The plan was to go to DYE on Wednesday to meet and greet with the 3rd graders. The SWA mentors had a craft planned to do with their mentee once they were paired off. However, school was called off Wednesday because of snow, so they are going to have to shorten the meet and greet next week so they can get 10 sessions in this semester.
Today I went to Kelly's 2nd and 4th period classes to mentor the high school mentors. Some of them are new to the school, so they needed to get filled in on what they were supposed to do with the 3rd grade mentees. I wanted to make sure they are confident when they begin mentoring the 3rd graders. I went over the Teacher Guide with them, focusing on how much time they have per activity and what reading strategies they can use with their mentees (Modeling, Choral Reading, Shadow Reading, and Independent Reading). Then, to review, I asked them the order of activities they will be doing during their mentor sessions. Once I felt that they knew what to do, we practiced together. They paired off, one as the mentor and the other pretending to be the mentee. Once they got through the activity in the TTRM magazine, they switched so that both would have a chance to practice mentoring. Afterwards, we reviewed the order of activities and reading strageties again.
Also, just so you know specifically what the mentors will be doing with their mentees, here is a brief description of the weekly session:
For the first 5 minutes, they will meet & greet and review last week's theme from the TTRM student magazine. The magazine's theme for this semester's 10 sessions is titled "Great Lives," and it focuses on people such as Louie Pasteur, Thomas Edison, and George Washington Carver. Next, they will spend 15 minutes on the student magazine (title, pictures, vocabulary words, "find it" grammar review, reading section, timeline, and questions about the reading). Finally, they will read through a book together that TTRM provides for us to give to the mentees, and the mentees will be able to keep the book.
As I reviewed the mentors today, I noticed that some of them were very confident and excited about participating in this reading program. Others seemed nervous and shy about taking on the role of the mentor. After all, some of the vocabulary words in the student magazine were tough (e.g. microorganisms). Each week, I will be going with them to DYE for one hour and reviewing/mentoring new students on how to mentor their 3rd graders for one hour at SWA. Hopefully they will become more confident in their leadership abilities once they have started. Our first day will be next Wednesday, and I am excited! : )
Elizabeth
Friday, January 30, 2009
Wednesday, January 14, 2009
Meeting with DYE 3rd grade teachers
Today I went to Smyrna West to meet Kelly's students and talk about scheduling. Since the TTRM program requires 15 high school students, she is using two of her classes to participate as mentors for the 3rd graders at DYE. Right now, she has 15 students between her 2nd and 4th period classes, and the numbers may change any day. In fact, she says she wouldn't be surprised if she gets 2 more students tomorrow. She has already been training her students to mentor from the curriculum that TTRM has sent her. Each high school student will mentor a 3rd grader using the magazine that is focused on great leaders in history. Each mentor will have 10 sessions with their mentee this spring semester. Towards the end of each session, the mentors will give their mentees free books to take home with them and keep. The TTRM program provides these books to us as long as we have 15 participating mentors and give them a few statistics. For more info about TTRM, here is the website: http://www.teentrendsetters.com/.
Also, today was my first time at Smyrna West, so I observed how different the environment is there compared with other high schools. They are not allowed everyday privileges like using ketchup at lunch unless they have shown good behavior long enough to be at a high level, I think like level 4. The lower level students have not been at Smyrna West for long or have not shown enough good behavior yet to get up to higher levels. They are evaluated on their behavior everyday. Also, in most classes, they are not allowed to talk to each other, and they are especially not allowed to talk about why they are there. Kelly said that since her class is service learning, they are allowed to talk in there more than any other class. Also, some of the other teachers have commented that the students should not be allowed to go to DYE and talk if they are not at high levels, but since she does not have many students, she does not have much choice. The important thing is that the principal is on board and accomodating to what we need to do to participate in the TTRM program.
After I met with Kelly and her students, we travelled over to DYE to meet with Angela Montgomery, the 3rd grade teacher that Kelly has been communicating with over email. We worked out scheduling and met some other 3rd grade teachers. Kelly gave her permission slips as well. The teachers seemed very excited and accomodating about having the Smyrna West students mentor their 3rd graders! This will be a great opportunity!
I also got to meet the principals from Smyrna West and David Youree today, and they were both excited about the reading program. Mrs. Davenport, Smyrna West principal, was glad to have me helping out at the school. Both principals were very welcoming and glad to see us starting up this reading program.
That's all for now!
Elizabeth
Also, today was my first time at Smyrna West, so I observed how different the environment is there compared with other high schools. They are not allowed everyday privileges like using ketchup at lunch unless they have shown good behavior long enough to be at a high level, I think like level 4. The lower level students have not been at Smyrna West for long or have not shown enough good behavior yet to get up to higher levels. They are evaluated on their behavior everyday. Also, in most classes, they are not allowed to talk to each other, and they are especially not allowed to talk about why they are there. Kelly said that since her class is service learning, they are allowed to talk in there more than any other class. Also, some of the other teachers have commented that the students should not be allowed to go to DYE and talk if they are not at high levels, but since she does not have many students, she does not have much choice. The important thing is that the principal is on board and accomodating to what we need to do to participate in the TTRM program.
After I met with Kelly and her students, we travelled over to DYE to meet with Angela Montgomery, the 3rd grade teacher that Kelly has been communicating with over email. We worked out scheduling and met some other 3rd grade teachers. Kelly gave her permission slips as well. The teachers seemed very excited and accomodating about having the Smyrna West students mentor their 3rd graders! This will be a great opportunity!
I also got to meet the principals from Smyrna West and David Youree today, and they were both excited about the reading program. Mrs. Davenport, Smyrna West principal, was glad to have me helping out at the school. Both principals were very welcoming and glad to see us starting up this reading program.
That's all for now!
Elizabeth
Friday, January 9, 2009
Teen Trendsetters Reading Mentors
To kick off my new practicum that I will be doing at Smyrna West Alternative School, I will try to be brief since I do not have much time to type right now. (I'll continue later, but I want to get as much out as possible now since I'm on my computer.)
I met Kelly Messerly, an English/Reading/Librarian/Service Learning teacher from Smyrna West, at a conference I went to last semester (Fall 08) to get certified to teach service learning in the secondary school. She told me that her principal encourages her to sign up for anything that is free, and she had received some info about a free trip to Orlando, FL to learn about a reading program called Teen Trendsetters. She knew little information about the program, but thought it was worth looking in to. The program required a lead teen, and since she teaches at an alternative school, a lead teen may not be the best option since some of her students come and go throughout the year. It seemed to her at a college student would be a great fit, especially in the beginning the implementation of the reading program.
I signed up, we went to Florida, and it was free and fun! They gave us free meals, airfare, and an afternoon at Universal Studios! It was a fun way to get to know Kelly better, and I am really looking forward to helping her get this program started.
What we learned at the workshop in Orlando is that TTRM (Teen Trendsetters Reading Mentors) is a reading program that up until this point has only been implemented in the state of Florida. They have grown and seen many positive changes and now wish to see the program spread throughout the country. Kelly and I met a teacher and her lead teen from Eagleville High School, which is a small school in Rutherford Country, and we hung out with them throughout the workshop. We are keeping in touch with them to help each other out with starting the program. In TTRM, we will be sending high school students to mentor 3rd graders at a nearby elementary school (David Youree--my mom teaches 2nd grade there!). The program gives us free books that the high school mentors will give to the 3rd graders (mentees) to keep! It sounds like a really great way for lower achieving high school students to gain confidence and take up a different role than they are used to taking! They are used to being the students, and in this program, they will act as the reversal--the mentor and leader. It's great for high school students and it gives the 3rd graders someone besides their teacher and EAs to look up to. And they get free books! I will get more specific about the program as I go along.
Kelly and I have been emailing each other, and I am meeting with her and the 3rd grade representative, Angela Montgomery in a few days. I will also be meeting the high school students sometime early next week. Kelly and I still need to work out scheduling. Also, a problem we have right now is we do not have enough high school students. TTRM requires 15, so hopefully we will get some more, and Kelly may be able to work something out with Teecy, the head of the program in FL.
This has been long, and I haven't even gone over all of it! More to come of course.
Elizabeth
I met Kelly Messerly, an English/Reading/Librarian/Service Learning teacher from Smyrna West, at a conference I went to last semester (Fall 08) to get certified to teach service learning in the secondary school. She told me that her principal encourages her to sign up for anything that is free, and she had received some info about a free trip to Orlando, FL to learn about a reading program called Teen Trendsetters. She knew little information about the program, but thought it was worth looking in to. The program required a lead teen, and since she teaches at an alternative school, a lead teen may not be the best option since some of her students come and go throughout the year. It seemed to her at a college student would be a great fit, especially in the beginning the implementation of the reading program.
I signed up, we went to Florida, and it was free and fun! They gave us free meals, airfare, and an afternoon at Universal Studios! It was a fun way to get to know Kelly better, and I am really looking forward to helping her get this program started.
What we learned at the workshop in Orlando is that TTRM (Teen Trendsetters Reading Mentors) is a reading program that up until this point has only been implemented in the state of Florida. They have grown and seen many positive changes and now wish to see the program spread throughout the country. Kelly and I met a teacher and her lead teen from Eagleville High School, which is a small school in Rutherford Country, and we hung out with them throughout the workshop. We are keeping in touch with them to help each other out with starting the program. In TTRM, we will be sending high school students to mentor 3rd graders at a nearby elementary school (David Youree--my mom teaches 2nd grade there!). The program gives us free books that the high school mentors will give to the 3rd graders (mentees) to keep! It sounds like a really great way for lower achieving high school students to gain confidence and take up a different role than they are used to taking! They are used to being the students, and in this program, they will act as the reversal--the mentor and leader. It's great for high school students and it gives the 3rd graders someone besides their teacher and EAs to look up to. And they get free books! I will get more specific about the program as I go along.
Kelly and I have been emailing each other, and I am meeting with her and the 3rd grade representative, Angela Montgomery in a few days. I will also be meeting the high school students sometime early next week. Kelly and I still need to work out scheduling. Also, a problem we have right now is we do not have enough high school students. TTRM requires 15, so hopefully we will get some more, and Kelly may be able to work something out with Teecy, the head of the program in FL.
This has been long, and I haven't even gone over all of it! More to come of course.
Elizabeth
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