Week 12 Peer Responses

To Adair:

You know, your students probably do know you better than you think.  One of my goals for this class was to figure out how to be more like "myself" when teaching rather than feeling like I'm getting into character.  It really feels wrong to me to do the "teacher-talk" as I call it.  You hear these little catch phrases and patterns of speech in so many classrooms and sometimes I pick up on them just from observing teachers I admire.  But it's really important for me to find a way to be natural with my students.  When I reflect on the educational lineage I made at the beginning of the semester, the one thing all the teachers on it had in common was that their distinct and authentic personalities were evident and present.  Their teaching styles were VASTLY different.  I don't know if this is right or not, but I would say, reflect on how and when and with whom you use sarcasm.  Ask yourself if you know when and how to be sincere as well.  And don't be a two dimensional cut-out of yourself because your students DO know you, or at least, I think they want to.  To me - and this is just me - teachers with distinct personalities have been more important than those who do everything "right".

To SLamme:

I love this lesson!  Would you mind if I adapted it?  This Fall I will be designing an arts program for Rainbow House, a shelter for abused/homeless children.  (It's intense, I know)  One of the challenges is that the population is constantly fluctuating.  Some kids are there for a few days, others a few months, so we will never know if we will have the same kids from one week to the next.  Also, the age range is REALLY broad, so I need to prepare experiences that can be adapted for early childhood through teens.  I want to make these experiences meaningful...not just craft night.  I know this is a touch challenge, but I feel like this idea could really work.  Plus, who wouldn't love the song!  If you have any suggestions for how to condense this unit into chunks that can stand alone, I would be very interested.  Just a fabulous lesson!