Field Experience week #1 Blog

What?

This was my first week, well 2 days, in my field experience. It was very interesting to see how my cooperating teacher ran her class. It was also very interesting to see the different types of students and how she had to do certain things differently with each child.

So What?

I wasn't quite sure what I should expect when I went into the classroom. I was very nervouse until I was actually in the classroom. It's very interesting to see how fast the 5th graders warmed up to me.

At recess, they swarmed around me and wanted to talk to me and then at the recess that they earned later that day, they wanted me to play with them. It was very fun :)

We played a game, the students came up with, it's a get to know their name game. They gave me a beanbag spider they called Mr. Spider and I would throw it to them and they would tell me their name. After all of the kids told me all of their names, I went through and tried to recall all 29 of their names. Needless to say, I could only remember about 10 of their names. I felt very bad that I couldn't remember their names so for the rest of the day, I would look at all of them and say their names and look at their faces and where they were sitting. Lets just say that by the end of the day and the begginning of the next day I had all of their names memorized.

I found myself feeling bad when I left the students. I never knew that after 2 days I would feel like this for the students. I figured that I would feel bad for leaving at the end of November but not after just 2 days. Now I'm positive that teaching is what I want to do as my career.

Now What?

I know that many of the things that I've learned, in just 2 days, will help me when I become a teacher. I know what I will change from what I've seen and I know what I can use. I have seen many things that I like and dislike and I know now what I can do and what I should stay away from. I really enjoy getting this experience and I'm still liking the idea of teaching the higher grades, 4th-6th, but that could change when I go back in the spring to do field experience in the younger grade levels.