Presentation Reflection

1)  In what way did the first interview affect your presentation?  Please explain, be specific and use an example.

My presentation was based on the information I received from my first interview with the first grade teacher I do service learning with.  I covered a small part of the information from the interview that I found interesting and related to some of the information I found in the research I’ve done.  The basis of what I presented out came from the additional question from my first interview, which was what do you find most difficult about teaching first graders?  My interviewee had answered that encouraging her students to read and make learning exciting was one of the most difficult parts, but important.  That’s the information I based most of my presentation on.


2)  What you say stood out about your presentation performance and why?

I say that what stood out about my presentation performance was my enthusiasm.  I felt like as if I was telling my friends about the interesting things I learned through my interview, research, and service learning.  In addition, I gave an example of teacher doing a poor job in encouraging his/her students to read by expressing the lack of enthusiasm while he/she tells a story, which was an important part of my presentation.  

3)  What was the most challenging to do and why?

The most challenging was to keep my presentation under five minutes.  I felt like I had so much information to present and a lot to cover in such little time.  When I went over my outline, it seemed like I wouldn’t be able to present everything I wanted, such as the example of the activity the first grade teachers I work with do and also, iinformation towards children being active in reading activities.  I did end up cutting a few parts out, however, and ended up working well for me when it came to time.

Senior Project Presentation 1

Objective:

• Students will learn about the importance/difficulty of making the learning process exciting and the importance/difficulty on encouraging students to read.

Procedure:

1. Ask Questions towards a student's (or students') past experience in school.

• Who loves to read? (Should be answered by raise of hands)
• Who loved to read since first grade? (Should be answered by raise of hands)
• Someone tell me why?  (volunteer/choose at random)

    2.  Talk about the opinion of Ms.  Horwitz (first interviewee) towards the subject/connect it to information I have read in my research.  Include:

• Motivation teachers must have to keep the encouragement going and at a high level. 
• Ms.  Horwitz love for teaching and how that affects her enthusiasm and ideas towards creating activities and keeping old fashion ones interesting (example the Read it! Read it!)
• The importance of involving the students in reading activities and recommending them not just any book, but good books (as explained in an article). 

   3.  Show visuals and connect them to the content that has been taught.

• Colorful poster of a teacher holding up an open book, demonstrating the front and back cover with writing that says "Read to Succeed". or A mini- version of an activity that is used at the school I volunteer at.  It helps students advance in their reading/pronounciation skills. 
• Children's book that talks about following the rules.  

Check for Understanding:

1. Ask one or two questions to see if the class was following along, such as:  What did Ms.  Horwitz, teacher I do service learning with,  say was a difficulty when it came to teaching first graders?  What is a quality a first grade teacher must have in order to encourage his/her students to not just read, but learn overall and make it exciting?

Conclusion:

•      I will conclude with repeating the importance of making learning and reading exciting when teaching first graders, since they still are children who love to play and interact.  Also, how it requires a teacher to be motivated and requires a teacher to love their job in order to project that enthusiasm/encouragement strongly.

Resources and Materials:

• Poster
• A Children's book
• Candy (it's not for sure, though)

 

Interview Check

1)  For my first interview, I decided to ask Mrs.  Horwitz, who is the first grade teacher I am working with for service learning hours at San Jose Elementary School.  I decided to interview her first because she was my first choice, since I had already started my volunteering with her and so, wouldn't require much trouble to get the interview.  Also, it ended up being a good way to start communicating with her, especially towards my Senior Project topic. 

2)  Additional questions that I will ask her, other than the five required, are:  What made you go into teaching?  Why first graders?  What is the most difficult aspect on teaching first graders?  and What do you like most about your career as a first grade teacher?

Blog 1: Senior Project Topic

What is your topic?

My Senior Project topic is Teaching First Graders.

Why?

I wanted my project to do with children, since I like to help out children with their homework or reading like I did this summer at the Pomona Public Library.  It makes me feel good about myself and useful.  Moreover, a possible career choice I have is Pediatrics, which involves children.  However, I didn't want to do Pediatrics for my topic because I wanted to try something more creative for my project and something that included more interaction with people.  Another reason why I chose this topic is because there is an elementary school close by my house, and I think it is going to be a great experience volunteering at the school I used to attend.  It will also be interesting to observe teaching from another perspective. 

What do you hope to accomplish after studying this topic all year?

  

I hope to improve my communication skills by delivering my thoughts more clearly and with more confidence.  I also hope to improve my social skills by interacting with the children and teachers I will work with.  I feel like it will be an enlightening experience, observing the ways of teaching.  Especially in the future when I have children, I hope to apply my knowledge from the experience of the project towards them and wherever else I may have the chance to.