So, I am charged with a monthly club that meets to discover how to do something that happens to be one of my passions. We change the lyrics to well-known songs in order to make them educational and help students learn some facts that pertain to a particular subject matter that might be difficult to retain otherwise.
I was a bit apprehensive at first, but now I'm really excited about the potential that can be realized with these kids. I want to give them the freedom to choose the song, the subject matter, and even whether they are going to collaborate with others or simply fly solo.
I started to wonder why I was so apprehensive in the first place. I guess it was a comfort zone issue? I'm used to my ESL crew. They know me, I know them... We have a groove. I know the rest of the student population in passing. Most of them have heard of me, but the experience is not mutual unless it's due to notoriety unfortunately... and I can't stand making assumptions based on other teachers' evaluations of a particular student's behavior, but there are times when I can't help but do so because a lot of the time those assessments are valid.
Everytime I find myself meeting a new student, though, I do put in a great deal of effort to make sure that they have a clean slate with me and, for the most part, it works out really well. This experience was no different. The students were well-behaved and attentive. They showed genuine interest in acquiring the skills I find to be necessary in not just doing this activity, but doing it well. I was pleasantly surprised by their demeanor and not so surprised by their overall reluctance to vocalize their suggestions in front of their peers (seventh graders are excellent intimidators).
Maybe it had to do with the way I delivered the material. I really enjoy using innovative technology that has only recently emerged as potential teaching tools. New techniques of communicating ideas are constantly coming into play and Prezi is one of my more recent discoveries. The kids aren't that familiar with it yet, so I enjoy playing around with it to see its capabilities. It's only getting better!
Either way, the kids got the point, they were learning something that they can use for their benefit, and they exceeded my expectations for their behavior. Most of the time, it feels one-sided, but it seems like we taught each other a little something something this time around.
I was a bit apprehensive at first, but now I'm really excited about the potential that can be realized with these kids. I want to give them the freedom to choose the song, the subject matter, and even whether they are going to collaborate with others or simply fly solo.
I started to wonder why I was so apprehensive in the first place. I guess it was a comfort zone issue? I'm used to my ESL crew. They know me, I know them... We have a groove. I know the rest of the student population in passing. Most of them have heard of me, but the experience is not mutual unless it's due to notoriety unfortunately... and I can't stand making assumptions based on other teachers' evaluations of a particular student's behavior, but there are times when I can't help but do so because a lot of the time those assessments are valid.
Everytime I find myself meeting a new student, though, I do put in a great deal of effort to make sure that they have a clean slate with me and, for the most part, it works out really well. This experience was no different. The students were well-behaved and attentive. They showed genuine interest in acquiring the skills I find to be necessary in not just doing this activity, but doing it well. I was pleasantly surprised by their demeanor and not so surprised by their overall reluctance to vocalize their suggestions in front of their peers (seventh graders are excellent intimidators).
Either way, the kids got the point, they were learning something that they can use for their benefit, and they exceeded my expectations for their behavior. Most of the time, it feels one-sided, but it seems like we taught each other a little something something this time around.
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