PED 3150 LL – edition four

WELCOME TO NOVEMBER  and a BRAND NEW CHAPTER IN TEACHER EDUCATION

I hope you all had a good reading week – relaxing, restful, frantic, energetic – whatever your style. And, if you are trick-or-treating, I hope you get lots of candy 😉. Hallowe’en is one of my favourite times of the year, both at school and at home. School was always so much fun, planning costumes with teacher buddies, creating scary events for the students, watching the parade of costumes and feeling the electricity in the air. Next day, not so much fun: tired kids and sugar coursing through bones. High schools celebrate costumes as much as elementary schools, by the way.

This is Prepping for Practicum month. In two short weeks, you will be in your first-year placement as a “Wednesday observer”. Most of you have received your notice of associate, school and courses, and if you have not, you will soon. On November 8th, we will focus largely on getting ready and organized for practicum. Please make sure you prepare a formal letter of introduction for the principal and associate teacher, and share a draft with me. I will give you feedback, asap, and then you can send off your introduction.

If you have been following the news, CUPE, which represents many education workers in Ontario, is legally able to strike as of November 4th and is planning a province-wide work stoppage for that day. The Ottawa Catholic School Board, OCSB, which has many employees represented by CUPE, released an information bulletin today stating that should a strike occur, students and teachers would move to remote learning. Please watch for information from the Faculty and Tracy Crowe, including the weekly update on Brightspace. You may very well hear some information from Tracy tomorrow at your November 1st PLC. A lot can happen in a week and the Faculty will apprise us all of what will be going on with regard to schools and practicum.

what’s up this week

• PLC – Federation Day on November 1st. 
• Complete formal letter of introduction to the school principal and associate teacher, ASAP, with a draft first reviewed by HS
• ensure that all mandatory learning logs to date are completed
• read and review the Practicum Guide carefully and bring your questions to class
• set up and maintain your Professional Learning Record, and keep it in your shared general 3150 folder
• read and reflect on Chapter 2 of Start Here, Start Now. Nathan and Ryan leading the discussion
• make sure you read the 3150 Weekly Update.

the Great 3150 LL photo contest

I am hoping that some of you will be participating in the photo collage contest next week. Simply create a “schema” of objects and send me your photo. Some suggested themes:

• the essence of me – what 10-15 items represent you as a person at this point?
• prepping for practicum – what 10-15 items will help and support in your fledgling practicum?
• memories – 10 – 15 items you hold dear or represent important memories
• your choice – just be ready to explain!

Suggested Resources and Ideas

Practicum season is here and present for you all. Pre-practicum jitters are normal and expected. Managing the nervousness and properly preparing yourself for this new, mind-opening experience is key. Make sure you cover all necessary ground: read the practicum guide, research your practicum placement or agency, ask lots of questions, find people with whom you can establish learning networks, and, take it easy on yourself. You are just starting to learn how to become a professional educator, and frankly, as Calvin and Hobbes’ creator, Bill Watterson wrote: “The truth is most of us discover where we are headed when we arrive.” Preparation is key, as is taking care of yourself and having confidence that definitely you will be learning a great deal of new, surprising, enervating, and challenging information. 

As your faculty supervisor, I am here to answer your questions or engage in discussions that draw on my years of work experience as an educator and associate teacher. I found a solid article on advice for student teachers on the Cult of Pedagogy website I speak of so often.

TAKE GOOD CARE AND WE WILL MEET ON TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 8TH. HERE IS SOME IMAGE CANDY FOR YOU.

A mid-afternoon photo taken from Pienza, Tuscany. Unerring light that took my breath away.