Student Teaching - Week #9

by Erin Schrupp - Ray Elementary

Right now, I’m in the middle of FINALLY finishing my EdTPA (YES!) and beginning to teach full-time. Yes, full-time means everything in the elementary grades. Every single little thing you can think of. Remembering the attendance, the lunch count, switching the jobs in my classroom, giving the students homework to take home every night, classroom management checklists, copies, copies, AND MORE COPIES! 

To be honest it’s been an exhausting experience and I’m only in my first week. However, if I wasn't exhausted right now, I would think something was wrong. I know that good teachers put in extra time for their students. I should be exhausted! It’s my first time completely taking over everything. But even though I’m exhausted, I feel extremely humbled. I’m humbled because as I took over everything, my students act as if this is normal. They come to me for everything now and they trust that I will be there to help them learn. I’ve realized this past week that the reason I go to school every day is because my students need me. They need me to help them learn and to succeed in life. Now, that’s a pretty big responsibility if you ask me! Needless to say, I am so extremely busy right now, but it’s so rewarding at the same time!

Hubbard Street Dance Chicago performs Jiří Kylián
in its 2014 Spring Series

This past week Chicago Semester hosted this art activity where students got to go and watch a ballet. I was so bummed, but I was so busy with student teaching that I wasn’t able to attend! However, I’m still so thankful that Chicago Semester offers us these activities to go to that help us get a different taste of Chicago every week.

Student Teaching - Week #8

by Guest Blogger Rita Clousing - Mark Sheridan Academy

Note - Erin hurt her back and has been out of commission all week, so her roommate, Rita is blogging this week.  We expect Erin to return next week.

Smiles, disappointment, laughs, weariness, testing, birthday, jigging, joy. All of these encapsulate my past week.

Last week was a journey full of many hidden surprises. ISAT testing was taking place in grades 3-8. For 3 hours every morning our school was on testing lock down for tests that don’t seem to matter any more. But, because of a deal CPS signed, the students are required to undergo the stress of standardized testing.

With that said, my fifth graders were champs. After our routine bathroom run, we would blast the song “Happy” from Despicable Me 2, and have a 4-minute dance party to get the oxygen flowing through our brains. Needless to say, there were ear-to-ear smiles as we all clapped our hands. And for those four minutes we all felt like we were in a room without a roof.

Yet the days could feel long, and students who are normally tired of school were even less willing to apply themselves. No matter how I tried to show those students I care about them, they chose not to respond. It’s disappointing to see smart students start giving up.

I’ve been challenged this week. I am the Lord’s hands and feet. To a child who is so thirsty and, under all those layers, is grasping for help. I am His loving glances, encouraging words, and enthusiastic high-fives.

Drew, Krissa, Me, and Blair with my birthday muffins

Although there are moments when I feel weary, the Lord always surprises me with His joy. On Thursday it was my birthday. So on Tuesday night during our seminar, Lisa and my fellow student teachers surprised me with muffins and candles! It was so sweet of all of them to think of my birthday, and I was so surprised! Thursday morning I wasn’t planning on the students doing anything for my birthday, but they also surprised me with a very sweet birthday wish on the board. Throughout the day my students would grin and say, “Happy Birthday, Ms. Clousing!” When we rotated for Science, my other class came in singing “Happy Birthday”. I couldn’t help but laugh and feel loved and appreciated by the students and staff. My roommates were very sweet and spent time celebrating with me that night. I went to Grand Lux Café on Michigan Ave for dinner, which was absolutely delicious. Their beignets are divine.

Wednesday night was full of tap-dancing joy as we went to a production called The Heartbeat of Home with the Chicago Semester program. I really had no idea what to expect, but it turned out to be a show mostly of Irish dancing mixed with acts of tap-dancing, salsa, and hip-hop. The talent of the dancers was out of this world! It was a great night downtown!

It was a productive, surprising week in Chicago, and more adventures are in store for the weeks to come. 

Student Teaching - Week #7

by Erin Schrupp - Ray Elementary

A Bad Case of Stripes

This past week has definitely been one for the books. Right now, we’ve been working on completing our EdTPA requirements. I was videotaped the whole week on my Literacy unit that specifically focused on cause and effect with the skill of monitoring and clarifying to help improve their comprehension. I’ve learned so much about how my students learn the best as well as, how to best fit their individual needs. 

I read the book, A Bad Case of Stripes to them to discuss what strategies I use to help monitor and clarify. It was also a great activity to read when trying to find cause-effect sentences. Because of this book, I had my students dress in all stripes, which is why I look so funny in the picture. They all LOVED dressing silly in their stripes for this book!

Right now, I’ve taken over just about everything in the classroom except for Science and/or Social Studies. It’s been hard work, but it’s been super cool to see how the students’ views of me have changed since I first met them. They see me as another one of their teachers now, which is a really humbling experience. What’s great about being here, is that being at Ray Elementary, has become a part of community for me. I don’t have any family here and I only have a couple friends, so going into my classroom feeling like they want me there and need me there is really quite wonderful. I’ve come to realize that even though I came to Chicago to teach these students, they’re beginning to teach ME things. Things about myself and about life. I never knew I would become the student and my second graders would become my teacher.