EDU 3051 Class 12/6

Today was the last of class. We spent the first few minutes of class watching a video on gifted students. We then discussed important information from the video.

After that, we spent the rest of class time teaching our last lesson plans. We each taught for fifteen minutes in front of the entire class. While teaching, our peers filled out rubrics telling what we did well and what we need to work on. This is always extremely helpful.

EDU 3051 Class 11/29

Today we taught lesson plans to the class and gave feedback to one another. My lesson was on friendly letters. I talked about what friendly letters are, why it is important to know how to write them, and the parts. I got a lot of positive feedback from my peers. It makes me feel like I am really improving. I feel more comfortable getting up in front of my peers to teach. This is a big improvement for me.

After our teaching, Dr. Damiri lectured about gifted students. It was surprising to learn that these students are the most neglected group in schools. Just like any other child, gifted students should be accommodated for and given what they need. However, this is not happening. When I begin teaching, I will definitely be sure to identify my gifted students and do whatever I can to help them get the best education possible.

EDU 3051 Class 11/22

Today we presented our disability awareness projects. Each student was assigned a different type of disability. We researched our disabilities and created a PowerPoint. We then presented our PowerPoints to teach one another about different disabilities. I chose to do my presentation on autism. I researched autism and taught the class what I learned. I told what autism is and gave some facts and characteristics. I also gave some ways to modify and accommodate for students with autism.This will be helpful when we become teachers.

After our presentations, Dr. Damiri lectured about visual and hearing impairments. This will be helpful since we have to modify our next lesson plan for students with visual and hearing impairments. This information will also come in handy when we get into the classroom.

EDU 3051 Class 11/15

Today we broke up into two small groups of four. We went into the curriculum lab and taught our lesson plan 2. My lesson focused on compound words. I feel that I did a good job on my lesson and taught it well. There are always things that I can work on and do better. However, I do feel that I have been improving throughout the process.

We also taped ourselves so that we can go back and watch ourselves. This is good, because sometimes you do things that you do not even realize you are doing. I can watch myself on the video and see what I did well and where I need to improve. This will help me a great deal in the future.

EDU 3051 Class 11/8

Today, Dr. Damiri showed a PowerPoint presentation on learning disabilities. The presentation gave ways on which instruction and assessment can be modified to meet the needs of students with learning disabilities. It is very important for teachers to understand their students with learning disabilities. Like all other students, none of these students are the same. They all have different needs, and teachers can make modifications for these students if they understand their needs.

Next, we watched a video that showed non-learning disabled people what it is like to be learning disabled.The people went through a variety of different activities that showed them what it is like to be a learning disabled child in the classroom. It was a very good video. It is important for people to understand that these students are different and have special needs.

EDU 3051 Class 11/1

Today we went on a field trip to the Knoxville Adaptive Education Center. The Principal is an amazing woman, and I am so glad to have met her. The information she gave us was both informative and useful. The strategies they use with students are great. She is wonderful at what she does, and so are all the other people that work with her. It takes a special person to work with children with disabilities. I did not really know what to expect going into the classrooms. Once I got in, the children just seemed like any other children. They were doing their work and joking around with the teacher. Some were tired because it was the end of the day, and they just wanted to go home. However, these students do have special needs and that cannot be forgot. It is great how the teachers and staff at KAEC understand the needs of all the students. They take these needs and provide the best education possible for each individual student. Being at the KAEC really opened my eyes more about students with disabilities.

EDU 3051 Class 10/25

Today in class we watched a video that explained the legal aspect of special education. Special education is instruction specially designed to meet the unique needs of students. The first step in getting a child in to special education is a referral. There are many different people that can refer a student for special education. Next, the student is tested to determine if the need for special education is present. If the need is there, an IEP is developed for a student by a team that includes the parents. Parents are strongly encouraged to be involved in the education of their child. There are many ways that they can do this.

After the video, Dr. Damiri lectured on different types of special needs students. These students can have special needs due to cognitive, language, emotional, sensory, or physical disabilities. The most common disabilities that I will come into contact with as a teacher are learning disabilities. There are many different types of learning disabilities, and students with them have a variety of different needs. These needs can be academic, behavioral, social, and/or physical. As a general education teacher, I will need to be aware of which students have special needs, and what those needs are. This way I can provide them with whatever they need to be successful.

EDU 3051 Class 10/18

Our first lesson plan of the quarter was due today. Each of us had the chance to get up in front of our peers and teach the lesson. We gave one another positive feedback as well as constructive criticism. This is very important because it allows us to help one another grow.

I personally got some positive feedback that surprised me. I am usually shy, but my peers said that I spoke very loud and clear. This makes me happy because it shows that I am getting better. My peers also liked my lesson and thought it was good. However, they felt that I could have done some things to improve my lesson. They stated that I could add visuals and be a little more detailed. I agree with this and am glad that they helped me.

EDU 3051 Class 10/11

Today we spent the majority of class time discussing lesson plans. There are many parts to a lesson plan and each is important. To begin a lesson plan, one must first look at the standards. From there, one must create instructional objectives and goals. Once you have these elements, you use them to help develop the rest of the plan. This would include assessment, set, focus questions, strategies, activities, etc. It is extremely important for a teacher to know and understand how to write a good lesson plan. They are a part of every day life in education.

Bloom's Taxonomy was also a topic of discussion today. In a widely accepted taxonomy of objectives, Bloom and his associates arranged cognitive objectives into classifications according to the complexity of the skills and abilities. From lowest to highest Bloom's Taxonomy is knowledge, comprehension, application, analysis, synthesis, and evaluation. There have been some new terms created for these levels, but I prefer to to use the old ones. We also discussed different questions to ask to promote thinking at each level. It is important for educators to understand Bloom's so that they can get learners thinking on many different levels.

EDU 3051 Class 10/04

Today was the first day of fall quarter. The title of this course is Diversity and Application to Planning, Instructional Strategies, and Assessment. We began class by going over the course syllabus and discussing the purpose of the course. We then took a pretest to see how much we know.

Following the pretest, Dr. Damiri talked a little about the diversity and students with special needs. Diversity is the nature of the universe. Everything and everyone is different. I personally feel that this is something that makes the world beautiful and interesting. Schools are full of diverse classrooms. One thing that makes classrooms diverse is the inclusion of students with special needs.Special students are those with special learning needs, because of these needs, they require Instructional Adaptations in order to learn successfully. It is important for teachers to learn when and how to make classroom modifications for these students.