What an Experience! Reflections on 15 weeks of craziness.

I can't believe how quickly 15 weeks have flown by. Wellsboro and my cooperating teacher have taught me so much through this experience. This experience is supposed to help us become better educators... It has done so much more than that! Student teaching has helped me grow as an educator, learn the importance of communication and collaboration, learn how to adapt, and how to reflect on situations - all while running from sun-up to sun-down on minimal sleep for 5 days a week!

Looking back on the 15 weeks has brought up so many emotions. I have connected with many of my students and gained so much knowledge on how to run a classroom. I started out being too easy on students - which I think is a pretty common mistake among new teachers. Over these 15 weeks I really found my voice and confidence in the classroom. I found I had to be stern less than the beginning anyway because of those connections I was building. Having that positive classroom environment helped the behavior of the students as well as my confidence in dealing with students. In the last few weeks I was able to push students to behave appropriately in class - specifically with being on laptops. Technology is beautiful thing for the classroom, but some students use it when not permitted and I found that balance near the last few weeks to be stern with students who were using it inappropriately or at the wrong time.

This time with students also helped me find my footing with teaching in various ways. Public speaking was never one of my strengths, but I was able to develop my confidence to speak in front of courses. By far the smaller class sizes were my favorite to teach, but the larger classes of students really pushed me to gain confidence and share my knowledge with students.It forced me to be over prepared with my classes so I could be ready to answer any questions that might come up.

My experiences in the classroom helped me grow, but so did all the various experiences I had outside the classroom. I had the opportunity to visit students SAE projects, review their records on AET, participate in FFA events, and even received the Honorary Chapter degree at the Grand Canyon FFA Banquet. It provided em the opportunity to get to know students outside of the classroom. When you get to know student interests and personalities you can bring that into the classroom to relate to them. I felt that I developed the relationships with many students which helped me relate examples to their interests in class.

As I went through these crazy 15 weeks I watched my students grow. As I reflect back I realize how much they have helped me grow as well! I will always look back fondly on my experiences at Wellsboro and all the great people I had the opportunity to meet.