Springtime in Goshen is definitely one of my favorite times of the year - plants finally start turning green, flowers bloom, rain showers are countered by bright blue skies...but most of all because it's time again for outdoor soccer. I've been playing soccer since I was kindergarten and it will probably always be one of my favorite free time activities. In college, however, I haven't had the time to play competitively, so I am not quite as talented as I used to do. In the past few years, though, I've found a new outlet for my passion for soccer - Goshen Youth Soccer Organization.
Just this week I started my fourth year of coaching with GYSO - our first practice was on Monday. I'm really excited about this season, though a bit nervous, because I've moved up an age level - from 4th and 5th grade boys to middle school boys. That means I'll be coaching a team of 6th, 7th, and 8th graders for eight weeks. These players are bigger and probably a little more talented than the younger teams I've coached - especially the 2nd and 3rd grade team I coached my first year. However, despite the increased level of play, I'm hoping that some of the same principles that have guided my coaching in the past will still apply.
First, I always try to make sure that my team has fun. That was the main point of GYSO when I was a player and it still should be. Even if we only have a few players at practice or if we lose a game I always want to make sure that my team has fun. I try to do this by giving them verbal support and encouragement, but alo by designing practices and drills that are engaging and fun.
In addition to having fun, I try to do my best to simply connect with kids and their parents. As a developing teacher, I want to know that I can make positive connections and impacts in my students lives, and this is a great way to practice that skill. It's also a great place to interact with parents and get to know them better. I've really enjoyed in past season when the end of the season rolls around and I've developed connections with players and their parents. Often it's kind of a sad feeling when we depart after the final tournament. However, it always feels rewarding when I see former players around town, at schools, or on the fields the next season and they yell to me, "Hey coach!"
(Action #5 - Become active in your community)
Wednesday, April 22, 2009
Monday, April 20, 2009
When Students Go Home
This semester at GC I worked on a 'Language Usage Survey' project for my English Language Problems class. This project consisted of researching some type of language pattern or usage that we have noticed which seems to point to some area of language that is changing. We were expected to go out into the field for research using surveys, conversations, or other methods. At some of the field placements I have had in ENL classrooms, I've noticed some interesting patterns when Latino students are speaking in Spanish. Specifically, I've heard Spanish speakers using English words in very interesting ways in their dialogue. For example, I've overheard students saying "No me puchas," or "Don't push me." What is interesting about this phrase is that "puchar" is not a traditional Spanish word, but is simply the English verb "push" adapted with a typical Spanish ending and conjugation. These "Spanglish" verbs became the focus of my study and I was ready to go out into the public schools to see what kind of data I could come up with.
Unfortunately, as the semester continued, I put off my research for this project and suddenly I had just one week to gather my data. My plan was to visit the public middle school and high school to interview students in Spanish and look for usage of "Spanglish" words - however the week that I was planning on gathering data the public schools had spring break. So, I had to take another route, which ended up teaching me more about students' family and home realities than about their usage of "Spanglish" words. A friend of mine who is an ENL collaborator at Goshen Middle School contacted some students whose families were willing to let me visit their homes and interview them for my project. This turned out to be a fascinating way to see how many immigrant ENL students live here in Goshen.
One family I visited lived on the outskirts of Goshen in a mobile home park. I spoke with three middle-school aged boys and their father. The family had been in Goshen for less than a year, and unfortunately with the state of the economy, the father did not have work. As I asked the boys about what they do in their spare time, it seemed that they spent most of their time at home. I also asked the boys and their father if they heard much "Spanglish" used around Goshen, however the father replied that they don't often spend much time in Goshen, they are usually at their home just outside of town. The father also expressed his frustration in not being able to help his sons with their homework because of his lack of English skills. The mother of another student that I met with expressed the same sentiment. These experiences showed me that some ENL students simply do not have the same home supports as other more privileged students.
I also met with a family living in an apartment in downtown Goshen. They lived on the second floor above a vacant storefront. Again, this family had been in the area for less than a year. Unfortunately the parents also did not have work, however they still expressed plans to stay in Goshen so that their children could finish school. They told me that despite the lack of work right now, the situation would be much the same if they were to return to their home in Mexico. So, they were going to try to do what they could to stay here and help their middle-school aged son and high-school aged daughter receive a quality education.
What really surprised me though, was that when I asked the parents about how they liked their apartment and where they were living, they nonchalantly informed me that they were going to be moving the next weekend. This didn't seem like it would be a particularly difficult move, because they apartment was fairly empty from what I saw. However, a move is a major transition for a family, and could be difficult for students to do in the middle of the school year. It really broke my heart, however, when I asked the parents why they were moving. They told me that the main reason was how cold their apartment was. Because the storefront below them is vacant and non heated, their space stayed very chilly. Additionally, only one vent in the apartment actually produced warm air. This reality made it clear to me that not only do some students not have academic supports at home to help them with homework, some live in conditions where not all of their basic needs, like a warm place to sleep, are met. Obviously, lack of these types of necessities would make school a secondary concern.
These home visits that I made for another project taught me a lot about the lives of some immigrant students who have newly arrived to the U.S. Their lives are often difficult, with few academic supports, and sometimes they even lack basic necessities in their home. Obviously, this is not the reality for all immigrant students, and it could be the reality for non-immigrant students. Either way, as a teacher I need to keep in mind that when my students go home from school they may not find the same environment that I remember from my days of middle and high school.
(Action #1 - Get experience with all types of learners)
Unfortunately, as the semester continued, I put off my research for this project and suddenly I had just one week to gather my data. My plan was to visit the public middle school and high school to interview students in Spanish and look for usage of "Spanglish" words - however the week that I was planning on gathering data the public schools had spring break. So, I had to take another route, which ended up teaching me more about students' family and home realities than about their usage of "Spanglish" words. A friend of mine who is an ENL collaborator at Goshen Middle School contacted some students whose families were willing to let me visit their homes and interview them for my project. This turned out to be a fascinating way to see how many immigrant ENL students live here in Goshen.
One family I visited lived on the outskirts of Goshen in a mobile home park. I spoke with three middle-school aged boys and their father. The family had been in Goshen for less than a year, and unfortunately with the state of the economy, the father did not have work. As I asked the boys about what they do in their spare time, it seemed that they spent most of their time at home. I also asked the boys and their father if they heard much "Spanglish" used around Goshen, however the father replied that they don't often spend much time in Goshen, they are usually at their home just outside of town. The father also expressed his frustration in not being able to help his sons with their homework because of his lack of English skills. The mother of another student that I met with expressed the same sentiment. These experiences showed me that some ENL students simply do not have the same home supports as other more privileged students.
I also met with a family living in an apartment in downtown Goshen. They lived on the second floor above a vacant storefront. Again, this family had been in the area for less than a year. Unfortunately the parents also did not have work, however they still expressed plans to stay in Goshen so that their children could finish school. They told me that despite the lack of work right now, the situation would be much the same if they were to return to their home in Mexico. So, they were going to try to do what they could to stay here and help their middle-school aged son and high-school aged daughter receive a quality education.
What really surprised me though, was that when I asked the parents about how they liked their apartment and where they were living, they nonchalantly informed me that they were going to be moving the next weekend. This didn't seem like it would be a particularly difficult move, because they apartment was fairly empty from what I saw. However, a move is a major transition for a family, and could be difficult for students to do in the middle of the school year. It really broke my heart, however, when I asked the parents why they were moving. They told me that the main reason was how cold their apartment was. Because the storefront below them is vacant and non heated, their space stayed very chilly. Additionally, only one vent in the apartment actually produced warm air. This reality made it clear to me that not only do some students not have academic supports at home to help them with homework, some live in conditions where not all of their basic needs, like a warm place to sleep, are met. Obviously, lack of these types of necessities would make school a secondary concern.
These home visits that I made for another project taught me a lot about the lives of some immigrant students who have newly arrived to the U.S. Their lives are often difficult, with few academic supports, and sometimes they even lack basic necessities in their home. Obviously, this is not the reality for all immigrant students, and it could be the reality for non-immigrant students. Either way, as a teacher I need to keep in mind that when my students go home from school they may not find the same environment that I remember from my days of middle and high school.
(Action #1 - Get experience with all types of learners)
Friday, February 20, 2009
A Unique Tutoring Experience
Recently I have begun tutoring a student at Goshen High School in German. It has been a full four years since I last had a German class, and I've taken several Spanish classes during that time, but I was excited for the opportunity to jump back into this language that I used to know. I've realized that this tutoring experience will be particularly unique, however, because the student I am working with is autistic. Working with him is somewhat more challenging than other students for several reasons.
Not too surprisingly, my tutee is skilled in German and he picks up on linguistic concepts and rules quickly. Subjects such as foreign language can often be strong areas for autistic students. Though it may take him a bit of time to gather his thoughts, he has consistently answered questions regarding grammar on homework correctly during our tutoring sessions. Yet, I've found that for some reason he seems to act like he doesn't know as much as he does. This past week he asked me several questions during our tutoring session about very basic grammatical concepts that I know he has already learned. It appears that he may simply be attempting to pull our study session off-task.
I've also found that my tutee will make other efforts to derail our tutoring meetings. He will ask questions that are not at all related to the content, and seems to have some trouble staying focused for even long enough to get through one full workbook exercise. When my tutee makes this attempts to take control of our study time, I have to do my best to acknowledge what he is saying, without letting him take over. Often I find myself answering his questions or comments with brief, one or two sentence replies, and then pulling him back in to work on the task at hand.
A few days ago, another person was added to our tutoring session, a traditional student who was struggling with the same concept that my tutee and I were working with. I realized as soon as he sat down that these were two very different students. I could have easily talked directly with the guest student for several minutes and he would have attentively focused on what we were trying to learn. However, simultaneously, my tutee was still having trouble staying focused and wanted to change the course of the session. So, I found myself trying to teach a little bit to each student, and simultaneously using a couple of teaching strategies. This experience reminded me of how unique students can be, especially in a classroom setting with 20 or more students. Therefore, it is very important to utilize various teaching styles and strategies to accommodate these learners.
(Action #1 - Get experience with all types of learners)
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