Protected Elementary Teacher Planning

In class on Wednesday, we worked on our position papers for our Advocacy Wiki. Working on this paper really got me feeling the excitement for our advocacy. As our group found more and more research, I felt myself wanting, more and more, to make this real. I listened to other elementary teachers discuss how they had no planning during the last week of school, but in the same breath list the myriad of task that HAD to be completed by the end of the week. All these feelings were reinforced when I lost my entire afternoon on Thursday with meetings. I was given 10 minutes to eat before I was in an IEP meeting from 1:00-2:45pm. Then I was visited by an attorney for a student at 3:00 pm and that lasted until 4:30 pm. I was never helped by administration. This just reinforced the feeling that my time is not valued, nor my family's time, since I had to complete the work that should have been done during that time at home. New thoughts began to surface in my mind...Could I really be someone to start an advocacy for this in Spotsylvania County? Or join forces with those who have begun on this journey already?

More than a Blog!

I was already excited about this class...now even more. I really enjoyed the readings this week. I was amazed to learn how versatile Web Logs are. I thought they were just electronic journals with an added interactive component. I can really see how I can use a Web Log as my classroom website. The possibilities are endless! My favorite part of the reading was about The Secret Lives of Bees. I am very interested in this and wonder how I could adapt it for my third grade classroom. Hmmm, sounds like an idea for my Blog Lesson Plan...

My First Blog!

Wow! I never thought I would have my own blog (but, secretly wanted too). I am really excited about this course this summer, for that very reason. I have not had a lot of exposure to blogs, wikis, or podcasts. I am very intrigued by the idea of using these within my classroom. I talked with my students a little about it today, telling them how I would have my own blog on the Internet. I was amazed at how much they knew about them...much more than I did. 2 students talked about how they go to sites and read blogs written by some of their favorite TV personalities. I have never really "felt" like a Digital Immigrant before...until my third graders showed me what it means to be a Digital Native. I asked a few if they would be willing to tutor me this summer (lol)!