My name is Ashley Mothershead. I was born and raised in Mobile, Alabama and have never had a desire to move anywhere else. I have a big family, including four siblings, so growing up was always fun and there were always big vacations. Six Flags in Atlanta, Georgia and Flint Creek in Wiggins, Mississippi were our favorite vacation spots. I attend church in Grand Bay, Alabama at More Life. I also enjoy camping, exercising, and scrap booking in my free time.
I graduated from Alma Bryant High School in 2009 with an advanced diploma. I was a cheerleader for my first three years and a member of the yearbook staff my senior year. The University of South Alabama was my first choice for college and I am now a first semester sophomore. I chose the University of South Alabama because it was convenient to home and was known for its excellence in education. After high school it took me a while to decide what I wanted to do for my career. I originally went to South in August of 2009 to become an x-ray technician but immediately wanted to change plans after I passed out while observing at a hospital for part of my application to get into the Radiology program. I then took two years off to gather thoughts and decide what I would really love to do. My family would always ask me "What do you love more than anything?" I would tell them that I love children and I love to help children learn new things. That's how I decided to go back to school at South for Elementary Education. The original grade that I wanted to teach was first grade, but I have talked to some girls that graduated recently and they leaned me towards third or fourth grade. In this day and time though, I will probably have to settle for whatever is available.
My Future Classroom
I have thought about my future classroom often and how I would like it to be. I want my students to have a fun learning experience so they enjoy school and learning. I want to teach my kids with a lot of hands on activities. I am a hands on person and to me, it always makes things a little more interesting than just watching a teacher show examples on a chalk board. I want to challenge my students everyday to strive for excellence in everything they do.
When teaching children I realize not everyone will move at the same pace. I understand that it will be my responsibility to complete goals weekly but also give extra attention to the child that may be struggling with certain assignments. I will strive to make sure every students understands my concepts before moving on to something else. I want to interact with students in a way that makes them feel comfortable with me and asking questions. I also want excitement and participation in my classroom so I can make a positive influence on my students about techniques to learning.
There are many tools that can be involved in the learning process. Posters and charts that can be hung on the walls of my classroom can help students refer back to something we have previously learned. Calenders can help students memorize the days of the week and the months of the year in the correct order. Workbooks for the students will allow them to have take home assignments and practice with their parents. I plan to send daily logs home everyday for the parents to be able to keep up with their child's progress and what they need a little extra help on. Having stations in a classroom is an excellent tool to use for the elementary level classes in my opinion. Stations allow students to be organized and have a schedule to follow. Labels also help students stay organized and remember that everything has a place.
When I become a teacher, I want my classroom to be colorful and bright. I want it to always stay organized and have rules for the students to memorize and follow. Having a set time schedule in my classroom will help students in many ways, such as time management and telling time. I will display the students work on my classroom walls so when we have parents visit, they will be excited to show their parents what they have learned. I want my students to be involved with helping me decorate and label my classroom so they will feel they had an input on their classroom. It is important to involve the students because it is their classroom as much as it is mine.
Randy Pausch "Time Management"
Where are your thoughts on Time Management? That part of your assignment is missing.
ReplyDeleteI passed out in a line the first day of college also. They were giving shots for something. It was a long time ago when vaccinations were given more often. I went right to the ground. I never considered any type of medical career, however.
Welcome to EDM310.
I enjoyed reading about yourself, Kristen, and about your classroom. However, there were no thoughts on Randy Pausch's "Time Management". I did notice that we had a couple of things in common in the "About Me" post such as being close with your family and passing out. Your post on your future classroom sounds great, almost dream-like and that's not meant to sound negative at all and I hope it's not taken that way. You sound like you know what you want and with that drive and determination I know you will succeed. Good Luck!
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