On Friday, I had the opportunity to visit Emily McGowan, a cohort member, as she is student teaching at Tri-Valley High School. This chapter has one small classroom, a welding and hydroponics/aquaponics garage space, and a woodshop. However, there is an old FCS classroom that will most likely be turned into the 2nd agricultural classroom when they find another teacher to take the position. Something that I have been considering and another reason why I wanted to go visit. And did I mention that they have aquaponics systems?! My favorite!
While it was interesting to see the difference from middle school to high school for when I make the transition soon, I learned a whole lot about classroom management and how another chapter functions, giving me many ideas to ponder and try out in the future.
First, I loved that Tri-Valley does monthly check-in assignments for the AET with SAEs as a grade for classes. As a student, I was always behind on my records and would have loved some structure in class to help me build this habit. Although, I do see how it could be timely to check SAEs every month for a grade. It is still something that as a teacher I need to be better at checking in on and making sure that I am helping my students with their projects when needed. So, I believe the teacher and student benefits outweigh the hassle of grading this every month.
Second, I love how the one ag mechanics course has to find a current article on whatever they are learning in the course, like Woodworking for their Woodworking unit, and having to write not only a summary of the article, but also how this article relates to the course and agriculture as a whole. It gets students to think about the "why" of ag mechanics and gives them a chance to apply what they are learning to real life and beyond. Maybe I will try something like this for my 7th and 8th-grade Woodshop course as a sub-plan idea!
Third, within the classroom, I was met by some challenging classroom management issues that I had not yet experienced in my own student-teaching experience. So, by observing, I was able to watch and think about different ways that I would handle the situation. Was it different from McGowan's approach or not?
On the other hand, I was also evaluating the space of the classroom and how it was not super accommodating for those in a wheelchair. Again, by watching this happen in Emily's classes, I was able to think about how I would arrange my own classroom to accommodate all needs even in a small classroom. Along with this, I also started to think about how I could take what Emily was teaching or what I was teaching and try to expand on modifications and accommodations for those with IEPs. It was a great time to reflect and evaluate what I want as a soon-to-be ag teacher and not just what I can work with at my student teaching site.
As for the Woodshop unit, I love how Emily is having the students create a wooden project made out of older wooden pallets. This gives the students more autonomy in a shop setting. It also allows them to make something that they are passionate about, which will ensure that students take their projects home, but also hone in on their creative and problem-solving sides trying to come up with something that can utilize wooden pallet materials. Something I will put on the back burner for high school lessons. Still, how can I take this approach and make it feasible for middle school students? Again, something I will have to think about. Plus, I also loved how Emily had samples of different wood types that students could guess on as an interest approach. This is one thing I wish I would have thought of or had the resources to do so in the beginning of my Woodshop classes.
Near the end of the day, I love how both the chapter and students are very passionate about Envirothon. If the school day runs on a 9-period day instead of an 8-period day (definitely still sounds confusing to me), the students meet for that hour at the end of the school day on Fridays to practice for Envirothon. (For reference, a 9-period day on Thursdays was time for an FFA club meeting day.) This is amazingly unique to what Tri-Valley can offer all their students/members. Even if you are not in love with Envirothon, you could replace this time with any CDE or LDE practice time at the end of the day, which ensures that all students and members could join in on FFA competitions and fun without the need for practices to be outside of school hours, which can limit participation.
Overall, I realized that Emily McGowan has an amazing opportunity being here at Tri-Valley. Something that I am excited for her to continue to grow in. Yet, I still had time to reflect on my own experiences and learn some unique ideas that I want to use to expand my own student-teaching experience back at Big Spring Middle School.
Thank you for having me, Tri-Valley FFA! I enjoyed it!
Just Keeping It Veal,
-Ms. Emily Jay
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