Some+things+we+still+need+to+know+about+teaching+middle+grades+English+language+arts

//** Our Voices... **//


 * ====I think I have the relational side of teaching down, and its what I am most passionate about…but you can never call yourself a good teacher if your students aren’t learning. So I am looking forward to the methods course to develop the latter side of teaching.====


 * ====your class and Dr. Pope’s class was the first to actually teach us //pedagogy//. This is what I need help in. I realized kind of for the first time that there is soo much more to teaching than what I thought and I need a lot of direction and ideas of how to help our students “get it”…how to help them comprehend and understand the concepts we are trying to teach. I guess that’s the purpose of a methods course, huh?====


 * ====I feel teaching is a ongoing learning process, so of course there are many things I still need to know about teaching middle grades English language arts. I am curious as to how to stay current with language arts when things are ever changing such as novels and different topics within the subject. I am also interested in knowing how to create an equal balance between reading and writing in the classroom since both encompass the term language arts.====


 * ====I hope to gain more knowledge in some teaching practices, like creating tests and grading writing. I want my students to always feel like my form of assessment is fair and accurately graded, and even though I know testing will not always be my form of assessment, the state requires students to pass certain tests to gauge their learning; therefore, I want to set them up to pass these tests as well.====


 * ====I want to gain more knowledge about how to successfully manage a classroom.====


 * ====I want to see how teachers capture the students’ attention and maintain it, because despite how many times we talk about ways to do this, there is nothing like actually attempting it in front of a real class of students.====


 * ====I am curious as to how to stay current with language arts when things are ever changing such as novels and different topics within the subject. I am also interested in knowing how to create an equal balance between reading and writing in the classroom since both encompass the term language arts.====


 * ====To understand how to deal with behavior/talking issues within the classroom setting (until this point I have not been exposed to an entire class where I have had to deal with one student disrupting another during the lesson)====


 * ====To develop a comfort level in my ability to reach all students, even if the subject may be difficult to understand; properly implement the curriculum====


 * ====To expand my knowledge of strategies in order to help me become an effective professional educator.====


 * ====I still need to learn how to grade students’ work when it comes to their level of learning/knowledge. I need to know how much to count off or how harsh I should be with grading. This past semester I worked on how to teach students about voice, point of view, etc, but I need to learn about teaching students proper grammar in their writings.====


 * ====leave with a better understanding of teaching English language arts in the middle grades. Through the field experience I want to try out the methods of teaching I learned in the classroom, and see what works and what doesn’t. I want the middle grades students to give me response not only by telling me, but by showing me. I want to feel confident that I have gotten the most out of the class, and know that I will be a better teacher because of it.====


 * ====Things I still need to know about teaching language arts: different methods of how to best teach the objectives outlined in the NCSCoS, ways to keep students engaged and excited about all things language arts. I’m also curious how/who/which novels and other readings are chosen for the class—will I get to pick? Does the school assign them? What do I do about the students who really just don’t like language arts?====


 * ====There are many things that I still need to know about teaching middle grades language arts, like how middle grades students will react to some of the reading strategies we learned in ECI 307 last semester. I would like to learn how to accommodate to different styles of learning, or is something that will be learned through trial and error.====


 * ====I don’ have much knowledge of //how// to teach language arts.====


 * ====Something that I need to work on is grammar and punctuation. … My inability to have the right answers to questions about grammar and my inability to use grammar properly are sincerely some things that I am nervous and insecure about.====


 * ====I still need more practice on constructing lesson plans and am not really sure on how to plan for a specific time period…how do I know how long an activity will last? I would like to know more about classroom discipline and management. I want to know more about how to reach my students and keep them engaged. How can I make lessons exciting…what if I run out of ideas? How do I establish respect and authority?====


 * ====I still need to learn how to keep my children on their toes and how to keep them engaged in the subject that I’m teaching. For students who don’t enjoy reading, how am I going to help them learn to love it?====


 * ====There is so much more that I need to learn about teaching middle school language arts. My biggest fear is having disinterested students. So I want to learn ways in which I could make my lesson plans engaging, yet insightful at the same time. I want my kids to be able to use the information they learned in my class and use it outside the classroom.====


 * ====It is necessary to learn more teaching ideas and learn more about the teachers’ resources to professionally develop into the teacher I want to become. It is important to learn how to do book discussions that integrate what the students are learning and have interactive learning at the same time.====

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 * I probably only know 1% of all things English Language Arts. There is much to be discovered and learned this semester and in the coming years.
 * ====I need to know how to teach someone to write persuasively. I know I struggled learning to do this and I never really realized I shifted into it. It just happened.====


 * ====One of my biggest concerns is my pacing of units—how do I know if I’m spending adequate time on a novel? Or how much time is too much?====


 * ==== I would really like to know exactly how we can make reading easier and more beneficial for students as teachers. Should we require them to read only selected texts, or allow them to read things that interest them? What would be the appropriate medium for this in middle school? A little of both, perhaps? ====


 * ====Something that I am not quite comfortable with, and that I want to learn during this semester, is how to remember all of the actual material that I need to cover. My biggest worry is being in front of students and not being able to answer some of their questions. While I know how to teach and the necessary methods needed to teach, I am worried that I will not know all of the material to teach.====


 * ====I am currently refreshing my memory of English grammar rules in order to equip me better for my student teaching experience. I am interested to learn more about teaching the combination of writing and reading in a classroom, as well as writing across the content areas.====


 * ====Though I’ve been introduced to some basics on teaching language arts, I still have some concerns: classroom management, planning lessons which give students what they need (and what the state requires), and generating some excitement for learning are all on my mind.====


 * ====I’d like to discuss more ideas about getting kids excited about reading required books that may not appeal to them. I would also appreciate learning about more activities that both meet the curriculum and make reading and writing fun. Finally, I’d like to know more about teaching grammar and mechanics since this is an important part of every grade.====

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 * Something that I still struggle with is the topic of discipline for middle school students. It's difficult for me to really understand how discipline will work best until I see how it works in a full classroom.
 * I would like to learn more about inclusion and the work associated with students with IEPs and how to best work with them without forgetting my rest of the class. Moreover, I would like to learn the best way to use one assignment and appropriately alter it for different learning abilities.
 * I need to be refreshed on all grammar and mechanical issues. I would like to look over poem styles etc. I also would appreciate help on good grade level novels and literature in general.
 * ====I would like to see strategies used in the classroom setting. I also have concerns as how to better prepare students for EOG testing in public schools. I find that there is a heavy emphasis on teaching for EOG testing. I want to know how to balance my lessons so that I am not teaching just for the EOG tests. I want my students to gain knowledge that will benefit them in the future rather than gain knowledge solely for the test.====


 * ====I know that I need to build up my confidence in my teaching ability. I know I need to broaden my knowledge base on adolescence literary novels and about the middle grades curriculum in general. I definitely need to work on my lesson plans and my skills on grading essays.====