Olivia Doyle's Social Studies Blog

Lesson #5 Reflection Standard 4: Professional Growth and Responsibilities Component 4.1: Reflecting on Practice Performance Indicators: RIPTS 3,9,10, INTASC 9, CEC 6 WHAT? For this lesson, the students learned about the Penobscot tribe from Maine through a video, a compare and contrast activity, a read aloud, and a craft activity. The video was difficult for the students to understand due to the noise level of the classroom and the small speakers on the MacBook. All students met expectations during the compare and contrast activity, where they compared American culture today to the culture of the Penobscot tribe. The students seemed to enjoy the read aloud, “Many Hands: A Penobscot Indian Story” by Angeli Perrow. They also seemed to enjoy the basket making activity. This group of students enjoys hands-on activities that allow them to be creative. We were unable to finish the Blooket review game because the basket making activity ran longer than planned. We were able to get through ...

  Lesson #4 Reflection Standard 4: Professional Growth and Responsibilities Component 4.1: Reflecting on Practice Performance Indicators: RIPTS 3,9,10, INTASC 9, CEC 6 WHAT? This lesson seemed to be engaging for the students and they seemed to enjoy the activities we had planned. For our ice breaker activity, we asked the students what three things they would buy if they won $1,000,000 and the students had fun coming up with their responses. After the vocabulary activity and read aloud, all students were able to differentiate between human, natural, and capital resources, and all students were able to give a simple, one-sentence explanation to what economy means. The economy board game had a rough start because the directions were difficult for some of the students to follow but, as we played, they all appeared to enjoy the game and gain a basic understanding of money. We did not have time to get to the Blooket for this lesson. The vocabulary activity and read aloud took up mor...

   Lesson #3 Reflection Standard 4: Professional Growth and Responsibilities Component 4.1: Reflecting on Practice Performance Indicators: RIPTS 3,9,10, INTASC 9, CEC 6 WHAT? This was the first lesson where we had all four students present and able to participate. I enjoyed meeting one of our students for the first time, since he was absent for the first two lessons. Our community building activity went well, the students enjoyed counting up their votes and seeing who won. I found that the vocabulary in this lesson was heavy and it was difficult to keep the students attention for that many terms and definitions. One student was unable to keep up with the pace we were going, while another student was going ahead and getting bored. Next time, I want to find different ways to incorporate the students in repetitive activities, such as learning new vocabulary words. We were also unable to get to the video on Maine lawmaking because the vocabulary review took longer than planned. ...

 Lesson #2 Reflection Standard 4: Professional Growth and Responsibilities Component 4.1: Reflecting on Practice Performance Indicators: RIPTS 3,9,10, INTASC 9, CEC 6 WHAT? This lesson went much smoother than last week. We had all of the supplies we needed and the students seemed to enjoy the activities we had planned. This week, we found it difficult to keep the students engaged and on task throughout the lesson. Out of the four students we were assigned to have, one has been absent from both lessons. This week, one of the students wasn’t feeling well and was not feeling up to participating. Next week, I hope to think of different ways to keep the students engaged and interested in the material, even when it’s not the most exciting content. One idea could be to incorporate more student-led activities, such as the timeline activity in this lesson. The students enjoyed being historians by using the book to build a timeline of important events in Maine’s history. They strategized o...

 Lesson #1 Reflection Standard 4: Professional Growth and Responsibilities Component 4.1: Reflecting on Practice Performance Indicators: RIPTS 3,9,10/INTASC 9/CEC 6 WHAT?      Despite having locked most of the materials we had prepared in my car right before the lesson, I think the lesson went well given the circumstances. We did not have behavior expectations and the agenda posted for the students to see, but they still understood what was expected of them. The students worked with Madison to create a map of Maine after listening to the read aloud. They used the information from the read aloud to decide what was important information to put on the map. Once I was able to get the materials out of my car, the students created their own personal maps of Maine to keep in their folders. We went over where Maine is in the United States, and we were able to better discuss important vocabulary words that went along with this lesson. When there was 10 minutes left of the les...

What? Integrity : In a democratic society, integrity is essential. In all interactions, it is important to be honest, hold each other accountable, and respect each other’s opinions. As a future educator, it is important to model and uphold these values in the classroom by understanding personal bias and working to improve the quality of materials and education available to students. Justice : The major role of a social studies educator is to prepare students to enter a democratic society and contribute positively to their classroom, school, communities, and society. As a future educator, it is important to teach and advocate for the rights of all members of a community, and show examples of justice and injustice in the world. Authenticity : Professional educators must be honest in their academic relationships with the content, students, and community, as well as model democratic pedagogy and civic understanding in the classroom. Civic Engagement : Social studies educators must prepare ...