First Teaching Week!

   The first week of student teaching is done. Wow. What a week of many challenges and lots of learning. This past week I was in charge of both Spanish II (11th grade) and III (12th grade). I also helped with some elementary Spanish by going to the elementary building and helping teach a 20 minutes lesson once a day on Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday. This week I taught a cultural unit for the TULIP requirement. I gave five lessons about several topics like pre-conceptions about Latin America and Hispanics, a presentation about Paraguay, culture, cultural barriers, and immigration. In the last lesson of my unit, students gave presentations about relevant aspects of Latin American countries.
   Something interesting about this first teaching week is that the 11th grade group is very different than the 12th grade one. On one hand, the 11th graders are seventeen in total. The majority of them are shy or not very participative with the exception of 3-4 students. Also, not many of them are super interested in learning Spanish, but they need to take it in order to go to a 4-years college. On the other hand, the 12th graders are a group of ten students who are interested in Spanish and most of them are very participative. Since I was giving a cultural unit, I was teaching the same content to both groups of students, but I used more Spanish words with Spanish III. 
   I discovered that the Spanish II group works better in small groups. If I would like them to share information with the whole group, then it works best if they can first pre-process the information within a small group. I also had a Bible verse or short reflection in Spanish on the board and also the schedule for the lesson. This helps me to stay organized and it helps the students so that they can refer to the schedule to know what is coming next and also stay organized and on task.
   Something that was very helpful was the pre-assessment. I was able to plan my lesson keeping in mind my students' needs. For example, when I asked them what they would want to learn from me most of them said that they wanted to know about Paraguay and about my perceptions of people from the States. Because of that, I gave a presentation about Paraguay and shared with them some of my experiences. The students also said that they learn better using technology and visuals/short films. In response to their inputs, I presented a short film, visuals and used technology. I realize that it is extremely important to let the students give inputs about how they like to learn and respect their responses by acknowledging them in the teaching practice.
   I appreciated getting to know the students and their unique personalities (I am still learning!). I feel that I connect with most of them and I pray God will give me more insight about how to connect with everyone. Communication and respect are key aspects of teaching and crucial in the process of learning about my students.
   This coming week I will be teaching Spanish I, II, and II. I am excited and nervous about what is ahead. I pray God will give me strength and courage for this coming week. =)