefore, they monitor what they have to say in class a little more than the younger students. And for boys at the upper age, there sometimes is that belief that they need to be “cool” or “tough” now, even “rebellious” in a sense. This may reflect onto their participation level, serving to pretty much decrease it in order to grow and maintain that “cool,” “aloof” image. For example, something I have recently noticed in my class is when we have class discussions, some of the boys begin to put on their sweatshirts’ hoods. I think this may have something to do with that image as well – in a sense closing themselves off from what is happening in the class. In the coming weeks, I would like to look into research on this topic – specifically, how gender affects participation at this age and how a teacher can help improve this situation.
Like I said earlier, it really is an extremely valuable experience going into all the different grade levels to teach. Firstly, I get a sneak peak at the content, curriculum, and learning that occurs at each level. As a result, I am able to make observations and comparisons like what I described above. This is so great for my development as a teacher as it allows me to develop versatility and appreciation for the range in learning. Apart from this – but just as important – I get to connect with so many people. This includes both students and other teachers. I get to see how students at different age and grade levels think, learn, the work they produce. I get to connect with different teachers and really everyone has so much to offer from their experiences as teachers – so much that will benefit my development once again. I look forward to rotating through the different classes in the upcoming weeks!