Blog #1

The other day I was observed by Dr. G.M. It did not go as well as I would have liked but I had no grounds to complain because the good doctor was right. One of his recommendations was that I have to have objectives not procedures listed for my objectives. All of last year and last summer when people discussed objectives all I heard was bloom. Increase the bloom knowledge. Make sure you use a bloom verb. The doc said, “What is it that the student should be able to do at the end of the period? That is your objective.” That simple statement has changed my outlook on effectively teaching. The lessons I have planned this summer are aimed at accomplishing the big goal, building on one another as the period’s progress. We have only one kid. The first day was spent figuring out how he learned best. Yesterday I developed objectives that I felt could meet him where he is. I created objectives that asked for him to identify, explain, and compare and contrast. The objectives built on each other over the course of the day. The student was really into it and was at times craving for more. By spending Tuesday feeling him out, understanding where he is and how well he could think. It allowed for me to really engage him yesterday with some good lessons that met him where he was at. My instructional strategy for the past two days, eight lessons, was to give direct instruction leading the student through the material, directing him were to find the material, and then I used the concept attainment inductive strategy model. It worked wonderfully. The student was able to create Venn Diagrams and place the information on a timeline based on its classification. The student was then able to explain to me the concept that I was trying to teach, in other words, the big picture.