Naomi, a person/ training teacher/else

This photo was taken at the begining of the semester. I had just changed from the morning to the afternoon shift.  That specific day I felt welcomed, extremely happy and comfortable. ENGLISH VIII Self-discipline makes or breaks progress. INTERCULTURALISM Education is still moving and we need to keep pace with it. PROFESSIONAL PRACTICE Teaching is as challenging as rewarding (most times). RESEARCH IN APPLIED LINGUISTICS When in doubt, still working on your assignments or you'll fail the subject. That came out less poetic than expected but it's true. ERROR ANALYSIS  Everyday life is filled with examples we can take advantage of to learn. RESEARCH SEMINAR  A good foundation is the beginning of greater things, so let's rebuild as many times as needed.

So...  the semester is almost over and  I thought it would be a good idea to share my experience with  this whole shift to online lessons. PROS CONS More time ...to sleep A messed up schedule Not needing to transport  Thinking I have more time than what I actually have Doing homework in my bed Falling asleep and not finishing it early Food is ready to prepare and serve The need for constantly visiting the fridge Opportunities to do other activities Getting too distracted Time to think Time to think HOW DO I FIGHT THE CONS? 1) Doing all that's possible in order to have a schedule and respect it  (as it can be clearly seen, I don't always succeed in this aspect) 2) Being more active during the day helps me sleep better at night, also putting  the phone away before going to bed works. 3) Breathing exercises and rest periods in order to reduce eating out of stress.  (It helps setting a...

On May 15th, 2019 I received a gift, it was a plastic rose that came along with a can of cookies. It was held by two small hands behind the back of the smiley seven-year-old I'd been teaching for about three months at that point. It was my first ever Teacher's Day present and it was given to me so wholeheartedly, yet, I didn't feel like a real teacher. I thanked him with crying eyes and promised myself that I would become a better teacher. Days have gone by and new doubts and determinations regarding the topic continue to fill my mind; they swap places and, at times, destroy each other leaving me with nothing more than confusion. On May 15th, 2020, I got a call. A tiny voice asked: Do you know who I am? His mom lent her phone for the call. He continued: I just wanted to wish you a Happy Teacher's Day. A year later the same voice reminded me that we are all learning from each other. That's why teaching is worth the try.

So,  I wrote what to me seems like a poem... Lowkey, I hope no one reads it but here it is anyway. Failing is human, a natural part of life. To understand that is one thing, to embrace it is a different story. A failure is an interesting event it's an avalanche when revisited with hate  and a ghost when ignored.  Discomfort comes when we fall short, it's a painful reminder of our vulnerability, yet a potentially healing force.  After doing worse in this semester than I would've ever imagined  some bits of my heart hurt, and even with it all,  I've learned more than ever: more about myself and about life itself, about school and friends I guess this is the balance that life can be, terribly sad and incredibly fulfilling within the same week Today I just want to cry about it  So I will Crying is human, a natural part of life. Today, that I embrace.

Although the class I'm about to talk about stems from a place of tons of stress since I've witnessed the whole process it goes through before its execution, I personally loved it, I found it creative and filled with constant attempts to be something students would enjoy and remember. I won't go into details because that would be intruding someone's privacy, I will only mention certain aspects of the class which seemed lovely to me: 1)  Examples were relevant and interesting because they were taken from popular culture and nearby places so that students could be familiar with the context. 2) In order to make the experience enjoyable, this person looked for a fun video that students would use as a model for a roleplay. 3)Since it was a small group, their participation time was maximized by the customized quantity of questions that the teacher prepared for each activity. 4) Students needed to name a character that would be a relevant part of some acti...

My short experience taking and  giving classes online opened my eyes to  a reality I don't think I would've been able  to explore without all of this quarantine time:  I need to improve my own vision of my  teaching practice and redefine what being  a teacher means to me. In order to reflect on this, I have found some  questions which might be useful not only  for me but hopefully for all of those reading  who would like to do a similar exercise.  The following questions are aimed to create  a personal mission statement but they  seem applicable to this purpose. 1. What is important? What/whom do you value? 2. Where do I want to go?  3. What does “the best” look like for me?  4. How do I want to act? How do I want people to describe me?  5. What kind of legacy do I want to leave behind?  Modifying our ideas about something  might take some time but I thi...

1) WARM-UPS AND LEAD INS  THAT ARE WAY TOO LONG Added to my usual inability to effectively manage my time, my nervousness did its glorious entrance and I didn't provide my students with enough time to practice what we had learned. Be aware of the time available for your class and do all that's in your hands to keep your class within those boundaries, I'll say it louder for the people (Naomi) in the back. 2)IGNORING  THE "ONLINE" FACTOR With online classes come new difficulties,  a microphone that won't work, slow internet connection, environmental noise due to uncontrollable reasons, etc.  All of this must be considered for the content   and activities selected so that these challenges  can become opportunities. 3)ASSUME THAT THEY KNOW HOW  TO USE A CERTAIN TOOL Okay so, I condoned the fact that my three seconds explanation of how to share their screen on Zoom wouldn't be enough a nd  still asked my stud...