Nov.17, 06: Wacky Hair Day!

Today is Wacky Hair Day! I didn't know until Mr.Herridge told me in the morning, so I didn't prepare a "wacky hair style". BUT...to fit in and get into the spirit, I tied my hair in a ponytail on the side. Although it wasn't all that wacky, it was still more fun! One student came to me and said that she forgot to make a wacky hair, so I used an elastic band to tie her two pigtails together, and she was happy with it. I can tell that they really enjoyed these kinds of special days, and they were so excited all day long. It was great to see all kinds of wackiness throughout the grades, and even greater, the wackiness of the Greensborough staff!

While Ms.Carson was doing Art with the class, I did Math assessment with individual students in the hallway. Ms.Carson showed me what she wanted to assess, so I assessed a few students while she was working with them. It was a great experience, because I am going to do an assessment with them next week, so it really prepared me for it.

In the afternoon, I did a PowerPoint lesson on how to read the class website that I made for the Grade Ones. I think it went well, because the students seemed to be engaged and excited about it. I was touched when they started singing "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star" with my music on the website, because I didn't expect that. It is great to see that they are so engaged in learning, and it is the teacher's job to keep their passion of learning throughout their life. A lot of students seemed to have lost their interest in school after they passed certain ages, and I really want to figure out what went wrong in their education. Who are failing them?

After school, I helped Ms. Carson to change the class's seating plan. We discussed about who should sit with who and who shouldn't sit with each other, and I am surprised by how much I know the students by now. I know which student would argue too much with another student, who are the helpful ones, and who needs help from other students. I am also starting to write down my observation of each individual student -- things that they have said and done, how they interact with others, how well they are doing in the subjects, etc. I think that doing this is as important as reflecting on the general picture.