I feel that I learned a lot from this course. I've actually had a hard time with the SCED courses, but this is the only class that I think I actually learned something. I learned that texts aren't just books, I never realized that. I can use magazines and research papers (which are abundant in agriculture), videos and reading books. I always thought my ag teacher had never used a "text" before, but he used them all the time.
I can incorporate critical literacy easily with subjects such as cloning, emo's, organic agriculture, immigrant workers, etc. I now have more ideas for vocabulary, I have always struggled with vocabulary work. I also have more ideas for incorporating writing into my lessons. I can use all sorts of writing prompts to make sure the students understand digestion, respiration, a horse breed, etc.
I will use a text of some sort every day, even if I know it or not. I am excited that I was able to learn so much from this class and I know it will help me to get through student teaching and the rest of my career.
Thanks you Amy!
Monday, December 10, 2012
Self-Selected Project
Ken Lym, Jimmy Lotspeich, and I did project:
(b) With a friend,
read at least two high-interest texts related to your content area that you
might recommend to your students. These must be texts that you have not read
before, and they must each be a minimum of 100 pages. For example,
social studies majors might read engaging young adult historical fiction; science
majors might read books about interesting or controversial subjects relevant to
science (e.g., Dolly; the spread of infectious disease); and so forth. Hold a
“book club” discussion with your partner in which you discuss (a) what you
liked and did not like about the books; (b) how you might use these books as
part of your classroom instruction; (c) what you thought about reading for
pleasure in your content area; and (d) how you might integrate similar types of
student-selected reading experiences in your classrooms. Please write a blog
post in which you summarize your book club discussion and your experience with
reading the book.
Ken Lym:
Book: Equine Safety by Steven Mackenzie 110 pgs
Summary: It talks about safety and handling of horses and focuses on the main purpose of being safe around horses all the time.
Things he liked: It addresses seven different strategies to keep you and the horse safe. It's very applicable to everyone, no matter your previous knowledge. There are lots of pictures and descriptions and it's an easy read.
Things he didn't like: No further references. Talks about systems, but doesn't explain them well. Need more background knowledge. Slightly out-dated, should change name to Equine Management.
Use in Classroom: Can teach horse handling. Can teach some anatomy and judging. Teach horses dispositions with it. This book could be used for pleasure, if a student was interested.
Jimmy Lotspeich:
Book: Thinking in Pictures by Temple Grandon 201 pgs
Summary: Talks about her life growing up with autism. The point of the book is awareness of autism and how she used it to become a specialist in animal behavior. She also talks about how autistic people think (in pictures) and that they are people too. She has associative thinking instead of common sense thinking, she can't generalize. She's also an animal welfare activist and an autism has changed activist. She used her autism to think how animals think and then used that to figure out why they do what they do.
Things he liked: Pictures of her life and ideas, great references in the back. It's written on a level that high school kids can read it. It has great descriptions and lots of good stories.
Things he didn't like: Some of it is too personal for the class to read. A teacher will have to pick and choose what to read.
Use in Classroom: She is big name in agriculture. It's great for animal handling unit. It can relate to some kids well.
Stephanie Whipple:
Book: The Man Who Fed the World by Leon Hesser 213 pgs
Summary: It's about the life of Norman Borlaug. He literally fed the world with his techniques and crop science. He went to Mexico and taught them how to farm more efficiently. When that worked so well, he then went to Pakistan and India and taught them how to farm more efficiently and gave them a wheat genetically altered to grow better in their conditions. He won the Nobel Peace Prize for all his efforts. At the end of this book (2005) he was in sub-Saharan Africa, helping them. He was always helping people to feed themselves until the day he died.
Things I liked: I love the message of this book. It tells kids that even if you don't think you're the smartest kid in school, doesn't mean you can't do amazing things. I also liked that it has references, an index and an appendix.
Things I didn't like: It seemed to be a bit long and I think that will be hard to have kids read it. It also doesn't have pictures to show exactly what he did.
Use in Classroom: This could definitely be used in the classroom in units about plant science. But, the teacher will have to go through and highlight parts they want the class to read.
We all thought that these could all be used for pleasure reading in our content areas. They are all well-written books the students will enjoy. We figured we could have students read these when they're bored, or make in an assignment.
Tuesday, November 6, 2012
Blog Post 4
Affective Dimensions of Writing:
I wouldn't necessarily say I'm a writer, because I'm really picky about my writing. I have a my own blog and I absolutely love writing on it. But, I absolutely hate writing in a school type setting. I'd rather do fifty math problems (I don't like math either) than have to write a paper for a class. I understand why professors have us write papers, but that doesn't mean I'm going to like it.
I like to express my ideas through photography mostly. I only have my phone to use as a camera, someday I hope to have a really nice DSLR camera. Those cameras require a lot of money, so it's something I'll get in the distant future. I love photography because when somebody looks at a picture, they can make up the story behind it.
Growing up I used to keep a journal. I would write in my journal almost every day. Then I got to college and got lazy and fell out of the habit. I still love to read my journals from high school, they make me laugh. I don't keep a journal anymore, but I really should start one again. For now my blog is the only recreational writing I do.
I honestly can't think of any school papers I enjoyed writing. I hated them all and I still do. I always wished I could have created things about what I was supposed to write about, instead of doing a paper. I would have loved to make a scrapbook, a photo gallery, a movie poster, etc.
For my discipline (ag. ed.) there isn't a lot of writing to be done. The biggest thing my students will have to do is a speech. I feel that this is important because a speech is actually a research paper. I feel that it's important to research something you're interested in and defend it or tear it down. Agriculture literature contains a lot research papers, my students need to know how to read one and write one. That's really the only paper my students will have to write. The rest of the time, they'll be able to create things. My students will weld, make a tool box, create a scrapbook and photo gallery. I'm excited to see how creative my students will get.
I wouldn't necessarily say I'm a writer, because I'm really picky about my writing. I have a my own blog and I absolutely love writing on it. But, I absolutely hate writing in a school type setting. I'd rather do fifty math problems (I don't like math either) than have to write a paper for a class. I understand why professors have us write papers, but that doesn't mean I'm going to like it.
I like to express my ideas through photography mostly. I only have my phone to use as a camera, someday I hope to have a really nice DSLR camera. Those cameras require a lot of money, so it's something I'll get in the distant future. I love photography because when somebody looks at a picture, they can make up the story behind it.
Growing up I used to keep a journal. I would write in my journal almost every day. Then I got to college and got lazy and fell out of the habit. I still love to read my journals from high school, they make me laugh. I don't keep a journal anymore, but I really should start one again. For now my blog is the only recreational writing I do.
I honestly can't think of any school papers I enjoyed writing. I hated them all and I still do. I always wished I could have created things about what I was supposed to write about, instead of doing a paper. I would have loved to make a scrapbook, a photo gallery, a movie poster, etc.
For my discipline (ag. ed.) there isn't a lot of writing to be done. The biggest thing my students will have to do is a speech. I feel that this is important because a speech is actually a research paper. I feel that it's important to research something you're interested in and defend it or tear it down. Agriculture literature contains a lot research papers, my students need to know how to read one and write one. That's really the only paper my students will have to write. The rest of the time, they'll be able to create things. My students will weld, make a tool box, create a scrapbook and photo gallery. I'm excited to see how creative my students will get.
Wednesday, October 10, 2012
Affective Dimensions of Reading
I love to read. I have always loved to read. Nobody ever encouraged me to read, I was just born with an inborn fondness for books. When I was little I wanted to read so badly I would try to read to my little brother, even with the book upside down. In elementary school, I was the nerd who stayed in from recess to read in the library. I didn't care what people thought of me. I loved to read, I didn't care what people thought of it. My mom would get sick of me hiding in my room to read, so she would take my book and hide it. I would just go find it and then read in the living room with the family (I can multitask like that).
I also had an eighth grade teacher ask me to not read ahead in the book because she wanted me to follow along with the rest of class. She knew that once I got my hands on a book, I'd read it in two days. I didn't listen to her of course and read ahead anyway. I can't help myself!
I may have always loved to read, but I hated English in high school. The only books I was forced to read, and actually ended up liking, was Les Miserables and Hamlet. Everything else was painful for me. I hated being told what to read and then have to write a paper on what I thought about it. My papers always ended up being riddled with sarcasm and they always got a middle grade only because my English teacher took pity on me.
The worst book I ever had to read is a tie between The Great Gatsby (boo me now, I know, but I thought it was super dumb) and Great Expectations. Whenever I think back on the worst class periods in high school, I instantly think of freshman English and reading Great Expectations. It was so bad... I still shudder thinking about it.
Here's a list of all my favorite books and/or series:
I'm sure with the genre I mostly like to read, people would expect me love The Lord of the Rings series, but I don't. The books are too slow. I like the Lord of Rings movies, but mostly because it's hilarious to watch with my husband watch them. He is a complete Lord of the Rings nerd.
I would consider myself a good reader, I can read fast and comprehend what I'm reading. My husband won't read an article with me, unless I read it out loud, because he can't keep up.
In my classroom, I really hope that I can get kids to like reading about agriculture. You wouldn't think that there would be a lot of reading to do in an agriculture class. But, we do research papers and speeches. I really have to get my students excited to read and want to research things they're interested in. I think positive reinforcement will help get them excited, but I'm open to any suggestions!
I also had an eighth grade teacher ask me to not read ahead in the book because she wanted me to follow along with the rest of class. She knew that once I got my hands on a book, I'd read it in two days. I didn't listen to her of course and read ahead anyway. I can't help myself!
I may have always loved to read, but I hated English in high school. The only books I was forced to read, and actually ended up liking, was Les Miserables and Hamlet. Everything else was painful for me. I hated being told what to read and then have to write a paper on what I thought about it. My papers always ended up being riddled with sarcasm and they always got a middle grade only because my English teacher took pity on me.
The worst book I ever had to read is a tie between The Great Gatsby (boo me now, I know, but I thought it was super dumb) and Great Expectations. Whenever I think back on the worst class periods in high school, I instantly think of freshman English and reading Great Expectations. It was so bad... I still shudder thinking about it.
Here's a list of all my favorite books and/or series:
- Wicked Lovely by Melissa Marr (Series)
- Carnival of Souls by Melissa Marr
- Harry Potter by J.K. Rowling (Series)
- Hollow Kingdom by Clare Dunkle (Series)
- Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card
- Witch Song by Amber Argyle
- Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
- Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austin
- Les Miserables by Victor Hugo
- Irish Fairy and Folk Tales by W.B. Yeats
- Hamlet by William Shakespeare
I'm sure with the genre I mostly like to read, people would expect me love The Lord of the Rings series, but I don't. The books are too slow. I like the Lord of Rings movies, but mostly because it's hilarious to watch with my husband watch them. He is a complete Lord of the Rings nerd.
I would consider myself a good reader, I can read fast and comprehend what I'm reading. My husband won't read an article with me, unless I read it out loud, because he can't keep up.
In my classroom, I really hope that I can get kids to like reading about agriculture. You wouldn't think that there would be a lot of reading to do in an agriculture class. But, we do research papers and speeches. I really have to get my students excited to read and want to research things they're interested in. I think positive reinforcement will help get them excited, but I'm open to any suggestions!
Wednesday, October 3, 2012
Connecting School and Home Experiences
I chose this subject because it is one of the main reasons I want to be an ag. teacher. My discipline is everywhere and does everything. I can think of countless experiences I've had with agriculture.
Take today for example: this morning I had breakfast, I dried apples and then put them in a plastic baggie. I put on my makeup and I dressed for class. I came home and did homework using my books and (hopefully soon) I'll go to bed on my cotton sheets. There's not one thing in that list that didn't have to do with agriculture. Even the plastic baggie (plastic has animal by-products in it).
Reflection
1) These experiences have shaped my thoughts on my discipline in many ways. The most powerful way was deciding to become a teacher. I want to teach kids where all their everyday things come from. There are a lot of children who think their milk comes from the store, not a cow. I also want kids to know that agriculture is more than just plows, cows, and sows. It's more than just being a farmer. There's research, extension, food science, dietetics, veterinary science, medicine, I could go on forever. I want to gets excited about agriculture and not necessarily become a part of it, but understand it.
2) Drawing from student's backgrounds with be quite do-able (most of the time). For example. I could ask the students to come up with a list of things they think aren't agriculture. Then, as a class, we'll do a check list to show that the majority of the things they listed are in fact related to agriculture.
I love it when other teachers bring agriculture into their classrooms (I like to bring other subjects into my teaching too). Ag in the Classroom is an amazing program that helps teachers to be successful at bringing in agriculture. For instance, they have cotton bolls they sell (for dirt cheap) to eighth grade social studies teachers to use when they're teaching about the importance of the invention of the cotton gin. For more information click here.
Take today for example: this morning I had breakfast, I dried apples and then put them in a plastic baggie. I put on my makeup and I dressed for class. I came home and did homework using my books and (hopefully soon) I'll go to bed on my cotton sheets. There's not one thing in that list that didn't have to do with agriculture. Even the plastic baggie (plastic has animal by-products in it).
Reflection
1) These experiences have shaped my thoughts on my discipline in many ways. The most powerful way was deciding to become a teacher. I want to teach kids where all their everyday things come from. There are a lot of children who think their milk comes from the store, not a cow. I also want kids to know that agriculture is more than just plows, cows, and sows. It's more than just being a farmer. There's research, extension, food science, dietetics, veterinary science, medicine, I could go on forever. I want to gets excited about agriculture and not necessarily become a part of it, but understand it.
2) Drawing from student's backgrounds with be quite do-able (most of the time). For example. I could ask the students to come up with a list of things they think aren't agriculture. Then, as a class, we'll do a check list to show that the majority of the things they listed are in fact related to agriculture.
Tuesday, September 4, 2012
Blog Post 1: Introduction
 |
| 2011 National FFA Convention |
A
little bit about me:
I
can sum myself up in three words: Procrastinator, Perfectionist and Passionate.
Being a passionate, procrastinating perfectionist can get a little stressful at
times!
I
have been married nine months to a wonderful man from Nevada (woo-hoo
gambling!).
 |
| Adalida |
 |
| Poison/Def Leppard Concert |
We
have a very spoiled dog who is named after a George Strait song and is the
cutest thing ever.
I
have a mad love for horseback riding, flowers, photography, cooking, gardening,
80's hair bands (Def Leppard is the best band ever!), and of course,
agriculture.
My
discipline is so fun, I absolutely love that every class period has the chance
to be hands-on. Agriculture is the basis for everything we have in life. If we
didn't have agriculture in our lives we wouldn't have the basics like food,
clothing or shelter, we also wouldn't have special items like books, furniture
or medicine. I want people to be aware of where their milk really comes from
and that agriculture is more than plows, cows and sows.
Literacy
in my discipline is huge. For example: The other day I was watching Sunday
Morning (yes I'm boring and I love that show) and they were talking about a
specific weed that is destroying the cotton crops in the south. CBS conducted a
poll that asked Sunday Morning watchers if they thought that weeds were a real
problem in this country and only 35% to 40% (I can't remember exactly), thought
that they were something to worry about! Obviously they are illiterate when it
comes to weed control in the agriculture industry. If only they knew how much
farmers and ranchers really spent on killing weeds!
On
an end note, here is a link for two publications on Weeds in Utah. Enjoy!
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