Day 3: Success stories...

Well day 3 has come and gone and I am finding that I am loving this job more and more. I started off the day teaching Dyanara on the Braille machine. She is doing exceptionally well. We have gotten to J in Braille and on the machine and have also done some words in Braille. The work is exhausting because I not only have to teach her but keep her excitement under control so that she can focus. But, it is definitely worth it to see how proud she is of herself.

I am also trying to differentiate the teacher's lessons and my own lessons so that she can participate in class. I have large lined paper and write everything out for her and also let her hold my pen when I write. She unfortunately cannot write so we do it together. She also loves using the flashcards I have during the appropriate times. We practice math facts during math because she is not very familiar with them. We also practice phonics cards when we have the chance, and with those cards we practice sounding out the words. She is doing very well with every task I ask her to do and I have found that she has started to grow attached to me and needless to say I feel the same way. It is so neat to see how happy she is and how much she enjoys school even though she is used to not participating. I cannot imagine being that happy while being treated how she has been treated previously. She really is a special person.

I also taught yesterday. After lunch I taught Social Studies, although we were learning about weather... I asked the students to remind me how to play the game teacher vs. student and they were so excited to play again. The students were even more quiet and on task today! It was like a complete 360 degree transformation. I was so thrilled at how much they participated and were on task. I even had students ask me to bring the game out at recess and P.E. The fact that this is working just makes me so happy in my abilities as a teacher.

Throughout my own internship I have seen a lot of growth through the help of Mr. Atterbury but our class did not have many behavior problems overall because I was blessed with such wonderful students. Here the story is completely different. There is no behavior management so to see this transformation really shows me how well these strategies work. I am hoping that they continue to work in the future. I also finally got skype to work last night on a friend's computer so that was a huge relief to talk to someone from home. I am also trying to get prepared for the Extra Mile 5k this Saturday back at home. I wish that I could be there for the race but I will be there in spirit. It is tough putting so many hours into an endeavor and not being able to see it actually happening but I know that the rest of the team has worked twice as hard and will be running an amazing race. Wish me luck today! I won't be teaching but we are having movie day in my room, which means I will have to watch the entire school in my room while they watch a movie! Excitement to ensue I am sure!