Jan 19th

Today was by far the best day I had at KIPP.  First off I was able to teach and that happened almost all day.  I progressed from co-teaching my self-planned Shakespeare lesson with Ms. Russell to leading the whole class on my own.  This was after doing 3 classes back-to-back-to-back, and gave me a huge confidence boost in my ability to teach.  But more importantly I learned more about the children - their strengths and what the struggle with as well as getting to know them as people better.  I was particularly impressed with their ability to decipher the old English language Shakespeare wrote in since initially Ms. Russell wasn't sure if they could handle it.  Based on this, the majority of the class was spent working through the "transition" into "modern" English.  Another insight I gained was just how long the day is for the kids.  The 1st 3 were from 8:10 - 11:30 and the 4th class I taught was at 2:45.  The difference in energy between the first 3 and the last was amazing.  Walking around the children had the right thoughts on their papers, but lacked the enthusiasm and level of participation the other classes had, and I feel like that's limiting them.  I feel as if the last class didn't get as must out of the lesson as the first 3.  There are many things about the KIPP system I think are great but this is the 1st time I saw a negative as blatant as a lack of energy in the last class.

The other highlight of the day was the conversation I had with Ms. Russell about teaching.  She gave me a lot of advice in terms of planning and teaching strategies.  The biggest one that stood out to me was spending the first few classes of a year establishing classroom norms - as the focus as opposed to content. In addition, even more important than planning lessons in the beginning is planning out what you will do in specific situations, from when a student needs a tissue to when a student talks back to you.  That part is something I never considered but see how important it is to establish at the beginning so as a teach you can remain consistent.

Overall, I'm having a fabulous time at KIPP at the Lander's.  The stimulating conversation about education and other related issues has helped develop my opinions even further as well as giving me insight into other perspectives.  I have learned so much about myself and others and the Gaston community.  This is an experience that will stay with me forever.

- Jessica