What an Experience

Well, I taught my first lesson to a classroom of 2nd graders and it went great! I taught a lesson on Animal Classification through Direct Instruction. My anticaptory set was a hit with the students. I used the whiteboard to play a game of "What Animal Am I?" and they were so into it. It really showed me how much they love to do anything out of the ordinary and with interaction. My lesson was also well received, and each child was able to name all seven classifications taught by the time I was finished. The next day, we took them to the computer lab for my Animal Classification Webquest. I was a little nervous that they would have problems navigating around but it went so well. It was also the quietest I have ever heard the class! The kids took time to go through each link I provided and really enjoyed it. I am happy I ended the quest with many games to play to show what they learned. They were so excited that the computer teacher said she would save it for them to go through again the next day. I definitely feel better to have gotten my first lesson out of the way because now I am more excited about the next one than nervous. I think the kids can feel my enthusiasm and it rubs off on them. My cooperating teacher is VERY animated and I have been able to see how they respond to him over the past couple of weeks. It has been an incredible learning experience. He is also very big into creating healthy self-esteem for the kids and to promote empathy in his classroom. Even though I have my own seven year old, I never realized how many questions second graders like to ask!! Some pertained to the topic and some did not! One girl raised her hand and asked if I liked her haircut. Well, I have really enjoyed myself this week and feel I have grown immensely. I finally feel "in it" and am so excited for more.