"Educators should be champions of every student who enters the schoolhouse doors."

Mind blown about differentiated instruction, I knew there was a teaching technique that focused on  different types of learning but I didn't necessarily connect the dots with it being differentiated instruction, I also didn't realize the amount of research put into this type of instruction. I know its very important and critical in the classroom and after reading more about it the research backs what we have been taught. There is just so much to talk about after reading just one article let alone the three others I found. So to highlight some key things you may(not) have known.

• There are 3 characteristics of learners- readiness, interests and preferences.
• Differentiated Instruction can be traced back to the 1600's! Wow they knew what they were doing back then, why can't we get it together now?
• All differentiated instruction is based on the same curriculum expectations (unless an IEP is involved) this means you don't have to write 25 different lesson plans, you just write one!
• You simply have to select a variation of instructional approaches 
• All learners what to feel like they get to make the choices when it comes to their learning, by giving them the chance to make decisions they will put more effort into their learning
• This can be done by letting them- Pick if they want to work alone or in groups, decided the order of assignments being due for a large project and allowing them to answer one question on the assessment by either writing or drawing.
• However you must make sure all choices are assessed the same way across the board!  
  
  
  

Now you know a little more about differentiated learning! Woot Woot! Unfortunately there is so much more to learn about the subject and I know as future educator there is so much to learn about everything and there is not enough time in the day...so I think its important to take everything in moderation and slowly incorporate more and more teaching techniques and variability into each lesson. 

Differentiated instruction is an important part of any lesson plan and I believe is important and will fall into place easily with a little per-planning.

If you want to read more about this interesting topic feel free to check out these sites I found when researching the topic.

A history of differentiated instruction

A brief over view

A BIG read on differentiated instruction in the Ag class room

Have a wonderful week and be sure to check back for more!

Unit Planning...

I really appreciated having to write our unit plans so soon in our journey of becoming a teacher. It was great seeing what I was made of and then having the chance to learn about writing proper objectives and how to make lessons better. I also liked getting to read two of my peers, it not only gave me great ideas on how to make mine better but giving the constructive criticism also gave me the chance to see what my weak points are.  I did my unit plan on Pesticide Education in my Landscaping class. 

Some changes I will be making from my peers suggestions is making my objectives stronger as well as adding more. When I gave them my unit plan, I knew that was going to be my biggest downfall. However, we had some instruction on how to make great objectives and I have now gone back and created more as well as made my existing ones stronger.  A second change I made was to spell out the standards, I have now become aware you have to write them out and I have made that change. I also lacked a few parts of the plan and need to make sure I have all my quizzes prepared. A few points were not made clear such as the certification for pesticide education as well as the career options or why this unit is important. I have made changes to these areas and the part about becoming certified is still in the air…I’m working on it.

  

With this great feedback from my peers I think my unit plan is very solidly built now and I’m ready to take on the next. Having so many great resources to pull from I am confident that my lessons and unit plans are going to be amazing and I actually enjoy making them! Crazy right? I enjoy homework now, good thing I want to do this for the rest of my life. I can’t wait to get started on the next and I know I have a great support system willing to help me along the way! It’s been a great 6 weeks and the next 9 are only going to be better. So ready or not unit plans here I come!

 

            Now for something a little extra!
                                                 Check out this link on lesson plan tips!

                                                               Or this one for unit plan templates and advice! 

Till Next Time,

Have a wonderful weekend! 

How many questions do you ask?

Did you know the average teacher asks between 300-400 questions a day! Wow that's a lot of questions if you ask me. I don't know if I could think of more than 300 questions to ask each and ever day.

But these questions are more than what did you learn or how does this system work. Rather these questions are used as a tool to gauge what students know, what they have learned, and what you need to go back and reteach because every word that just came out of your mouth for the past ten minutes flew right over their heads. You can also use questions to develop interest in the subject and boost motivation. I think this is often over looked when we consider questions and what their purpose is. Questions can also be used to develop thinking skills. Now what are thinking skills? Thinking Skills are " the mental processes we use to do things like: solve problems, make decisions, ask questions, make plans, pass judgements, organize information and create new ideas."

Questions come in levels, like everything else we learn it ties into Blooms Taxonomy (I think I am finally beginning to see how important Bloom is...just kidding...I know he is important). With one of the reading we had this week there was an awesome chart that had what questions went along with lower level questions and higher level questions. I couldn't find the exact chart but this one is just as useful! The link to this chart since its hard to see.

Now about those levels of questions...there are higher-leveled questions and lower-level questions. Higher-level questions require complex application, analysis, syntheses and evaluation skills where lower-level questions use knowledge and comprehension. In case you didn't realize these are all "steps"  on Bloom's Taxonomy.

As a future educator its important to remember that questions are here to help us not hurt us. But questions can hurt our students if we don't give them proper time to answer, give them positive feedback, or handle their answers properly.  Its important to remember that we were once students and that feeling we got when the teacher called on us to answer a questions we had no idea what the answer the teacher wanted, and remember we should never want a student to feel that way.

That's all for now. Check back in for more updates on my path to becoming an Agricultural Educator and all the fun I've been having along the way.

What Bugs You?- An interest approach

Lab went much better this week, which is good, means I am improving ever so slightly. Anyways, lab this week was all about interest approaches and I think mine went very well. I started off by having my students break into two teams, one team was the "farmer" the other were the "pest". The pest team was challenged to pick one of five pest that they wished to be. Their end goal was to invade the farm and collect as many crops as possible. The group I worked with played along extremely well and even did a caterpillar dance on their way to the farm. The farmers were challenged to plant their crops in a per-designed field. They had restrictions on what could go where, and how many plants could go into. Once time ran up the pest group had the opportunity to invade the farm, based on the pest they chose they had limitations as to what crops they could take as well as how they could move around the farm. After the pests got to ravish the farm everyone got some of the treats and we moved on with class.

Overall I think my interest approached worked well for me. Can you guess the topic we were learning about? Today's lesson was on introduction to Pesticide Education, I think I hit the nail on the head for this lesson. We got to talk about what made a pest a pest as well as some of the impacts a pest can make on a farm. I would hope this approach would keep students excited and eager to come to class the next day to see what else we may do. For this Landscaping class which my lesson was prepared for this would be the first class session I thought and I believe I am starting out strong. 

Now things didn't go exactly as planned there were some bumps along the way. Thankfully this is only a learning experience. One major issue I am having is making my presence in the classroom strong. I know this will only come with time and practice so every chance I get I am gonna take it and go for it. I know this is a topic we all need to work on check out this great blog on how to make a presence in the classroom. Some tips include greeting students at the door and being careful how you use your tone of voice. Greeting students at the door is something I have done for both of my lessons and I want to continue doing. Now to work on my voice; I found a few resources that have tips on making a strong even toned voice, other ways I can improve my voice would be to practice speaking in a mirror. 

 

Another point of weakness is my classroom management. I had an incident where one student bullied another. I know I did not handle it very well and that is one MAJOR problem. Bullying in schools should not be tolerated by any means and I did not draw attention to the problem. There are countless websites and tips on how to solve the problem. Here is one particular site that I found helpful.

I know I have a lot of room to grow from these labs and I am embracing all the constructive criticism I am receiving because I know in the long run I am going to become a better Agricultural Educator! 

I hope everyone had a wonderful National Teach AG! Day and in case you missed it check out the video the avengers made!

Brown Paper Bag

My Family: Unlike most families my dad’s family didn’t move to far away. Growing up I thought everyone could walk to their grandma’s, play at the barn with their cousins, and that your neighbors where your aunts and uncles. Well it turns out my family isn’t like most…we all live on the same road and very very close to each other. But I wouldn’t have it any other way. It was a great experience having everyone so close, seeing my grandparents every day, and having my cousins to play with every day. My family is extremely supportive in all of my endeavors, from raising market goats to going to Penn State. They have had my back and are always there for me to fall back on. It’s nothing to get a few text messages and phone calls when I get home asking if I could stop over and come by. I always end up walking away with a little “gas” money and the random bag of food. My family isn’t like most but I couldn’t imagine them any other way. This past month I was convinced I was getting my uncle’s little red car, but my family being the way they are had a surprise just for me when I got home from camping. Somehow they were able to keep the secret even my little brother. I am so thankful for having such an amazing family. They are a large part of me and the way I was raised. Being raised on a farm is hands down the best way to be raised and I hope one day I can give my children the same experience. 

4-H has given me so much from my best friends to life skills. I can’t even describe how amazing my 4-H experience has been and the best part is it hasn’t ended. Last weekend I got to spend it with 40 amazing 4-Hers who have a passion for leadership. I started going to camp when I was 8, it was the best thing that could have ever happened to me. I met this fiery loud mouth red head who has since become my best friend. I also met some of the most amazing people along the way from leaders to fellow members each has impacted me in a different way. I can’t believe the opportunities I have experienced because of that green clover. I’ve traveled to workshops in Ohio and Georgia, went to so many camps and conferences and even got a Teen Council started in our county. 4-H has given me so much and I continue to give back. I couldn’t find the perfect picture I have so many….so I chose a video we made a few years ago. The memories from that day will last a life time and the friends I made those memories with are still the ones I can rely on to pick me up when I’m feeling down.

 My loves: First family portrait…we just took this…but nether less Grady has made a huge impact on my life these past 2 years. When I first met him I thought he looked a little rough around the edges but you can’t judge a book by its cover and after a few months I saw what was in that book. Grady is the most caring open-hearted person I have ever met. Not only is he my best friend but he is also the biggest rock I could ever need. No matter what he can always put a smile on my face and these days that is all that matters. I know we are young but at the same time we aren’t that young, I do graduate this May. Anyways Grady is now a major part of my life, he is the one I can call at 2 am when I can’t sleep, the one to hold my hand when life just gets to be to much, and the one to make me laugh when it feels like the world is caving in.