Time to Flex #AFEE 5111W #AFEE 5697

November 21. 2018

Today was a special day, it was a Wednesday, that meant it was a Flex day.  This meant that classes were shorter to allow for an extra hour in the day for Flex.  That is where students are able to sign up weekly for a session that they choose.  It could be academic help, a study hall, or a fun interest like chess, board games, or music.  From my understanding it was created to assist students who might be struggling with classes and allow for student interests where they can explore different things or just have that bit of brain break they need.  It's still a new system, only in the second year of operation so there were some kinks I learned about like how to account for students.  I wanted see how this affected the school day and flow and how Mr. B managed the time. This was also the day before Thanksgiving so daily tasks were light and it was a catch up and prep kind of day.

Smoothie Lab

Students at work?

A fun lab before break was this smoothie lab in our food science class.  Students were able to create a smoothie of their choice, taste it (obviously, where would the fun be?) but then look up the nutrition of the ingredients and see how healthy and oxidants their creation is.  I saw a range of characters come out today, a glimpse of the culture at the school, as pictured to the right.  Since food science counts as a chemistry credit students who might not pass chemistry take this class, but also those who struggle or disengage.  I saw students who were excited to create something and those who weren't, not event to try their groups mix.  It's disheartening to see such a lab that we as educators think students will enjoy, and yet there are those who just don't want to put effort in or even try. It's food! How does food not even engage students?    

Hydroponic Garden

Same class is utilizing the greenhouse for their hydroponics.  They are using this set up which is cost efficient. It is a pretty cool urban garden set up that is becoming popular, if you want to learn more about about how it works or even need a design check out this link. 

Connection #AFEE 5697

November 11. 2018

We all hear that 'it's who you know' which is true, you can get into some cool situations (or not cool ones too so watch out) depending on the connections you have.  In my placement site I wanted to learn how important those connections are with the community and community members are and I got some good insight on that topic.  My cooperating teacher does have connections, but not in the form I thought it would be.  Since he doesn't live in the school district he doesn't have that in town connection to community members, but since he has worked for many years he does have professional connections like working with the Washington Watershed when we went out to Browns Creek and collected macro-invertebrates.  This allowed students to gain experience taking samples out in the field while also helping the watershed gather data on the condition of Browns Creek.  We also just had the county K-9 unit come in for our animal care class to demonstrate, talk about their dogs, and answer questions.  This was set up through the school's officer who had connections to the county's K-9 unit, so this again shows how it's who you know that can lead to some opportunities.  There are many great connections within the school and outside with local community partners. Within the school there is one teacher who is working with the DNR with falcon reproduction and release.  All these connections create a pool of knowledge to pull from.  

Identifying macros under microscope

K-9 Demo

Class Management #AFEE 5111W #AFEE 5697

November 8 . 2918

Daily Schedule

 Today my focus was on three different parts; 1. Classroom management 2. IEP & 504 3. Building relationships.  Compared to my first day where half the day was a field trip today was my first day of classroom instruction so I wanted to see how Mr. B ran his classroom and how he educates.  I can see how his experience comes through in how he operates and tricks he has learned.

Online Test Taking

Everyday he has his calendar posted at the front of the room which is posted in his Schoology for his classes and is linked with Google calendar so it is easily accessible and easy to edit.  It is repeated so he only needs to adjust dates and if there are any additions to add like my introduction.  This is good for the students because they come in, see what they have to turn in if any, start work on any bell work, and can see what they are going to be working on or learning about.

Assessment Guide

Our food science classes were taking their unit 4 tests and this is done online through Schoology. I was unable to take the test myself (oh darn) but it looked similar to quizzes and tests we may have done on Canvas or Moodle.  The students use Chromebooks and we are unable to remotely monitor or control what they have open so we have to observe their screens from the back of the room.   This meant watching if students are looking at each others screens, if there are more tabs open, or cell phones.  This was really smooth because the students get their results instantly and it goes into the gradebook so little work on our end.  Mr. B does this for quizzes, tests, and even the final which I thought was cool but scary if wifi goes down.  He said the school is usually really reliable with wifi and hasn't had problem and needed a paper backup.

For students who are worried about their grade he laid out how he assess and what is allowed for each one. (retest, notes, etc...)

Stillwater High School #AFEE 5111W #AFEE 5697

November 1. 2018

Today was my first day at Stillwater for my fall placement site. I am with Mr. Boettcher who is in his third decade of teaching, (30 years if you didn't catch that).  He has a range of classes from small animal management, food science, and fisheries and wildlife with students from 9-12 grade.  The day started for me at 7am and I didn't leave until 8:30pm so I got quite a fill of excitement throughout the day. 

 

1st period: Small Animals.

            

          It was the last day of the quarter so many of the classes were catching up on assignments and prepping for upcoming tests.  Students here take care of a small aquarium of a few fish by checking the water for pH, temp, and different water elements.  It was good responsibility for the students and let them evaluate the water conditions for the fish.

2nd & 3rd period: Food Chemistry.

         I was never good at chemistry, but I jumped in during the lab to help the students where I was able.  We were review orbitals in the lab so students had a worksheet and visuals to show different elements.  Other students were working on quizzes and study sheets so I was able to observe their online quizzes and Mr. Boettcher showed me his online portal to manage all of the assessments.

4th - 6th period: Fish & Wildlife

       FIELD TRIP! Our last part of the day we took his last two classes on a field trip to Browns Creek to meet with a gentleman from the watershed to help collect water samples and macro invertebrates.  It was really cool to see the students be fired up about going out and collecting samples.  I enjoyed seeing what the students were finding and also talking to our professional who works for the watershed to hear about what they are doing and how it helps his work.  This also allowed me to observe Mr. B's relationship and management of his students as we went our for lunch and allowed the students to a place of their choice. 

  

Students Sampling Browns Creek. 

Mayfly Larva

Conferences:

      I had the opportunity this day to see some of the other responsibilities of teachers by observing conferences.  It was set up in the gym and was buffet style, parents come if they choose so you didn't know who is coming or how to prepare.  Since Mr. B is an elective he didn't have many families come in so I was lucky to bounce between different teachers of different focus areas and years of experience to see how each handles conferences, what they talk about, and their thoughts & experiences. I observed one Math teacher of 33 years, a World Language teacher of 22 years, and two first year math teachers; all of which shared great experience and tricks. I saw passion, differences in technology, and great relationships being built.  Overall a long but great first day at Stillwater.