Mean {Teach} on the Block #secondweek

Do we seriously have to sit there?

Second week down, thirteen more to go. This week has pushed me out of my comfort zone as a teacher, student, and as a person. I have been learning more about myself as each of the day’s pass on and I am so glad that this internship is allowing me to have this opportunity to do so.

So without further ado, let’s break down week two!

Students at Morris Arboretum!

Pros: Walter Biddle Saul High School has a diverse set of experiences set up for their diverse learners. After this week, they have shown me that they truly care about their students and are doing their best to prepare them for career success. In what ways are they doing this you may ask?

-          My 12^th grade Agroecology class takes a field trip every month to Morris Arboretum in Philadelphia to learn about urban environmental science.

-           The NRCS sent representatives to work one on one with some lucky 12^th graders by reviewing their resumes and telling them about some AWESOME careers that they can do in the future.

-          My 10^th grade Animal Science class was able to make dog treats and test their treats out with some lucky canine friends.

-          The school held a Food Science Dance on Friday to show off some of their student’s hard work in organizing an event, creating the food (which included a blender that could only be operated by riding a bike), and yes there was even a student DJ that spun some great tunes for the students.

-          I was able to work one on one with a parent who needed help to get a scholarship for her daughter to go to college next year and be the first person in her family to get an education outside of high school.

Talk about an amazing event filled week!

Six 12th graders in an NRCS workshop!

Cons: Although all the events listed above were great for the students and the staff, there were some cons for this week. If you read my blog last week, I was worried about my classroom management style and what it would be like for the first time teaching in front of my seniors. Well, it was an interesting experience for the books. For the first day that I started teaching, I had everything ready. There were name tags for the students so that they knew where to sit, there were the rules on the board, and there was even a little bit of candy because it was the first day. Well my friends, the students were less than pleased about the seating chart. The looks on their faces about how I betrayed them honestly made me laugh about how worked up they were getting about the littlest of things…. a seating chart. So, instead of letting it get to me, I started my lesson and made it to Friday.

Overall thought of my week: Don’t let a seating chart get you upset. It was funny to think back and remember that I used to be in high school once as well and I would have also been peeved if I had to be moved from my best friend in the entire world. But folks, here is the thing I had to remember. Life goes on, my lesson needed to go on, and if the worst thing that happened to me this week was a seating chart, then I was doing pretty darn good for myself.

This semester is going to be a hard learning journey but I know that I can do it because of the passion I have for teaching and the desire I have to help all of my students succeed. I cannot wait to see what happens next week at WB Saul!