During my internship (August 27-April 17), I had the privilege of working at Harper Woods High School with my mentor, Richard Blauvelt. My teaching experience at Harper Woods includes: biology, honors biology, and chemistry.
Below you will find a digital version of my portfolio.
Below you will find a digital version of my portfolio.
Resume
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Teaching Philosophy
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Annotated Unit Plan
Unit plans provide the framework for my teaching. When creating a unit plan I am making sure that our material aligns with both state and national standards so that students will get the most out of each unit. These plans also give me a chance to think about how I will center the learning on students' ideas as well as ways to help students build those ideas into new knowledge. The following unit plan was used for a unit covering ecosystems. It is annotated showing my thought process as I plan for a new unit.
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Annotated Inquiry Activity Sequence
Inquiry is a teaching method that I use frequently in the classroom. Inquiry activity sequences allow me to determine the specific activities I would like to accomplish as a class and make the connection back to the main focus of the unit. These activity sequences are the intermediate step between the overarching themes presented in the unit plan and the detailed day-to-day planning. The following inquiry activity sequence is for the same unit on ecosystems. The annotations show how I plan on implementing activities into the classroom as well as how these activities will benefit student learning.
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Annotated Lesson Plans
Lesson plans are essential when it comes to preparing for each day in the classroom. In creating lesson plans, I use both the themes from the unit plan and activities from the activity sequence. By referring back to the unit plan I am able to ensure that the lesson ties back to the main focus of the unit. The activities from the activity sequence are used as the basis of the lessons. Lesson plans also allow me to make instructional decisions affecting classroom management, student motivation, and the logistics of classroom activities. The following lesson plan comes from a four day lesson in the middle of our ecosystems unit. Annotations show how I make instructional decisions in the lesson planning process.
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Assignments
Assignments are used to gauge student understanding and the progression of their ideas through a unit. When creating assignments I begin with questions that students can easily find answers to in order to increase the expectancy that they will succeed at the task. These questions give way to questions that ask students to synthesize information they have learned and apply it to new situations. In the following assignments for the four day lesson plan on ecosystems students begin by creating and analyzing a graph, then apply that knowledge to a new situation with more species. They are then asked to diagram relationships in an entire ecosystem using what the ideas they gained from the prior assignments. Finally they apply this to a new situation involving hunting and must use their knowledge to support their position.
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Analysis of Student Work
When students turn in their work, I take time to analyze their answers and find any patterns in responses. Based on the answers, I can modify my instruction to review topics that students struggle with and clarify any misconceptions. The following is an analysis of the Isle Royale questions where students were asked to analyze a graph of moose and wolf populations and draw conclusions.
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Reflection on Teaching Practices
I evaluate myself frequently in order to ensure that my instruction is meeting the needs of my students. Through self-evaluation I am able to make any modifications that I think could help my students succeed even more in my classroom. The following is a sample of one self-evaluation regarding instructional strategy that I will use in class at the end of a unit. I will have students work on a task individually to complete as much as they can and then work as a group in order to help each other with any material that may still be difficult. Since I do use it to close units, I wanted to ensure that it was as effective as possible.
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Making sure students are engaged in my lesson is another main focus during my planning and teaching. When planning activities I take time to review what I am asking students to do and try to think about how engaged they may be during the task. Based on my own reflection I am able to modify the activity to reach as many students as possible. The following was a reflection on a project students were working on with a focus on increasing their engagement during the project. I used two texts to provide a framework for my analysis. The first is an article by Jo Ann Crandall titled "Using Cognitive Strategies to Develop English Language Literacy" the second was a rubric called the "Kennedy Lesson Scoring System".
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Additional Information
Diploma- Bachelor of Science in Biological Science, Michigan State University
Michigan Teaching Certificate
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PAPA Test Results- Reading, Mathematics, and Writing
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PRAXIS Test Results- Biology and General Biology
Certifications
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Letters of Recommendation
Mr. Richard Blauvelt, Mentor Teacher
Harper Woods High School
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Ms. Rachel Badanowski, Field Instructor
Michigan State University
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Ms. Joyce Parker, Education Professor
Michigan State University
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Feedback
Feedback from Mr. Kente Rosser, Assistant Principal, Harper Woods High School
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Feedback from Ms. Lori Wierbicki, School Improvement Facilitator, Harper Woods High School
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Feedback from Ms. Rachel Badanowski, Field Instructor, Michigan State University
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Feedback from anonymous students for the Harper Woods Trailblazer Award
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