Reflection 4: What is Inquiry- Based Learning?

Humans are created with brains to have stimulated by knowledge and the ability to use our brains to grow and learn. Being a child is the first step in learning and it is a time where we gain most of our knowledge. It is crucial, as a teacher, to insure that you are teaching the correct material to your students because children’s brains are like sponges, they take everything in. A step in the teaching process with young children is Inquiry- Based learning. Inquiry- Based learning is a method that you not only teach, but you demonstrate for the child the point you are trying to get across. Inquiry means questioning or examination, you teach a child the letter ‘A’ for example, you are expected to show them what the letter looks like, what it’s used for, how it is said and written and then the child begins to ask questions and that is where you, as a teacher, know you are doing a good job because you are getting the children to interact and express their new found knowledge. The process of inquiry begins at a very young age, from the day of birth until the time you pass and it all begins as children start to grab objects, see face, see movement and eventually start learning the big world around them. The five senses are great ways for children to start inquiring about their world so don’t be afraid to let them find out more about it. Regrettably, the schools system has expanded in a way that doesn’t allow children to use Inquiry- Based learning as much as we would have hoped. We are letting computers and technology teach our kids and that lets them ask a lot of questions and therefore it becomes more of a “sit and listen” or “sit and memorize” rather then actually learning. As a teacher, it is our jobs to try and make activities for the children to participate in and not give that much information but to let them wonder and ask questions and that is when we strike and open their minds to what it is you want them to learn. A well created inquiry- based learning activity should be made with the lesson in mind so it can help the students build up their knowledge as they move forward passing from one grade to the next. As teachers we should try to incorporate this learning style into our teaching style because it is very useful and it helps children gain knowledge in a way they normally wouldn’t.

Reflection 3:What is a Constructivist Lesson Plan?

As stated before, Lesson plans are very helpful and there are three main types of lesson plans: Behaviorist, Constructivist and Transpersonal Lesson Plans. As a teacher, one must choose the lesson plan that suit’s them best and that they enjoy best. Today I will be discussing the Constructivist lesson plan. The constructivist lesson plan is based on thoughts or thinking. Everyone is a learner, not just kids, and we all learn differently. Some people learn best by listening, others by watching and some by reading or writing; but not matter how you learn the thing is that you will learn. Learning is the way the mind works, if you see something you will have questions about it, you will start to wonder and eventually ask questions and you will be told answers and then come to the conclusion that the object of your interest has a purpose. Now once you learn that lets say, a cup for example, is to hold liquid and drink from, whenever you see a cup you will associate it with drinking when you’re thirsty. A few months later you see someone using a cup to put paint inside it to draw on a canvas, you obviously cannot drink paint because you will become very sick so you have now learned that a cup can be used for more than just when you are thirsty and want to take a drink. Constructivism is exactly like the example of the cup because it is based on a person’s perceptions, functions or prior knowledge and experiences and it is then updated for new knowledge or information. A constructivist lesson plan is used by teachers who want their kids to not only learn something new but to compare it to what they thought or what they have know previously; the children are then to interpret and compare both knowledge’s in their own words. Constructivist lesson plans are most helpful, in my opinion, with younger children because it helps them gain an understanding that not everything is how it seems. I think that the Constructivist lesson plan is something I will be using when I become a teacher because it not only helps the children to better understand their surroundings but it helps them problem solve and connect two alike situations. Also, the teachers gain more knowledge about how a child’s mind works because they get all different answers and, as teachers, they have to figure out if their constructivist methods are working well.

Nou led, Nou la- Extra Credit

Natural Disasters are catastrophic events all across the world. Things like Hurricanes, Tornados, Tsunamis and Earthquakes have done much damage to the planet in the recent years. It could be global warming or maybe even the conspiracy of 2012, but no matter what the reason the outcome is always awful. Last week an Earthquake, one of the worst, hit the island of Haiti destroying everything. Buildings collapsed, cars destroyed and thousands of people have died. Just saying it sounds so wrong but when you look at it on Television is so much worse. You see hundreds of bodies lying on the floor, in cracks on the street and in destroyed homes. So many people here in Miami are trying to reach their family members and they can’t even get though. Yes, it’s bad for the people who are living there but their families that live elsewhere are so worried. There are people in Haiti who don’t have homes or shelter; they are living on the streets. It is so amazing how the world comes together in times of trouble just as the United States has been doing. Now we are getting through but after it happened there was no way we could take planes there with food and water because there were no air strips for planes to land! The Haitian people have a phrase, “Nou led, Nou la” and it means “we are ugly but we are alive”. To me, that means that the Haitian people are not necessarily ugly just that they might be poor but they are alive in soul. No matter what their circumstances, they still have hope that all will be well. I believe that this phrase means so much to them because I’ve kept hearing it over and over from people in my school. Nou led, Nou la gives the Haitian people expectation and optimism. Through this all they have no once said “why me?” they just pray that it doesn’t happen to anyone else. To me that is so respectful because if even the smallest bad thing happens to most people they start complaining and the Haitian people are just taking it and dealing with it. This is such a difficult time for them but they are not alone. Everyone is putting their part and trying to help them, rescue will not be quick, but it is certainly happening. Wyclef Jean is a Haitian- American music artist that has been putting so many efforts to help his country. Our American solders are putting in their part and going overseas to Haiti to help. Just as when Hurricane Katrina hit New Orleans and we helped as best we could, we will do the same for Haiti because America is a great country that looks over and beyond everything to help. The people in this country are what make it what it is today. We all just need to keep Haiti in our prayers and minds because they will triumph out of this and they will come out stronger than ever.

Extra Credit Bat (3) comment

I see a poor bat trying to defend it self in midst of flight. There are others behind him following him, the leader. So many people mistake the bat as an evil creature as in the poem, but they are just doing their best to survive. This bat seems like he is surviving the predator, he is a dark knight.

Extra Credit biker, hellrider comment

I see a grim reaper and two hourses that look furious at each other. They look like if they are in the middle of a battle and the grim reaper is there so that he can claim whats his at the end. And this is very true of death as it is always waiting.

Extra Credit rorschach plaat # 10 comment

I think you're description is very close because you are describing a woman and what seems to be people on boats can be missionaries going from one side to the other maybe to spread the word or their findings. Now to me, instead of a woman I see two pink mermaids which are obviously not human and it seems like they are being attacked by the people on boats and what appears to be blue crabs.

Reflection 2: What is the difference between the Behaviorist Lesson Plan format and the Constructivist Lesson Plan format?

There are three main lesson plans: Behaviorist, Constructivist and Transpersonal. Transpersonal is a mix between both constructivist and behaviorist but mainly about the individual, using the term personal. When you split them up, a Behaviorist lesson plan is what America was founded on; it was the approach to teaching and learning. The behaviorist lesson plan was based on animals and it stated with an experiment by a Russian scientist named Parlov. Parlov would get a dog and ring a bell every time he would give it food. After doing this a few times the dog eventually started creating saliva in its mouth and getting excited whenever it would hear a bell and eventually Parlov would only ring the bell without food and the dog, in time after not receiving a reward, would stop getting excited and salivating. What this has taught us is that human beings can be conditioned or taught something and then, as humans, we would react without thinking. The way I see it is that lets say you are driving to work and you know that there is always a police officer on your way to work and you have gotten a ticket several times; you would eventually find another route and go that way without thinking. The problem with this is that Parlov and other scientists believe that our brain responds to stimulus without thinking and this is not true as we can decide weather we want to react or not. Constructivist thinking is completely different. Constructivists believe that people have their own reality and we interpret things based on our perceptions or experiences. In other words, let’s say you study hard for a test and when you get your grade back it is an A. You have now learned that in order to get a good grade you have to study. But what happens when you do study and you get a D grade or even an F? You have learned before that in order to get a good grade you need to study and you did study yet you failed the test. This now means that in future tests you have to study harder or maybe it’s the teacher that made the test more difficult. In conclusion, if you are a constructivist you need to restate what you once thought based on your new experience. Both lesson plan formats are very different but they both do have one similarity: they help students and teachers learn in different ways; that is why it is good to have a mixture of both lesson plans and even an transpersonal format of learning so you can also learn about yourself.

Bio and Purpose Statement

My name is Alyssa Fernandez and I am 20 years young. My birthday is in October, which is my favorite month. I am a student at Miami Dade College and this is my forth semester. I have a very bubbly and ditzy personality. I am very shy if I don’t know anyone, but after I get to know then I become very hyper and energetic. I consider myself to be a good person and a friend because I am trustworthy and loyal. When I first started on Miami Dade I was unsure of what I wanted my major to be and after a semester I finally thought to my self and decided to be what I dreamed of being when I was a little girl- an elementary school teacher. I always pretended to teach my dolls and stuffed animals and whatever I learned that day in school is what I would then teach them. I think that being a teacher is such a rewarding job because you get to be apart of a child’s life, and a positive one at that. You have one of the greatest gifts as a teacher and that is to pass on your knowledge to others. I have always looked up to teachers because not only do they have a passion for teaching or need patience and have to deal with many different students and personalities, you actually have to like it because if not you will be miserable every morning when you wake up early to go to school and you will get stressed out and it may even interfere in your personal life at home with your family, friends, or any number of things. When I was younger it was very hard for me to go to school because I was close to my mother and I wanted to be with her than in school and I had one teacher that always had extra patience with me and gave me actual love as she did with all her students. Not everyone can have that type of attitude with other children if they are not their own. I still remember her to this day and I can even picture her. As I got older I started having trouble with math, and I had a teacher who tutored me after school at no extra cost because she cared that much to take her time out and help me with no questions asked. I hope that I can become a very good teacher, so good in fact, that kids will remember me for years to come in their lives, just as I have done with many of my previous teachers. And I also hope that they will leave my class with the knowledge that I had presented to them in my classroom.

What is a Lesson Plan?

Teachers have so many responsibilities, not just in the classroom but at home or in their personal lives. One of a teachers main responsibilities is making sure that her children are learning what their supposed to be learning. They do this in many ways such as making notes on good ideas or getting advice from other teachers and a great way that helps teachers are lesson plans. Lesson plans are a guide that lead the teacher step by step in what she should do in the day. Some teachers get them off of the internet, some make it up as they go and others do it themselves. Lesson plans are a great tool because they help you keep organized and it can also re-leave stress. Not being organized is a very big stress point in our society because it can make you a wee bit crazy. By having an organized lesson plan the teacher can go step by step through all the goals for the day without having to be thinking “what should I do next”? Making the lesson plan is always much more stressful and harder to do than actually carring out the lesson. When a teacher starts her lesson plan she should go slowly and think of all her subjects. Some teachers only teach one subject such as in high school, college, or university. Elementary and middle school teachers, however, teach all of the main general subjects therefore lesson plans are used by them most since they have more material to get across. The more details you put in the lesson plan the better the teacher will work through the lesson. Details are so important because its very easy to wright “learn ABC’s”, when in fact you should be more detailed and write something like “Learn ABC’s with song, video, shapes and get children to come up with their own words that start with each letter”. Now if you start to think about it, a teacher that has been teaching for 20 years knows exactly and how to teach the material compared to a beginning teacher that might be nervous or have little knowledge about how important using your time is. Time is crucial when your teaching and usually most teachers don’t get through all the material they initially wanted to get through because they might have spent too much time on one topic so lesson plans, once again, can be very helpful when reffering to time management. The teacher can also brake down the lesson plan into different scenarios such as group work, for the whole class, independent work or sharing. It’s good to include this into the lesson plan because just as adults get bored, they might get bored of learning together and might want to practice on their own or with a partner. In conclusion, I recommend all teachers to do lesson plans because although it’s a very tedious task, it is one of the best weapons a teacher holds.

First Day Thoughts

The new year is upon us all once again. 2009 has flown by and now 2010 has been welcomed. Along with new years resolutions, new diets and promises, many people resume school in the spring from their winter brakes. Others in college start a new semester. As far as my first class of this semester I got to class late because I looked at the time wrong. I was so lost and the light were off- I hate when you're lost in a class because it becomes so stressful.
I thought I missed the handing out of the syllabus and introduction but luckily its all online. My teacher seems very helpful yet I think I will be having to give this class more effort than the others as this one is actually towards what I hope will become my teaching career. It seems like a lot of work and I've never really known any teacher to do a lesson plan but hopefully it will embark me into a new journey of a different teaching style. I hope to accomplish many things this semester in this class as well as all my other classes but most of all I will be trying my best so that I could get an A.