As One Journey Ends, Another Starts...

Wow...it sure has been a long voyage for me, and it's no big surprise that I always have to make everything harder than it should be--it's just the Mary Tran way! I started out as a girl who came in gung-ho about teaching, totally in love with the idea of working with students. I hit a few bumps that were discouraging and took away my teacher groove a bit, but hey the groove is back. It has taken me three semesters to come full circle and still be gung-ho about teaching. Am I kooky or crazy? Nope... crazy is the norm for me. Today was the last day of my 8 week placement. I'm excited to be done, but I'm sad to leave such an amazing group of students. I have to say you are never too young to be a teacher and definitely never too old to be a student. My students have taught me to love, to believe in what I teach and whom I teach, and to be myself. As they were coming up to me to tell me one thing they will remember or miss, I had more reasons to why I love teaching. When I hear the students tell me their favorite part was reading, I smiled and was overjoyed because this is what I wanted to hear. They told me that they'll miss all the games and the fact that I turned almost everything into something fun. This is what I strive to do and I will always carry that with me into every class I teach. I've learned that students are capable of so much more than we think that they can handle; this group has taught me that. And I can say just because they're fun size doesn't mean they can't be taken serious. =) Most of all...my students have helped me discover how to truly be "Miss Tran."

Final Countdown...

I have come so far since the beginning of this placement. I went into teaching because I was in it for the long run to make a difference, to help students become better people and life-long learners, and to grow. Who would have thought, 32 third graders would have made a difference in my life, in who I have become, and grown into. I'm a changed person (for the better) because of what these students bring into my life. They're simply inspirational and make me want to do the best I can so they can succeed because they deserve that. The student teaching is coming to a close and I'm not ready to leave these students. =( Do I really have to start a new chapter in my life?

Infinite...

There are sooo many reasons why I love to do what I do and can't see myself do anything else in the future, BUT there is one really crucial reason. At the end of the day, when I can finally take a deep breath and slow down my mind completely, I realize I teach one small thing but my students take off and run with it. It surprises me and is inspiring to see how one small thing can expand. Surprises is why I teach.

Being a Tribal Leader...

Somewhere down the line in a classroom, I was bound to become a tribal leader. Right at this point you might be thinking "What is she smoking?" Here's the lowdown... I'm taking over social studies this week and we are learning about Native Americans who have lived in Fullerton. Tomorrow, I will be wearing a head dress that I made with a head band and feathers and I will be having the third graders sit in a circle and listen to a Native American legend as told by me. Hence...I've become the town "Medicine Man" or "Tribal Leader." Third grade is pretty fun. :-)

Other than that, my master teacher has commented on how engaging my lessons are. She brought up an interesting point that she's never seen in any of her student teachers. Apparently I am able to keep my students engaged during my lessons, which is terrific, but I haven't been able to keep a good hold of behavior management when they work independently. Is it possible that I am only a teacher when a teach a lesson? So...that's one thing off of my list of what to improve upon....now it's on to becoming a cookie that looks tough, feels tough but really is the chewiest ( made up word maybe?), softest, and sweet, and delicious cookie. What can I say...I'm in love with relating myself to food.

Back to preparing my lessons. Ciao!

It was bound to happen...

With this crazy whacky weather and being surrounded with children, I've finally caught all those nasty germs. Yesterday I was feeling just fine and dandy with a minor cough until I went into lunch duty for a Kindergarten class. Nasty little bugs! Anywho...I'm home sick with a flu. My body aches, I'm coughing, and I have the sniffles. I really didn't want to miss the day with the class, but I'm not at my best. Time to sleep. Goodbye!

Week 2...

Amazing how time flies... I've been doing the class opening and math. Anyways... my first week went okay, I wasn't really comfortable showing the sense of command and I needed to improve on it, which I've improved on in my second week.

My first observation turned out to be one heck of a surprise. I was expecting to be watched only by my supervisor and master teacher. Midway through my lesson, the principal walks in with the superintendent. I was not nervous at all and kept going with my lesson as though no one else was there with me. You want to know why? I thought the man with the principal was the fire marshall. LOL! There's one way to make sure I'm not nervous...don't tell me who is coming in. =)

So...here we are in my second week, much better than the first week. I'm still doing just the opening and math, BUT I got to teach an art lesson today for my second observation. We're reading Black Beauty, so I decided to integrate literature with art by having the students do a guided drawing of a horse. Lets just say....I didn't know I had it in me to draw a horse. I had a lot of fun teaching this as well as getting a real opportunity to connect with my students and the third graders' art was FABULOUS!!! Even though I thought all the horses would look pretty much the same, these third graders brought their own flair to their work. I should probably keep a few to sell on ebay. Just kidding! OR...Maybe I'll be an artist on the side of teaching. =)

Or...I'll just head off to bed now and just keep dreaming about what would happen if I became an artist. Good night! =)

Who and where am I?

I've been thinking about who I am. In people's eyes, I'm a source of inspiration, a positive, bubbly person, someone who has great integrity. In other people's eyes, I'm loved and emulate a great role model. So what's wrong with this picture???? I can't see a lot of these characteristics in myself and it has lead to a few twist and turns down my journey. Last semester, it was supposed to be my last semester of student teacher. It could of been another milestone in my life, but things don't always go as plan. I started to shrink and these characteristics disappeared one by one through my teaching. When I started to realize that passing the semester wasn't going to be in the picture, I felt ashamed, disappointed of myself. I knew I could do better and I had no one to blame but myself. In fact, everyone in my life knew I could do it. But at that point, it was just difficult to fix and I made a choice. I decided that I was not ready and wanted to stick around to develop more. My choice really revolves around my nieces and nephew. I thought, "If I met their teacher and they were teaching the way I was, I would not approve." I could of just given up to find a new career, but I know teaching is what I am supposed to do. So........ after a long winter break that involved rediscovering who I am, I'm now redoing my student teaching. I'm excited to show the third graders who Miss Tran really is!