Animoto

Interview Preparation

This blog post is in response to Mrs. Kallas' post.


1. Do you enjoy teaching children? If so, how would I know if I observed your class?
What I enjoy teaching children is seeing the passion and how excited the child gets when they figure something out on their own, you can see the "light bulb" go off whenever they figure something out! If you observed my class, you would be able to tell that I enjoy teaching children, because I have such passion when it comes to something I LOVE doing! I like to make teaching fun for the kids, whether that be little games, maybe bringing in the iPads, or just little fun activities!

2. What did you find to be the most difficult aspect of student (intern) teaching?

I think the most difficult aspect of student teaching for me was planning my lesson plans, and showing them to my mentor teacher, my mentor teacher and I were always short on time, so planning, and showing a thought out lesson was often sometimes hard.

3. What ways do you assess and evaluate students?

Some of the ways I assess and evaluate my students are through some apps online, such as Kahoot or Plickers. The best part about Plickers is you can individually see the scores of your students.

4. Tell me a little bit about yourself.

As you can see from my resume, I'm very involved at my High School, Haltom High School. I'm involved in PALS, which stands for Peer Assistance and Leadership Services, in PALS, I along with my fellow classmates, get to travel to our feeder Elementary School's and mentor kids that need it the most. Also I am involved in Education and Training, within this course, I get to intern at an Elementary School, three days a week! I get a taste of what being a teacher is like! I get to grade papers, teach lessons, attend field trips, and so much more!  

5. Let's pretend it's almost the first day of school and you were a first grade teacher. How would you prepare your classroom?

I would prepare my classroom with lots of welcome signs! I would have my students name tags on their lockers, and on their desk. I would have my schedule posted for the kids to see as long with the parents to see. We would also have little "ice breakers" for myself and the kids to get to know each other!

EAT Technology Tools

This is the link to a LiveBinder my Education and Training class used for our web tools.

LiveBinder

PowToon

My Web tool or APP is: PowToon.

Does it also have a mobile APP?
No, PowToon does not have an app, but it can be easily opened on the school network.

How to use PowToon

How do you make an account? 

Step 1: Go to PowToon

Step 2: Find the big blue button that says START NOW. 

Step 3: Fill in all your information in the boxes.

Step 4: You've made your account!

Is there a free version for educators? Is there a paid version?

You can get all the fun animations for free for TWO days, after two days, you get the free version of PowToon, if you still want all the cool animations, you have to pay a monthly fee.

Difference, paid version:

Parent permission? Age restrictions?

You do not need parent permission, nor any age restrictions.

PowToon Example

How could you use this tool in the classroom?

You could use PowToon in the classroom to show a presentation, or have your students create a presentation to show in class.

How can a teacher use Powtoon? 

• To show students his/her classroom rules.
• For a teacher introduction.
• To show a school syllabus.

How can a student use Powtoon?

• For a class project.
• For a book report.

What subjects, or activities would best lend themselves to this tool? 

• Math, reading, social studies, science.
• Seniors: Seniors can use this webtool for their graduation. Or for a save the date presentation! 

A Visit to the Perot Museum

Mrs. Kallas' blog

Below is a Prezi of my day at the Perot Museum, I hope you enjoy!

Creativity Counts!

This post is in response to Mrs. Kallas' blog.

1. What is Creativity?

Creativity is the use of imagination or original ideas. 

2.  Why does Creativity matter in Education? Creativity matters in Education, because our future depends on it, the future students in our classroom will shape the success or failure of future generations, we need our students to "think outside the box" because we need to get the best out of them.

3. Have you ever been in a situation where you felt as if a teacher didn't let you be creative? If so, explain. I think every student has been in a situation where they felt the teacher wouldn't let them be creative, especially when you're limited when writing a paper. For example, my English teacher always limits us on how long/short an essay can be, and she always tells us what's wrong and what's right to put in a paper. In my opinion, I think you should write as much or as little as you want, and you should be able to write how you feel, and not be limited on what you can/can't say just because your teacher says it's wrong.

4. Have you ever had a teacher that let you be as creative as possible? If so, explain.  Last year I had an English teacher named Mrs. Lilley, and I absolutely LOVED her, every time she gave us a project to do she never limited us on what we could or couldn't do. Last year we read Of Mice and Men, and for my project I brought in a cake that had farm animals on it, and she told me she loved my idea! 


5.How do we fix the problem(s) described by Sir Ken Robinson? I think we need to get rid of standardized testing, so many kids feel pressured, and feel that the teacher is just teaching them certain material just so they can pass that end of the year test. Another problem he mentioned was kids who struggle with ADHD, one of my students at my field site struggles really hard to pay attention, or keeping himself occupied whenever he finishes an assignment, so I decided to go out and buy him a few things, the first thing I bought him was a tangled therapy toy, that helps with stress and will keep the student busy. The second toy I bought was a Rubix Cube, to keep the student occupied on trying to solve the puzzle.

My State Teach Tomorrow Summit Highlight

This post is in response to Mrs. Kallas' blog post. TAFE's website.

My favorite part about the trip had to be the hotel experience. I got to bond with my fellow classmates, and we stayed up probably past the time we should've. It was definitely bittersweet for me because I knew this would be my last year doing this, but I'm glad I got to have this experience with my fellow classmates one last time!

Another favorite part of the trip for me had to be when a couple of my classmates and I went to Dave Burgass' breakout session! I really enjoyed his speech and his session, I even bought his book and he signed it!

Overall I had a great experience and I would HIGHLY recommend this experience to any of my fellow TAFE members!