Coming Home

Well. . . .I am back from my trip to Savannah, Georgia and all I have to say is AMAZING!!! I would most definitely recommend this trip to anyone who is interested in working with children on any part of the spectrum.


Before I left, I really had no idea what sorts of situations and events I would encounter and I think that was better because there is no way I would have believed the things that I experienced. If someone had told me before I left that I would work with a 3rd grader that did not know how to spell the word "the" I would have thought they were crazy. Overall, I think I had a positive experience seeing as I was working with children on completing their state writing portfolios and the majority of the class did need help. However, at the end of the week almost every student in the class was completely finished with his or her portfolio and I felt very accomplished. I think they liked me and were excited for me to be their to help out for the week. The other two JMU students, that were in the same classroom as me, seemed to enjoy the trip as much as I did and I was glad we were there to support one another because it could have been overwhelming alone.


"I want to be an Elementary School teacher after I graduate and at this point have my heart set on 2nd or 3rd grade."
That was a statement I made before going on this trip and after my return I could not feel more confident in my career decisions for the future. Teaching is a special job and takes a special type of personality and person and I know that I will be able to do it no matter the struggles.




In case anyone was wondering. . . .I didn't end up packing too much!!! YIPPPEEE :)

Anticipation for Georgia

Today, I am at work and I cannot help but think about the trip I have coming up in a little over 2 weeks. I will be headed to Savannah, Georgia with my Teaching Writing Class as part of James Madison University's Alternative Spring Break Program. We will be staying in a church and practicing simple living throughout the week while visiting an elementary school during the day to help with literacy in 3rd grade classrooms.

As I sit here, I wonder what sort of students I will encounter? What will they think of me and will they find me interesting? I want to be an Elementary School teacher after I graduate and at this point have my heart set on 2nd or 3rd grade. This experience may be eye-opening and allowing some insight into what my future will look like. Overall, I am just excited and cannot wait to be there and have the experience of a lifetime.

My only concern is. . .I hope I do not pack too much!

Teaching the Way You Were Taught

It is often said that teachers teach the way they were taught. This statement is slowly coming to life. As an education major, I am reaching the point where I am have to decide my stance on certain teaching methods. In class, we discuss pros and cons to particular methods and incoporate experiences of our own. When I was in school, I enjoyed working with a group because I am an extremely social person. However, every situation can be good or bad and anywhere in between.

One particular experience I have enjoyed in a group was with a group presentation I had to complete for a Human Resource Development class here at JMU. We were placed with a group for an entire semester and assigned each other roles within the group in order to hold each other accountable. The groups were arranged based on a learning styles inventory test and I enjoyed the company and work ethic of my team. We knew what to expect from one another and the project was completed in a timely and even manner.
One particular experience I have not enjoyed in a group was with a group presentaion I had to complete for Communications class here at JMU. We were placed into randomly assigned groups based on last name and were to come up with a speech topic and presentation to make in class on an informative topic. Each member was unsure of what the other was going to be doing and information overlapped, as well as some members contributing nothing until the last day.

Overall, I would not say I am going to completely follow the ways my teachers taught me and I think this is in particularly because all teachers are different. I am sure I will incorporate elements of previous teachers into my classroom experience, but there is not one teacher who I believe to be the perfect model. When it comes to group work, I think teachers need to serve as a mentor and mointor in order to keep the work on task and to help members keep one another accountable.

"Good" Writers

Can any student free of learning disabilities become a "good" writer?

When I think of writing, I think of an art form that can be taught to any and every student. However, I made it a point to call it an art form because it is these types of skills that can be mastered, which might not be attainable for every person. Take myself for example, I enjoy writing and conveying the thoughts I have; however I do not believe I am an excellent writer, but do consider myself to be a "good" writer. This leads me to assume the answer to this question is in the mind of the beholder and their own individual opinion on the definition of "good."

Does good mean you are the best writer in the world and have a million best-selling books?
In my mind this question does not have anything to do with being a good writer. Yes I believe that any student free of learning disabilities can become a good writer in a sense that they will have the skills and tools necessary to complete an assignment or task if asked to do so.

Writing Experiences

In kindergarten, I remember learning to read and write basic words and phrases. In 3rd grade, I remember learning how to write in cursive. In 5th grade, I remember taking my first writing SOL test. In 8th grade, I remember having to write a dreaded writing prompt for placement into English classes for high school. I am now 20 years old and a junior in college which means throughout my learning career I have been a part of many writing classes and experiences. However, the writing classes I remember the most are from my years in high school.

In the classroom, children are taught the basic bare minimal structures of writing starting the first day of school. First, sentence structure is learned with the basics of needing a noun and verb. Slowly children learn to add adjectives, adverbs, prepositions, etc. Later, when learning the concept of paragraphs, children learn that it is necessary to have a beginning, body, and conclusion. All of the details in between are filled in through experience and practice with writing. As writing is used in every course a student begins to get more and more practice with it and develops a wider knowledge of the subject. However much people want to believe that writing should be universal; it is not the case from my perspective. This is even due to a simple fact that there are certain styles of writing, MLA versus APA, which different individuals prefer.

From my various experiences, I prefer to be taught the essentials and then take the approach of trial by error. This enables the students to be free to make mistakes and although they may be penalized a small percentage for them they will be shown their mistakes and encouraged to correct them in the future. This was the approach taken by my Research and Analysis teacher in 11th and 12th grade and I felt as if she was the teacher that opened my writing perspective. For example, at the beginning of the semester we were made to complete a grammar assignment where we had to learn a list of 50 grammar rules she had compiled and present a project including all the rules. In the beginning, I thought the assignment sounded like a huge waste of my time; however I very seldom found myself making those grammar mistakes in my writing assignments.

In the future, I am going to be the teacher having an influence on my students and their writing perspectives. Hopefully they will be able to think back to the times they had writing assignments in kindergarten, 3rd grade, 5th grade, etc. and I will be a part of those memories. Every student learns differently and therefore every assignment can be interpreted differently. I hope I am a teacher that is able to convey the essentials and help to enhance those in my students’ writing assignments.