What is your favorite teaching moment?
Every
teacher knows that planning a lesson is essential. Careful planning is
always involved to engage students interests. Nothing is more
rewarding than seeing students immersed during instruction. I find
it fascinating when my students use their critical thinking or problem
solving skills during a whole class discussion. Their curious minds
can alter the lesson completely with just a question. I find myself
jumping towards the direction of the question or statement and going
with the flow. It adds flare to a well-planned lesson.
What is your favorite lesson?
I conduct
an intense New York City Unit, as part of the second grade social
studies curriculum. My favorite lesson is from the immigration unit I
created. My students research immigration using a variety of
resources on the Internet, articles and books. I culminate the unit
with letter writing; students pick a country of interest and pretend to
be an immigrant child during the era of early to mid 1900's. They
write a letter to a family member, from their country of choice, and
include the hardships they are going through. Once they are done with
the letter, I have my students design their immigrant child portrayal.
I hand out people cut-outs made from sturdy material, like oak tag or
cardstock. I supply an abundant amount of fabrics and paper
materials. The end results are amazing! My students are proud of their
masterpiece.
What is your favorite school trip?
I'm
always looking for interesting places to go on a trip with my
students. I like to take students on educational trips that
correlate with their learning experiences in the classroom. My
school's parent coordinator suggested taking my class to The Skyscraper
Museum, which is located in Battery Park, Manhattan. I loved that the
museum was small enough for one class to visit at a time. The museum
offered a glance at the development of skyscrapers. I enjoyed my
students reactions when they discovered the timeline of the tallest
skyscrapers in the world. There are many photographs and actual
skyscraper models on display. At the end of the trip you have an
option to receive a free tube of materials containing blueprints and
photographs of skyscrapers. The Skyscraper Museum is my favorite
trip. I look forward to going back every year.
Tell us about your perfect day.
My
perfect day would consist of less paperwork and more time to do it. I
am sure many teachers can sympathize with my thoughts. I would love to
have a smooth day doing more fun lessons that my students enjoy.
What is your favorite tradition at your school?
Every
year my school has a tradition in celebrating Daylight Savings. On a
designated day the entire school comes dressed in pajamas toting sleep
accessories. Each class is paired with another class on a different
grade to buddy read. I think it's wonderful how the upper grades
mentor the lower grades. Students really appreciate the love of
reading. Sometime during the day the students enjoy milk and cookies
as a treat. What better way to promote the love of reading than a good
book accompanied by a cookie!
Name the school supply you can’t live without.
My absolute
favorite school supply I can't live without is my highlighting tape. I
use it throughout the day in every subject area. It works well with
vocabulary terms in literacy, math, social studies, and science. I use
it often during balanced literacy when I'm teaching a specific reading
or writing skill or strategy. It helps the students focus better in
the lesson. I have it in a variety of colors and it really stands out
on paper. My students love when I use it and always ask me "Where did
you buy that colorful tape?"