Today was the final class of School-Community Relations at St. Bonaventure. Our final class consisted of student presentations. Going into the presentation I had everything planned out in my head and on my notes. Introduce the idea, discuss its relevance, and then close with questions. I didn’t anticipate the butterfly’s that developed when I stood in front of class to deliver the speech. Here I am a teacher, a person that speaks publicly for a living with butterflies. I learned a lesson today and that is that I need to give myself more opportunities to speak in front of various audiences. I also should have a backup plan if my mind freezes up. I should probably have had my speech scripted so that if I needed to fall back onto something that crutch would be there to catch me.
Afterwards, I began to reflect about my students and realized that I need to give them more opportunities to stand in front of their peers to deliver information. Public speaking is an important quality for future leaders and I would hope that my students will become leaders in whatever profession they chose. In the future I will definitely provide more opportunities for my students to share information in various formats.
This past Wednesday was Halloween and I found myself sitting on the front porch with a bowl of candy. Sitting there waiting for the trick-or-treating to begin I started to think about going house to house as a kid and how much fun it was.
I remember that there was one house that was extra creepy every year during this holiday. Walking up the driveway I noticed these solar lights that appear in Catholic graveyards. The house was covered in cobwebs with a single purple light on the porch. There was a tape playing scary noises and a motionless witch sat with a bowl of candy. There was a sign that asked for us to take only one piece of candy. My friends and I looked at the witch and decided that she was stuffed or a prop and went to take a piece of candy. She grabbed me by wrist and I lost it running all the way down the driveway. That was the most excitement I have ever had trick-or-treating.
Tell me about an adventure or memory that you have had.
July is coming to an end and I find myself begining to work towards September. A new year is about to begin and with that comes the excitement of a new class. Every year I go over my expectations of student behavior during the first period of the first day. Below is a list of my expectations.
Students should:
- Do their best
- Take risks academically
- Reflect on their learning
- Respect themselves, classmates, and school staff
- Participate
- Help others
I started to wonder what the students expectations were for me? What are parent and community expectations?
If you find yourself reading this post, think back to a lesson or project that you enjoyed. Think about your favorite teacher, what made them your favorite teacher? What did they do? What are you interested in? What would you like to learn about. What are your expectations for me?
I look forward to reading your list of expectations.
