Melissa Purville's blog

Teaching with technology is imperative for both 21st century teachers and students. It is an excellent tool that can be used to engage and interest the minds of the young because technology increases communication with students yet it also enhances their understanding and increases their memorability. One way in which a teacher can easily grab the attention of their students is through activity types. Two activity types that I believe will assist me in preparing tech-enhanced lessons are Comic Life and Adobe Presenter 7. Comic Life is a great way to introduce a new topic to your class.

So this past Thursday, I did my micro teaching math lesson on mean, median and mode. Lights, video camera and several of my wonderful peers watching me from a distance. (Well I guess no lights per se, unless you want to count the classroom lights!!) Can I say nervous? I was very nervous in the beginning but as I progressed through the lesson I became more confident, comfortable and totally forgot the small group in the back of the class watching me. I focused on my students. I focused on there answers and the fact that I wanted them to understand and grasp the 3 m's of statistics.

Several weeks ago I taught my first mini lesson to my class on rounding whole and decimal numbers. Even though much of it was a review from what they learned in previous grades, it was a great feeling to know that they understood the concept and were able to apply the same rounding rules to decimals. Even though my students understood the concept, the lesson started off shaky. I walked into class that Friday morning and there was a supply teacher instead of my associate teacher and he was not aware that I was teaching a lesson that morning.

Today was my first day at Churchill Meadows and I must say I really enjoyed it. Not only do I not have the best associate teacher (sorry fellow Churchill classmates) but I also have the greatest students. I'm really excited about what these next few months will bring forth. Everyone is so nice and welcoming. I started my day off with a Terry Fox run/walk and immediately right after we had phys.ed. By the end of the day my class was tired and exhausted. I'm excited for next week to see what a regular day at Churchill is like. C'mon next Thursday. I'm waiting....

I'm not sure if many of you have heard about this but there is a new documentary about the status of public education in the United States that is being released tomorrow. It's called Waiting for Superman. The documentary follows five promising children through the American public education system that hinders student academic growth instead of encouraging it. The director Davis Guggenheim, reviews some of the American public education's daunting topics including drop out rates and academic sinkholes.

It is week 2 of the teacher education program at Brock and I’m learning so much - new terms, new teaching methods for math and how to use technology for educational purposes. I knew using technology in a classroom was crucial to engaging students’ minds but I never knew exactly how I would incorporate technology into my very own lesson plans. With the help of Zoe and the course - teaching and learning with technology - all my questions and insecurities have been answered and the nervousness I experienced over the summer has vanished.

I've been doing homework all day and as I'm looking through my agenda I"m seeing that the homework is definitely piling on. Read this subject here, study for pop quiz there and not to mention the long list of group work/assignments with due dates quickly approaching. YIKES!!

Today in class we we're given our placement locations and I'm at Churchill Meadows. As I sit here and type, my nerves are twitching and my anxiety is slowing beginning to set in. I'm beginning to worry. What happens if I'm not a good student teacher? What happens if my I create boring/non-engaging lesson plans? I know I'm worrying about things way to early and I hope once I'm settled into my grade 5 classroom everything will be alright. I just want to be able to leave a good impression on the students I'm teaching.