This is the last week of classes for those of us in Block 2 and it has been a very active semester. We have done several projects that we will be able to incorporate into our classrooms once we become teachers. In our Literacy class we learned different ways to get students to read and write; which in my opinion is a difficult task. Some students find reading and writing as a tedious chore. We also learned different ways of telling classic stories such as; Goldilocks and Red Riding Hood. One of my favorite things we did was creating our own book. There were so many amazing books created by my classmates. Looking back on it now everything we did in our Literacy class can be integrated with our Social Studies class.
In our Social Studies class we learned about diversity, geography, location, and so on. However, we did not learn about these things in the conventional way aka textbooks. Our professor had us doing hands on activities such as, a trade fair; a decades project; acting out scenes from the book The Help; and, other activities. Social Studies is one of those subjects that can be boring to a lot; however, I think if we incorporate what we have learned this semester we will have a better chance of reaching all students and not a select few. We also had the opportunity to create a unit which will be very helpful in the future. We now have the experience and the knowledge of knowing what it takes to create a good, fun, and engaging unit for our future students. I personally had never seen a unit taught in an elementary school until this semester at my field placement school, they can be time consuming; however, if done right they are very beneficial.
The main thing I took away from this semester is literacy and social studies really can be taught together in so many different ways; it is our job as teachers to see that we do. We all know that social studies is not one of the concentrated subjects so now we have the tools to help it become one.
The things we will take away from this semester will truly help each and everyone of us become a better teacher. To everyone in Block 2 good luck in Block 3. Have a great break and a safe and Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.
Wednesday, December 7, 2011
Thanksgiving in America vs American Thanksgiving
Growing up in America is a unique journey for everyone. Throughout my whole life all I knew was being American, but as I get older I realize my "American" is much different from other people's perspectives. My unique perspective is partially due to having a family who spent a good portion of their lives in England. My mother spend the first thirteen years of her life as the youngest of five children in a prominent British family. Long story short her family ended up migrating to the United States.
Years later I came into the picture. While growing up I was oblivious to the differences of how my family celebrated certain holidays. Many of my Thanksgivings were spent at Black Eye Peas, a restaurant open on Thanksgiving. Our "family tradition" was to get together and go out to eat every year on Thanksgiving. Now that I am older I realize much of this "tradition" comes from the fact that my family does not have a strong relationship or history of celebrating Thanksgiving.
This year was my first experience hosting a traditional Thanksgiving. My husband's birthday is November 22 which means Thanksgiving is one of his favorite holidays. His upbringing was very different from mine, and his Thanksgiving meals consisted of so much food I swear there were some side dishes I have never even heard of. For 2011 I decided to take on my first real attempt at a from scratch American Thanksgiving.
My reaction: OH MY GOODNESS!!
Menu: From scratch homestyle mashed potatoes, from scratch egg noodles, from scratch pumpkin roll, mostly from scratch pumpkin pie (the pastry was frozen :) ) Turkey, stuffing (from a box because it is my favorite!) Cranberry sauce out of a can, and gravy from a packet because the turkey juices were used with the egg noodles.
Never before have I put so much work into so little pay out. I literally spent astronomically more time preparing and cleans than relishing the fruits of my labor. My experience with Thanksgiving produced more dirty dishes than any other meal I have ever prepared!
I have a new found appreciation for the invites I have received to go to friend's family's Thanksgiving celebrations.
Years later I came into the picture. While growing up I was oblivious to the differences of how my family celebrated certain holidays. Many of my Thanksgivings were spent at Black Eye Peas, a restaurant open on Thanksgiving. Our "family tradition" was to get together and go out to eat every year on Thanksgiving. Now that I am older I realize much of this "tradition" comes from the fact that my family does not have a strong relationship or history of celebrating Thanksgiving.
This year was my first experience hosting a traditional Thanksgiving. My husband's birthday is November 22 which means Thanksgiving is one of his favorite holidays. His upbringing was very different from mine, and his Thanksgiving meals consisted of so much food I swear there were some side dishes I have never even heard of. For 2011 I decided to take on my first real attempt at a from scratch American Thanksgiving.
My reaction: OH MY GOODNESS!!
Menu: From scratch homestyle mashed potatoes, from scratch egg noodles, from scratch pumpkin roll, mostly from scratch pumpkin pie (the pastry was frozen :) ) Turkey, stuffing (from a box because it is my favorite!) Cranberry sauce out of a can, and gravy from a packet because the turkey juices were used with the egg noodles.
Never before have I put so much work into so little pay out. I literally spent astronomically more time preparing and cleans than relishing the fruits of my labor. My experience with Thanksgiving produced more dirty dishes than any other meal I have ever prepared!
I have a new found appreciation for the invites I have received to go to friend's family's Thanksgiving celebrations.
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