November, End of Month Blog

This month wasn't very different, except for the fact that me and my mentor talked more about my EQ and some more answers to it. this month was very chill in the classroom because of Thanksgiving break and we only had to do very little work. There were still many teaching moments, but the last two weeks of the school month were planning and having a party.

Blog 10: EQ

I reviewed the rule of three for writing an EQ

a: No, because it makes sense, but is not specific enough to take a stance
b: Yes, it gives room for depth, wording makes sense, and takes a stance
c: Yes, it takes a stance, it makes sense, and has more than one answer
d: Yes, it makes sense, takes a side, and has more than a yes or no answer.

My EQ: What are the most important factors to teach a 6th grade special needs student

Blog 9: Lesson 1 Reflection

1. Positive Statement

What are you most proud of in your lesson 1 presentation and why?

• I'm most proud of my props and my powerpoint because of the way my powerpoint looked and my props were real hard work from students in my mentor's class.

2. Questions to Consider

• What assessment would you give yourself on your Lesson 1 Presentation?  P
• Why do you deserve that grade? I completed all the P requirements

3. What worked for you in your lesson 1?

• I think what worked for me most was my hook activity, everyone joined in

4. (What didn't work) If you had a time machine, what would you have done differently to improve your lesson?

• I would probably change how much I talked, I could've went for longer

End of October Blog Update

This month I spent about 6 hours at my mentorship. I do simple tasks every time I'm there, nothing extraordinarily special. Tutoring the kids, helping around the class, things of that nature. But this month, the kids had a series of projects which comprised of them doing book reports. They are assigned a book that the whole class reads and do an outline, draw pictures, and write a summary. It's kind of a  fun thing to do because the kids put their own creativity in their own reports.

Blog 8 - Research and Working EQ

1. Example EQ: What is the best way to teach a mild to moderate 6th grade special education student.

• Be patient, the child will not be as fast as the other students around him/her. Have lots of love and care for that student in wanting them to achieve.

2. Probably my mentor and the book "Including Students With Special Needs: A Teacher's Guide"

3. My mentor is Rosemarie Aguirre. She's a 6th grade special education teacher, and this correlates directly to my topic.

Blog 7 - Independent Component 1 Approval

1. For my thirty hours I'll learn from my mentor on how to teach and go through the day of a special education teacher. Then I'll take my mentors place for a couple of periods during the day

2. I'll take pictures, maybe take a video, and make a lesson plan for the day.

3. This will help me go deeper into my topic because instead of watching my tutor and helping her out, I'l actually be teaching the kids like I am the teacher.

End of Month Blog

                This month I had gone to my mentorship maybe 5 - 10 hours. I go right after school because her class ends at 3 and by the time I get there it's like one o' clock. Every day is very similar to each other. I usually either help her around the class or tutor students that need one on one help. I also play games with the kids last period. The kids that she has this year are not disruptive or noisy most of the time. They are very behaved, the only way you can tell that they are special ed. is because they are very slow when it comes to learning subjects. Patience really is key if you are trying to become a special education teacher.

Mentorship and Research Reflection

1. Describe your experience in how you found your summer mentorship.

My first mentor was the topic I originally wanted to do, which was detox nurse, but something critical happened in the hospital where she works. I think one of the patients went crazy, and the liability of me going there for a while was a very high risk. I ended up doing my mentorship at a middle school where my mom works, which is teaching special ed.

2. What has been your most important article you have read so far and why?

Probably the most important article I found was the special education teaching as a profession, lessons learned.... because it told me all about the ways on how to better yourself as a special ed. teacher. It went into detail on what you learn being a special ed. teacher and experiences from professionals.

Schools in, My summer mentorship

For my summer mentor ship, I went to two different places. A detox center and a middle school. Originally, my mentor was a nurse at the detox center, but due to some family issues, she ended up leaving. Now, my mentor is my mom, Rose Aguirre, a teacher at Griffith Middle School. She teaches the special education program there. The school started one week before ours, so I went to her class the first day of school. Before the class started, early in the morning, my mom and I decorated her classroom. We covered her boards, made a newsletter, and made palm trees on the windows. When the students arrived and it was time for school I mainly helped around the classroom, met the kids, tutored some that needed help, and played games with them. I had pictures on my phone of the classroom and what we did in it, but they weren't saved correctly on my phone.

Blog 4: Interview Preparation

1. Who do you plan to interview?

• I plan to interview my mentor, Rose Aguirre. She is a special ed. teacher at Griffith Middle School.

2. You have to ask 5 questions. What additional questions do you plan to ask?

• Why and when did you decide to become a special education teacher?
• What are the degree requirements to become a special education teacher and how hard did you have to work for it?
• Was being a special ed. teacher your dream career? What other careers did you think of while in college?

Blog 3: Topic Choice and Working EQ

1. List your topic here: Teaching 6th grade special education

2. Write a question that helps to focus your research for this month.

     What are the best ways to teach a special ed child in the 6th grade?

Blog 2

1. https://docs.google.com/document/d/1LoQK_QLNyXh3uxMnqET-cXola9dhKSpnWmVyrX_dMCQ/edit?usp=sharing

2. Griffith Middle School  323-266-7400

3. How many responsibilities do you have when working at your job?
    What can you do to make your work experience easier and/or more enjoyable?
    Who do you trust or ask when you need advice about your work?
    How much of your free time is taken up by working outside of work?

4. The most important thing I learned through my experience is that when you are given a task, you always need to do your best and give it your best effort to complete the task well and on time.

5. My senior topic will be Psychiatric Technician. When I worked with the nurse at the detox center I had a great time and i enjoyed doing what we were doing.

Blog 1- 2 hour Presentations

1.  What presentations did you see?
Karate
Basketball
Soccer
        Film Production
Video Game Graphic Design
Nunez, Alfredo Boxing
Computer Programming
Piano
Theater Tech
Magic the Gathering  
Brazilian Jiu Jitsu  
Coffee Shop Management
Theater acting
Business Management
Lending

2.   What questions do you have that haven't been answered about the senior project? This can be about the senior project in general, any components or about a presentation topic you saw or what they said.
   
How specific do you have to be about your topic. Some presentations were just general (Theater Tech), but some were very specific (Soccer)
 
3. What has the most important part of the senior project based on what you are seeing in the 2-hour presentations?

It seems like making references for everything you say, because the teachers don't count the talking time if it's not about the EQ.

4. What topic are you considering doing and why?

  A topic I'm considering would be one related to computer science.

5. What are you doing for your summer mentorship?

Right now I'm undecided but I think I'll be doing Information Security or Bank Telling.