So...after an email from Geron I decided I better start up a blog, so you guys can see what is going on in the world of teaching in Sioux Center! For those of you who don't know I am in the 2nd grade at Sioux Center Christian, and I started my student teaching on January 5! So I am into the 10 day mark and this past week has been bitterly cold. We got out early on Monday, and we had late starts every day except Friday. It was actually really nice though because the days flew by! :) The kids were very hyperactive, but what can you expect for 2nd graders! Ok so here are some pictures of me teaching my Science Unit :)

This week I taught a science unit, which the kids were super excited about because they don't normally get to be so hands on, yea I realized why after I taught the first day. The classroom was totally out of control. Ok so I am doing a unit on Matter, right, and I wanted it to be hands on because it is kind of an abstract concept. So the second day into my unit I gave the kids balloons to show them that they can change the shape of a gas, they were all running around and being crazy, which was minorly hilarious, ok so it was REALLY hiliarious! Anywho I couldn't get there attention back, and I was trying to talk over them, so then I just gave up. This led to my purchase of a whistle. You know the whistle your PE teacher always uses, yea that kind of whistle, so the next day I told them if they got out of hand again, I would use the whistle and they would have to look at me and stop talking, well it actually worked, and I didn't have to blow it more than like 5 times! YAY!

Oh and is anyone else thinking some of our professors were dreaming when they said you can do cooperative learning in the early grades. I split the students up into groups during science to wiegh different materials, pretty sure 2nd graders don't work so well together. Note to self: when there is only one teacher in the room, do not do three different centers becuase you can control them all or get all there attention or make the group smaller.

Well that is all I have for now, I am sure there will be more interesting stories later on. Oh I am starting a Bible unit as well, I taught my first Bible lesson this week, I think they were sort of bored, but I am doing a skit with them next week and hopefully they enjoy it. Oh yea and I forgot I made one of the students cry, not purposely, but I yelled at her and told her to listen to me, so she started crying. I didn't feel bad though, because she needed to listen. I know call me mean, but I need to gain some respect from these kids, haha well I am really going to be done for now, because you are probably bored by now.

ps...I miss you all :)