Have you enjoyed following my student teaching blog?

If you have enjoyed reading about my adventures in student teaching, and thought some of my lessons looked good, please consider supporting my efforts!

http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Store/Hillary-Hanel

I am (slowly) putting many of my lesson plans and resources online for other educators to use. I am using the website TeachersPayTeachers.com to showcase and sell my work. My items are mostly priced at $1, but my maximum price is $3. I also have some free lessons in my store!

Why would you buy lesson plans from a brand new teacher? Most of the lessons I have up for sale were taught while being observed by one of my university professors and they all received very good feedback. I taught most of the lessons multiple times each day, and worked out any kinks throughout the day. The 15 day unit plan I prepared was for a History Teaching Methods class, so I worked closely with my professor to develop the unit.

Please let me know if you have any questions or comments on my store or work, I would love to hear from you!

Thank you for your continued support! All proceeds from my lesson plan sales will go toward the Hillary-Needs-to-Pay-her-Student-Loans Fund. 🙂

Teaching 8th Grade Geography and My First University Coordinator Observation

Tuesdays are shorter days in my classroom because we only have students for 3 of the 7 class periods. It gives plenty of time for things such as lesson planning and grading. Today I taught the U.S. History class as we continued learning about U.S. Imperialism. I also taught the 8th grade Geography class for the very first time. My CMU professor came to observe my teaching for this lesson.

In geography the students are currently giving presentations on the different countries in the Americas. I interrupted their presentations today with a lesson on the geography of Michigan. I showed them how to use a KWL chart and we reviewed the 5 themes of geography while learning about the state I live in. They seemed very interested in the lesson, and had some wonderful questions, which made me very happy! I love it when students get involved with a lesson because they are genuinely curious about the topic. The students were very well behaved as well. They had so many questions that the lesson went right up until the bell rang, even though I had a few more things that we could have done in class. Both my coordinating teacher and my CMU professor both liked the lesson and provided some very helpful feedback.

 

I have noticed that I teach much differently here than I did back in Michigan, and I think there are a couple of reasons for it. Typically, I stand and move around the room more while lecturing, but here I feel like I am a little more tied to the desk because of the set up of the desk/computer/projector. Since I taught in my Michigan classroom for a much longer period of time, I felt more like the class was mine and I created almost everything on my own. Being here for a shorter amount of time makes me feel like the classroom will never become “mine.” I am okay with this because I expected things to be different, but I had gotten used to being the only teacher in the classroom and using my own materials. I guess I just felt more in control and prepared for my classes in Michigan.

Monday in World History Classes…Ancient Religions

AncientReligion

Tomorrow is my first full day of teaching the World History classes. We will be learning about ancient religions including those of the Egyptians, Sumerians, and Persians. This will kick off our history of religion unit.

The lesson will include videos, lecture, and an art/writing project.

Visit the “Ancient Religion” link above to see the PowerPoint presentation including the videos and assignments. I welcome any feedback and suggestions!

The weekend went by too fast, but I’m excited to share this lesson with the students tomorrow. Wish me luck on my first day!