Three Action Plan Reflection

Daily Assessments
One key element that I have incorporated and will continue to monitor is daily assessment of the students in lesson planning as well as the lesson itself. This is crucial because after you have taught the lesson that you have planned so carefully, how do you know the students have actually learned the material? I will focus this more intensely in time management in my lesson planning and overall curriculum units to ensure that daily informal assessments are an integral part of the learning process. This can take the form of bell ringer reviews as quick writes, anticipation guides using the before and after format, and even working with groups in cooperative learning activities. I have found the latter to be very helpful in assessing students progress on assignments given in group settings. Having honors classes often deceives me into thinking the students are more sophisticated or have a larger schema than I realize. This often leads me to repeating directions more often than is needed had I only anticipated just a little more in the planning process prior to the actual teaching item. I have found that by "getting in the trenches" with students often discloses to me problems in procedural planning or relaying of information. By constantly monitoring and adjusting during a lesson, particularly cooperative learning activities, I can become part of a group for a few exercises and discussions which prove productive in leading other groups in some needed directions. I believe this is extremely helpful in getting, for example, a jigsaw group into better focus. I also find that students respond well to this teaching technique as it lets them view me as an interested party in their learning. This open-mindedness on my part has been very helpful in making a lesson go more smoothly or assist students in staying on task.
Appendix Expansion
Another aspect I am incorporating more and more as I get more efficient in planning lessons is an extensive appendix. In addition to my files of handouts that I have made or sourced from the Internet or the textbook, having the appendix complete is an essential for me having a successful learning experience for me and the students. I continue to have my materials neatly filed for my students, but the appendix is a place where I can easily have access to all materials used. One thing I am finding in expanding the appendix is keeping it organized as I monitor and adjust a lesson constrained by time. The action portion of this plan is to find a way to move materials from lesson folder to lesson folder when items are not completed in the time frame I have anticipated. In trying to always plan more than I have time allotted, I am often moving items in the appendix to the next day so that my appendices are "jumbled" by the end of two or three lessons. While trying to save paper and reduce this movement on my part, I have found that using my laptop as a reference point for my appendix is quicker for me to be able to refer to when I begin to have an overflow of movement from one lesson to anther. By using the electronic version of the lesson, I will have better success in the actual flow of the lesson, rather than being over manipulative of my materials in hard copy. I usually have two electronic lesson folders open at a time minimized on the tool bar for easy access. I will keep monitoring this process of organization as I continue to improve the flow of materials and focus of the current lesson, i.e. this is a methodology in progress.
Rubric Development
I am a poor rubric maker. I have never had them until I re-entered school as an education major, and it is a large area of opportunity for me. I need to spend some time developing some practice rubrics on some very familiar subjects as well as look again at these from 2 years of education courses. I have come a long way in this regard in that I used to think them extremely confining as a student, but I am finding as a teacher, I need to develop rubrics for particularly large projects so that the students will be clear on what I am expecting in terms of requirements. Again, I will monitor and adjust this as the semester continues. I am currently implementing a very large cooperative learning project on the Constitution, and without a rubric, I can already anticipate the problems that may arise in regard to my instruction.

As I finish this entry for this week I realize I have my very own "Roman" in my class. She is the student who always sees my oversights or inconsistencies or reminds me that I have, indeed not, given them item x I thought they had. When this occurred to me today as the class was pommeling her with criticism for reminding me of a study guide for a particular part of a chapter, I had to be amused that I have in my class, the student I fancy myself to be. She is a planner, an organizer, and does NOT like group work at all. She would rather just do her work to the best of her ability with the available resources, hand it in, and get the feedback she needs to improve her personal best as well as provide the teacher with what is expected. This experience today reminded me of why all the hard work has been worth it for moments just like the one mentioned here.