Fires, Chapter 10

This chapter was about going beyond the classroom. Different ways mentioned to do this are recommending summer programs, suggesting summer activities or books, and bringing people from the outside world into your classroom. I think that it is important to bring the world into your classroom, because kids aren't going to learn what they think is irellevant or meaningless.

Fires, Chapter 9

This chapter was about when things go wrong in the classroom. I am a total advocate for asking students how they feel they are doing, how they feel about the course work they are doing, and what grade they feel that they deserve. You also need to be careful with your discipline, if you are too degrading (i.e. "I'm glad you graced us with your presence.") than you will loose a student forever. I loved the quote, "We're gonna crush your hope and pride. Teachers need to get a harder shell. After that, students won't see that you're scared." I feel like that is so true. If you are the type of person that can't take critisism well or gets their feelings hurt easily, than teaching is simply not for you.

Fires, Chapter 8

This chapter discussed the best ways to connect with students who are still learning English. I did not connect with this chapter as much as I did with other chapters, but only because in my high school where my passion for teaching started we didn't have any students who were still learning English. I did appreciate how the students wanted to be asked questions about their language and about their cultures. I feel that this would be important even if they spoke perfect English.

Fires, Chapter 7

This chapter was about teaching difficult academic material. I am a firm believer in letting the text books perhaps be a guide or a resource, but NEVER your entire class or the basis for everything you teach. That is simply a waste of your students time, and frankly, it's a waste of your time and the education you received as well. I also think that it is important not to drill things into kids when they already know them, it will just breed contempt for the skill, not concrete knowledge. Videos can be used wonderfully to help with a lesson, but should never be used in place of teaching, or in place of reading.

Fires, Chapter 6

This chapter was about motivating students. I loved it when Vance talked about teachers with passion, and about how when teachers are truly passionate about their subject and what they are teaching that students can tell and want to learn the material. I also agree that it is important to let kids know where they are going to need the knowledge you are teaching them in the real world, so they can make those connections and care about the material as such. Bringing in people who used the knowledge you teach to get ahead in life into the classroom also can be a valuable tool that I had never thought about before. Maybe I could bring in a CSI person who can talk about how she learned through character analysis how to recognize a criminal... I loved the table about when the best and worst times to do things are, like how the day before a huge break you should have a make-up day or something because no one is going to be focused.

Fires, Chapter 5

First of all, I love the usage of the word "foibles" on the first page of this chapter. That being said, this chapter was about teaching to the individual student while working with the group at the same time. I myself was the queen of bullshit when I was in high school, I could pull the wool over the eyes of any teacher and get away with it as far as completed homework or a reading assignment. When I read about the student whose friend couldn't even READ and she bullshit her teachers into thinking she could all through high school, I was astounded. It is so important for teachers to pick up on patterns like this, and that is why when I am a teacher I will have a private notebook with a page for each student that I will write something about them in every class. That way, ideally, I will see these patterns. I also think that students should not be used like crutches, that the one kid that knows all the answers should not be the one that is always called on to save time. Also when quiet students are called on they should be called on right away, and students who are probably bluffing should be called on it. I also think open ended opinion questions are important, versus questions that have either a right or a wrong answer.

Fires, Chapter 4

This chapter was about creating a culture of success, and I totally agreed with the part that said that you should never compare your classes or your students. You might have to tweak a lesson completely for one class compared to another, but that is all about the challenge and the beauty of teaching. Giving students the opportunity to revise their work is another teaching theory that I will totally adopt when I am a teacher, because students aren't as likely to get down on themselves or do poor work when they know they will have the opportunity to fix things, that they get more than one set-in-concrete chance. I also am a firm believer in feedback, in actually writing on students papers if you think a certain part is well done, or needs improvement, and HOW to improve it. Too many times my teachers just put, GOOD JOB! On the top of important papers, and gave me like an 85-90. I wanted to know WHY!!! Of course, with standards based grading this won't be as much of an issue, as you will have to justify your grades anyway, but still. I also hate teachers who call out grades. The smart kids then feel badly and the kids who didn't do as well feel even worse. This is just creating animosity where it doesn't need to be in the classroom.

Fires, Chapter 3

I loved this chapter on classroom behavior. Students need the structure of the classroom, with teachers who listen and respect their opinions while not trying too hard to be their "friend". I really liked the idea of always putting the class agenda on the board, that seemed like a pretty unanimous thing that the students in this book wanted their teachers to do, and I intend to do this in my classroom. I also thought it was interesting what one student wrote about how most teachers are far too concerned with the ENTIRE classroom being dead silent, and that this is just annoying to the students who want to learn. In my experience in the schools, I found that this was true, and that if you just power on through the students will be quiet for you if you give that air of authority. I also agreed that notes should not be read aloud, because they could be harmful to the students, and that it's really the quiet kids you need to worry about, not normally the loud ones.

How Can I Productively React When Students Misbehave or Act Up?

The Essential Questions for the Technology Integration portion of EDU 221 are:

* Why might it be important for students to learn with technology?
* How can you effectively integrate technology into your teaching and learning?

The Essential Questions for the Classroom Management portion of EDU 221 are:

* Which strategies are most effective for maintaining order in the classroom?
* How can I productively react when students misbehave or act up?

Which Strategies Are Most Effective For Maintaining Order in the Classroom?

The Essential Questions for the Technology Integration portion of EDU 221 are:

* Why might it be important for students to learn with technology?
* How can you effectively integrate technology into your teaching and learning?

The Essential Questions for the Classroom Management portion of EDU 221 are:

* Which strategies are most effective for maintaining order in the classroom?
* How can I productively react when students misbehave or act up?

How Can You Effectively Integrate Technology Into Your Teaching and Learning?

The Essential Questions for the Technology Integration portion of EDU 221 are:

* Why might it be important for students to learn with technology?
* How can you effectively integrate technology into your teaching and learning?

The Essential Questions for the Classroom Management portion of EDU 221 are:

* Which strategies are most effective for maintaining order in the classroom?
* How can I productively react when students misbehave or act up?

Why Might It Be Important for Students to Learn with Technology?

The Essential Questions for the Technology Integration portion of EDU 221 are:

* Why might it be important for students to learn with technology?
* How can you effectively integrate technology into your teaching and learning?

The Essential Questions for the Classroom Management portion of EDU 221 are:

* Which strategies are most effective for maintaining order in the classroom?
* How can I productively react when students misbehave or act up?