THIS IS IT

Wow. I can't believe that this is my last blog post for Ed 316. This is so bittersweet. I have never had a class that has made me this frustrated and happy at the same time. This class has pushed me to become a better educator and I am super grateful for that. it is really sad to be leaving this class because I really feel like this PLC that we have created was a strong one. I love my classmates and i don't want to say goodbye. However; it is time to move on and start my next step: Student Teaching. I just had the orientation meeting today for it and it really is starting to hit that I am almost finished with my time at GWU. We discusses the NCTCS, which funny story I was such a nerd because Dr. Parker asked if we knew what those were and if anyone had them. so I pulled the list I had on a note card out of my backpack hahaha!  All of this to say, I have learned more than I thought I could from Ed 316 and I am really going to miss it.

Recital Week

This week is the busiest week of my spring semester. This week alone I am in 4 concerts alone, plus all of the dress rehearsals for all of them. So my brain is so full of music, assignments, and just trying to get through all of it. I am so grateful that we don't have Ed 316 tomorrow. Not because I don't like the class, but because it will give me a little extra time to do homework. So in connecting with the standards, I believe Standard: 1b1 Engages in collaborative and collegial professional learning activities, fits in nicely with what I have been up to lately. All of the concerts really benefit my musicality as well as broadening my musical knowledge. Playing in many ensembles exposes me to all kinds of genres and music eras. Sorry for the short post this week! But I need to go practice for my senior recital. Which is this coming Friday, April 22nd at 8PM in the Dover Theater! If you guys have time you should come out and listen to some awesome music, There will be cake afterwards too!

finish line

      We are so close to the end of the semester and all I can say is that it is a race to the finish. I can say with confidence that this semester is filled with the most work I have ever had. It has really has pushed me and made me think about my future a lot. It seems like every time I turn a corner another assignment is just waiting on me and I honestly am struggling. There is not enough time in the day to do all of my assignments for school plus 3 ensembles, private lessons, and my senior recital. Something has got to give because I am slowly loosing my mind that is for sure.
      One thing that I really try to focus on with my content area is really broadening my ear to new music. This is because if I am teaching music I want to have as much knowledge on music as possible. Today I listened to some 21st century music because I am working on gaining more knowledge in this are of music. It is not my favorite era at all but I need to listen to it for the benefit of my students. This aligns with standard 3: Teachers know the content they teach. I hope to integrate more 21st century music into my everyday listening to prepare myself in the classroom.

Blog #212553445

I hope everyone who is on the DC is having a very fun time! I am on campus slaving away at homework and preparing for my senior recital. Today is actually my hearing, which means I play for some music professors to make sure I am prepared enough to present my senior recital. It is overwhelming focusing on that as well as my other homework because I want my recital to go as perfect as it can. This recording I get on my recital will more than likely be used to send in for grad school auditions and that is super important. While practicing for dayssss I have also been working diligently on the BPH. This feels like the longest assignment I have ever been given. It feels like when I get one strategy written another 12 pop up haha. But little by little I will get it all done. It is hard having only a three person group but I am so grateful for Amanda and Dalton. It has been a blast getting to know them and spend time bettering ourselves as educators together. Even though standard 4g. Teachers communicate effectively is under standard 4. teachers facilitate learning for their students. I definitely connect that standard to Dalton, Amanda, and I for working on this BPH. We have a group text chat and have met multiple times to make sure we are on the same track. With all this being said, I need to go practice. Here goes nothing!

Lessons

After reflecting on my teaching today in class and looking at Dr. Clarks comments, I realized that I did not do a good job of assessing my students. This is a part of the NCTCS. The standard I am referring to is, Standard 4h. Teachers use a variety of methods to assess what each student has learned. I really need to work on incorporating assessments more into my teaching. My fault with this is that I get too excited and get carried away about sharing something that I love so much. But if my students are to really take the lesson all in, I have to asses their learning so that I know the progress and if I need to go over something again. Also with assessment not just simply giving a test or a quiz. But incorporating many different kinds of assessments into my teaching. I have thoroughly enjoyed teaching to my fellow peers because I have gained more experience teaching as well as valuable feedback. 

Grades Galore

These past few weeks have just been a little strange because we had bring break and now we are about to go on Easter break. It really hasn't felt like we have been in class. However; last week it was good being back in this class minus the fact I felt like a bunch of assignments came out of nowhere. I know that right now it is overwhelming and I probably complain a lot. But these will benefit us in the future and especially in student teaching. Today was one of our teaching days in the classroom where our class and Dr. Parkers class was combined. Even though I did not get to teach today, I can say seeing my peers teach was kinda cool. Everyone did such a good job and I can see how beneficial this will be for us. This atmosphere created an almost real life classroom. The standard I saw in action today during these lessons definitely was 1b1: Engages in collaborative and collegial professional learning activities. I am nervous about teaching my lesson but I know with such supportive peers everything will be okay. 

Back to Reality

Spring break was far too short. I did not want to go back to school at all. But getting my degree is a huge priority so here I am. It was nice being back in class today and being able to learn about a new website canva.com where you can easily create infographics. This was an excellent example of teacher standard 4d. Teachers integrate and utilize technology in their instruction. This really allowed me to reflect on what I have learned so far this semester. After filling out an infographic it was nice seeing a visual representation of my learning and also to see how much more room I have for growth in this class. I had a small issue with the website where it deleted everything I had completed so I had to start over. But other than that it was a cool website to use and I have already thought of ways I could use this in the future and even in my own classroom.