Blog Post #6

4.1) At the beginning of chapter 4, Carol includes a discussion between Charlie and his teacher, from a book called The Perks of Being a Wallflower. I’ve read the book, and it’s gut wrenching, edgy, and sometimes over the top – definitely meant for mature audiences who are not especially sensitive to harsh language and difficult lifestyles. But… this discussion moves me every time I read it. Have you ever had this type of a discussion with a teacher? Please tell me about it.
The discussion I had with my teacher(s) wasn't this exactly but it was similar. I was bored quite often during elementary school. I found that school was very easy for me and I was one of the smartest in most subjects. Many times my teachers would ask me to help others in the classroom, I didn't always understand why I had to do that. One teacher took me aside and said that I was very smart and I was a big help to them. I had many other conversations with my teachers similar to this and I have always seen my favorite elementary teachers as my biggest inspirations. They really changed me for the better.

5.3) On the bulletin board that I face as I sit at my desk in my office, I have posted, just above eye-level, the following:

Are my assignments…
· Focused? (students know what to do)

· Important? (authentic)
· Demanding? (challenging)

· Engaging? (interesting)

· Scaffolded? (students aren’t left hanging)

I put them in this order because I felt like it is how I feel about each of them at this time. I feel like I will be the best at focused because I feel like that is one of the most important(obviously they are all important), but I want to make sure my students know what they should be doing. Important and demanding are about equal. I think sometimes it will be hard to make things engaging and that we'll be something that I will have to work on. Scaffolding will also be hard because sometimes it's hard to explain to someone over and over again when they just don't get it.