Hello everyone welcome my second day of the blog takeover! Today was super busy for me as well. I started off my day by having class at 9:30am. I am taking Schools: Surviving and Achieving with Professor Fisher. The class is all about school counseling with adolescents. I think this class is so beneficial for me in preparation for my student teaching as I am learning skills that I will be able to use to help my students if they have problems going on. I am so happy I have the opportunity to take an education class outside of the TEP requirements as it can only help me on my student teaching experience.
After class I went to go talk to Meg, the TEP placement coordinator, about my placement. She is so helpful and is always available whenever I have questions.
Next in my day I went to Sullivan to observe my teachers fourth and fifth period classes. It was very interesting seeing the difference between these two classes and how my teacher approaches them.
Finally after being a Sullivan for almost two hours I headed back to campus. I met up with Ty (another TEP math major) to work on some math homework before our Methods class.
Ty loves math homework!
After doing homework for a little bit, Ty and I headed to our Methods seminar. This class real focuses on teaching us tools we will use in our classroom next semester.
Finally, after being in class from 3:30-6 I headed straight to work! I am a tutor in the STEM+E workshop. I tutor students in a range of different math classes. I love being able to tutor students and help them realize that math isn’t always terrible.
My station for tutoring
I tutored two students tonight. Both have exams this week. I cleared up some confusions with them and worked on practice problems. They both left feeling more confident for their tests this week!
After my long day I am going to go back to my room, make dinner, and get in bed early (gotta treat yourself some days).
Tune in tomorrow to see if my Wednesday is any less hectic than the beginning of my week! (Also sorry for the lack of pictures in my blogs, I will try to be better about remembering to take them!)
Hello everyone! My name is Victoria and I will be taking over the TEP blog this week! I am a senior math major and will be student teaching at Sullivan Middle School this year! I am super excited to take you through my life this week.
Weekend:
Friday was a great start to my weekend as I found out I passed the Communication and Literacy MTEL I took in August! It was such a relief as reading and writing is not my strong suit. Also, this weekend I was not on campus as it was my sisters 23rd birthday! She graduated from Holy Cross last year with her degree in Chemistry and is now at Boston College getting her Masters in Education. We will both be student teaching in the spring (she is teaching at Dedham High School) so it has been so nice to be on the same path as her as she knows exactly what it is like! On Saturday we went into Boston to go to my other sisters apartment to hang out and celebrate her birthday.
My sister’s birthday cake (she LOVES Freddie Mercury so naturally, we had to put a picture of him on her cake)
I love going to school close to home because I get to see my sisters and mom often. Another perk of coming home this weekend was that I got to see my dogs. It is one of the hardest parts of being away from home because I love seeing my dogs everyday.
My dogs Cooper and Vinny
Monday:
Today was a super busy day for me as I did little to no homework this weekend (oops). I started off my day by driving back to school this morning at 7:45. I think my mom purposely plans to have dinner late when I am home on Sunday so she can force me to stay over at home. It is an easy drive from my house to school though, so I don’t mind. Once I got back to school I had Real Analysis at 9am. This is my final math class I have to take for the major which is exciting but also sad at the same time. After that class I went to Sullivan to meet the new teacher I am placed with! He teaches all levels of 7th grade math. I got a chance to chat with him during his prep and to observe one of his classes today. After observations, I went back to campus to each a quick lunch before heading to my music class. After class I knew that I was going to be drowning in work for the rest of the night so I decided to go to Starbucks for a Monday treat while I do my homework.
Much needed ice tea after a long day
That’s all for my weekend and Monday update! Check back the rest of the week to see what else I will be up to!
I have had such a fun time running the blog this week. I’ll let you in on how my week ended and then bid you all farewell!
Friday
My only class of the day is actually the teaching lecture Pre-Practicum! We had a guest come in and explain how we can write our resumes and cover letters to be more marketable when pursuing full-time teaching jobs after graduation! We learned a lot of useful information.
I was then able to go back to my apartment and finally relax and start the weekend! I’ve been on a real GLEE kick recently (you know, the 2009 FOX hit TV show that took over the world), so I was able to chill out for literal hours and watch it!
Saturday
I got up bright and early for another meeting with the Silkroad artists to further develop my workshop that I’m doing at Burncoat High on Monday.
My peers presenting their workshop to the Silkroad artists.
I’m doing a workshop revolving around how stage images can create meaning for both for the observers and participants; the observers can see the whole image whereas the participants only know their own place. The location in which stage images are in relation to observers has an impact on everyone’s perceived meaning as well! I have planned activities to spark discussion and hopefully cultivate deep thinking about meaning on and off stage for the theatre students at Burncoat High!
Once again I decided to relax in my free time after this. However, I began to relax too hard and slept for four straight hours! Though thoroughly confused upon awakening, I felt pretty rested and excited to watch about half a season of GLEE (it’s really the theme of my weekend).
Despite having slept for so long, I was able to fall asleep really early due to my Sunday commitments!
Sunday
I had to wake up early again in order to volunteer at the Open House for prospective Holy Cross students! I was actually at the Teacher Education Program table!
Kathryn O’Sullivan and me running the Open House table!
We got to talk to a lot of parents and students about the program; we certainly hyped a lot of them up about the TEP and Holy Cross!
After we packed up I called my mom to see if I could visit home for the afternoon. I got to sit and watch the game with my parents and sister; it is so good to be home and see them! It’s times like these where I feel so fortunate to be so close to home:)
That’s All Folks!
Thank you so much for taking the time for reading the blog this week! Please keep reading this semester to hear from all of my TEP peers and their experiences!
Hello everyone! I’ve really been enjoying writing for the blog:)
Welcome to my Resident Assistant extravaganza blog!
Today I did so much that related to the RA role, which is a HUGE part of my student experience on the hill. So I thought it would be a fun way to let you in on my experience:)
After my classes and work today, I met up with a fellow RA to conduct our Health and Safety inspections! Essentially, we just go into the rooms and make sure there aren’t any prohibited items for policy violations. I got the chance to chat with many of my residents and get a peek at how they decided to decorate their rooms!
I then decided to use my time to craft my next bulletin board (it will be spooky!). It’s one of my favorite parts of the position; being able to get creative and make the hall feel more homey and fun! As I was wrapping up with that, I made cookies to have with me on duty to give to residents (and lure them into the staff office to build connections!).
Then the most ~exciting~ part of my night came: being on duty!
RA Stasia on Duty!
Though that was sarcasm, I really do enjoy being a presence in Figge. It is really nice to greet residents as they’re entering or leaving the building (plus having the cookies means they’re more receptive to want to come in for a chat)! I was fortunate enough to have been able to see many residents; I even got 17 people to come in for a cookie and to chat (not like I’m counting…). The building had no issues and I was able to have a really fun time!
Exciting Teaching News!
Some fun and exciting news I received today is that I am on track to become a substitute teacher in the Worcester Public Schools! I have previously been able to sub in the Oxford Public Schools, however, being able to work in Worcester would benefit my current observations and future student teaching so much. Hopefully I will be in the schools by the end of the month!
That’s All For Today!
Today was a shorter post! Thanks for coming on the journey with me so far this week:)
Wednesday is the last day of the the academic week where I go out into the Woo (South High Specifically) for my observations in Ms. Rossi’s Classroom. I want to bring you along for the ride so you can live vicariously through me.
I arrive to her classroom as the AP Calculus class is coming to an end. Today I got an extra taste for nostalgia, as I remember the exact lesson she was delivering. Remember, Ms. Rossi is a former teacher of mine! I had her for two years. This specific lesson was on deriving with the CHAIN RULE. She uses a tootsie pop to explain the process: for a function with multiple layers, you have to take the derivative’s in order from the outside in. Like you eat a tootsie pop, you must first remove the wrapping, eat the sugar candy part, and THEN you eat the inside chocolate.
Ms. Rossi and her once a year indulgence on lollipops! (for the sake of math, of course)
The bell rings and her first of two Algebra II classes roll in. Ms. Rossi has a very tight system for her “warm-up” activities (again, something I experienced as an Algebra II student myself). She supplies a warm-up sheet that has five boxes (for the five days of a school week). That way her grading of them can be much more organized; every student’s weekly warmup sheet should be in the exact same format. Something particularly endearing about Ms. Rossi is her specific nickname for the TI-84 Graphing Calculators, “Graphers.” (It would have been a disservice if I had not shared this with you all.) Ms. Rossi has a set of “graphers” that can be utilized by students when learning about plotting functions and scatterplots. The calculators has a function that can create the most accurate line of best fit for a collection of linear data; Ms. Rossi walks the students through how the calculators are a key resource in evaluating data. All of her examples come from real-life data, therefore showing students that what they are doing has real-life applications. Her Classroom is set up in student groups of four, and most of the classwork is done in these groups.
Ms. Rossi is truly remarkable! Her classroom is a well oiled machine with ground rules, classroom expectations and behaviors that every student participates in without having to be reminded every day. Students stay on task and if anything goes sour, Ms. Rossi is a master in redirecting the students to stay on task. With a clear mastery of the content she is teaching, students can rely on her if they feel as though they need help with the content.
In the bottom left, you can see me featured in her photo wall! It’s a prom photo with Ms. Rossi!
When one Algebra II class ends, the second section of the class starts! These lessons are of course the same, but observing the varying behaviors of the two classes aids in my future instruction of students (in that different responses to behavior in different classes that are individualized for their specific academic success).
Back to Holy Cross!
It may seem like my day has been fulfilling enough, but it’s only 11:30AM and my student life at Holy Cross is just beginning. From 12:00PM-3:00PM I serve the office of Residence Life and Housing (Hogan 122) as a student worker! If you have ever called into the office for a housing inquiry, there is a chance you have spoken with me:)
At 3:00PM, I have my bi-weekly 1-1 with the Head Resident Assistant. It is just another part of my position as a Resident Assistant for Figge that I get to enjoy!
Subsequently, I have a meeting at 4:30PM with the Silkroad Ensemble regarding my involvement in their Burncoat High School reach out workshops. I am running a workshop utilizing my experience as a director and theatre major!
My final commitment of the day is participating in an RA info session at 8:00PM. I was able to speak on my experience as an RA to students who want to apply! I was so excited to talk about the position, as I love it so much:)
The rest of my evening will be devoted to completing a problem set for my Modern Algebra class! Goodnight friends:)
My Observation Extravaganza has come to an end!
Tune in for Stasia’s Blog Takeover: Thursday Edition tomorrow!
Hello! My name is Anastasia (Stasia) Nedoroscik and I will be the senior TEP student taking over School Days this week!
Just some FUN information about your blogger:
Tiny and young Stasia hugging her principal (current WPS superintendent) Ms. Binienda at her South High School graduation ceremony.
I am from Worcester and a HUGE WPS enthusiast; it is the school system I went through. I have been so fortunate to be able to gain even more from the Worcester Public Schools as a current student training to be a future teacher.
I am a double major in theatre and mathematics also enrolled in the TEP (for mathematics). I usually tell people I am a triple-major in mathematics, theatre, and education because it sparks a wild conversation!
My other campus involvements include being a Resident Assistant! This year I am an RA in Figge; the two years prior I have been an RA in Brooks-Mulledy and then Loyola.
My Future Student Teaching
I am quite different than the other TEP students you will encounter on this blog because I am completing my student teaching after graduation! It’s called doing the “ninth semester program.” Since I have two majors outside the TEP, this program literally allows me to do everything I want to academically.
I am also special because I am working with a teacher in the WPS that I had in high school! I was allowed to request her specifically; she is the best teacher I have ever had and feel so blessed to be able to learn even more than her.
Ms. Rossi’s classroom at South High Community School!
Being able to experience Ms. Rossi’s classroom as an observer rather than a student has been more enlightening and rewarding than I can explain in words.
It is quite strange to walk the halls of my former high school with a visitor’s name tag rather than running to my own classes! The oddity that SHCS was built without walls is finally striking me as odd as it should have in the first place! (That’s a story for another blog post 😮 )
I am observing two tenth grade algebra II classes, watching students in the same desks and class I did five years prior! It is truly an indescribable feeling.
That’s All For Tuesday’s Welcome Edition!
I am very excited to share more of my Holy Cross experience with you all 🙂
Tune in for the rest of the week to hear more about my observations and student life here on the hill and out in Worcester!
Today was such an exciting day for our 30 Sullivan girls because we took a field trip to Holy Cross for “Girls Coding Day.” It was such a fun day for everyone-from the dancing, walking around campus, pizza lunch, and exploring coding on the computer!!
We started off the day with some brainstorming about what coding is-the Holy Cross students leading this event had the girls make step-by-step lists for everyday tasks like waking up in the morning or brushing your teeth.
Learned lots of new dance moves today
Then, the girls had to come up with step-by-step instructions for a dance to teach the room. It was so funny when the girls read the instructions aloud because they all knew how to do the dances and were making fun of the teachers…I swear I am not that old 🙂
After being made fun of for my horrible dance moves, we went to the “math lounge” in the science building to look at the Birthday Paradox. I learned today that when you are with a group of 23 or more, there is a 50% or higher chance that two people have the same birthday. It was true today!! There were two pairs with the same birthday in our group…wild!!
August 7th and December 10th!
From here, we had about 30 minutes before lunch to explore campus. We walked around campus in small groups to check out the main attractions-Lobby shop and Bookstore. We had a pizza party for lunch!! Then, went to the computer lab to explore “Scratch,” a basic introduction to coding.
Girls can code!!
We took the bus back to Sullivan for the last period of the day, then went home for the weekend. Now, I am about to go for a short run (have to run 10 miles on Sunday…wish me luck) and then out to dinner with my friends. Happy Friday!!
Started my day off again with a run outside this morning 🙂
Through an unfortunate series of events, my coffee spilled ALL OVER my kitchen this morning and I did not have time to fully clean it up. Sent my roommates a nice “I’m so sorry our house smells like coffee and our kitchen floor is so sticky” text this morning 🙂
Miss Trueman and Miss K!
Day 2 of ELA MCAS today at Sullivan Middle School. I was on bathroom duty again this morning, but luckily me and Ally were paired together today.
My “go to” spot in the Workshop!The front entrance of Nativity
After school, I had one session in the Writer’s Workshop, working on a history paper. Then, I headed up to Hogan to meet with my 20 volunteers for SPUD. My SPUD site is the Nativity School of Worcester. Every Thursday night from 5:30-6:30, I go to Nativity’s evening study to help Alvin with his homework. This week he finished all his homework, so we spent the rest of the time trying to save a rubik’s cube…we never got it.
After SPUD, I headed home for dinner and to watch “A Million Little Things” with my roommates!
Food Hack-Trader Joe’s Everything Seasoning…it makes everything better!!
Started my day off today with a morning run outside. I am training for a half marathon, so running is part of my normal routine these days. I had some extra time this morning, so I actually made myself eggs for breakfast instead of my normal granola bar.
my bathroom station this morning
Today at Sullivan was the first day of ELA MCAS, so I was on bathroom duty while the students were testing. If a student wanted to go to the bathroom or get a drink during testing, their teacher would have to flag me down so I could escort the student to and from the bathroom….definitely got my steps in today!! When there were no students using the bathroom, I worked on making a “Classroom Behavior/Participation Tracking” poster. This is a new classroom management incentive Mrs. Foley and I are going to start to use next quarter to make sure students are ending the year strong.
here is my poster
Once MCAS were over, I read aloud “Percy Jackson: Lightening Theft” to my afternoon classes. From school, I headed straight to our Seminar in Teaching class. Today’s class was focused on teacher self care. After class, I gave a course evaluation form (CEF) to another education class and then headed to meet Kate and Kat at the pub for our weekly dinners after class.
Thanks Kate for buying us dinner with your dining dollars!!Welcome to the Workshop!!
From dinner, I went to work at the Writer’s Workshop. I had one session and we brainstormed an outline for her paper on Dante’s Inferno. Now I am doing some work in the library with my roommates until I am ready to go watch some Netflix…my teacher self care!!
My view of Holy Cross and Worcester while I run on the treadmill at Hart as the sun rises.
I am excited to be back blogging this week about my life as a student teacher at Sullivan Middle School. Sullivan starts an hour later than all of the other Worcester Public Schools, so I usually wake up around 6:15am every morning to work out before a day of teaching. Great way to start the day!
Obviously got my Starbucks coffee before I got gas!!
After I worked out, I drove home to quickly shower and eat breakfast before heading to school. Today, I needed to leave an extra 10 minutes early to get gas (and make a stop at Starbucks).
Today is Autism Awareness Day, so the Life Skills Program at Sullivan asked everyone to wear BLUE in support of Autism Awareness. I wore my HC Autism Awareness shirt (as seen in my selfie). I am a member of this club at HC and during the summer, I am a camp director for kids with Autism, so this day is extremely important to me!!
The ELA MCAS are Wednesday and Thursday this week, so today we played a MCAS Jeopardy review with my three classes. There were 6 different categories- Open Response, Reading Strategies, Poetry&Genres, Grammar&Writing, Terms to Know, and Testing Tips- with multiple questions in each category.
my jeopardy game
To keep them fully engaged, the winning team would get to pick a prize of their choice. Each team created a team name and had to complete the graphic organizer that went along with the game to not lose points. I was even asking the question on a microphone…the real deal!!
Winning teams: M&K, Foley’s Favorites, and Cookie Choir
Chosen Prize: Flaming Hot Cheetos
(yes, all three teams chose Flaming Hot Cheetos as their prize…these are the middle school craze these days)
Normally after school on Tuesdays I lifeguard at the Hart pool, but today I got coverage for my shift because I had a phone interview with a school for next year (fingers crossed)!! After my interview, I worked on my “dilemma” paper for our Seminar class tomorrow, made some dinner, and prepared for the most exciting part of my day…This is Us season finale!!
my roommates Sinead and Monica!
My roommates and I are so excited for this episode we made an event of it…whole cheese and cracker tray. Not sure I’m emotionally ready for this finale…
