Springtime brings a very busy schedule in the Agriculture department. With only a few weeks remaining, the days are all packed full of instruction, banquet preparations, practices, and meetings upon meetings. This week was no exception. The third marking period is coming to a close, which means units of instruction need to be finished, and grades need to be entered. To top off the busy springtime, the warm weather is making students anxious to be outside of the classroom walls.
This week I continued working through Integrated Pest Management by working through the different types of pesticide. Instead of giving students guided notes containing information about the 7 specific types of pesticides we worked to cover this week, I decided to have students create Chemical Control books. The students worked throughout the week to identify the important information and write it down in their book. My hopes in taking this approach is to have the students take ownership and make connections on their own. Both classes worked well throughout the week to participate in class and complete their books. I have been struggling to get through all of the information in order to have the test in before the third marking period. As a result, it has been difficult to be able to get through the information in an engaging manner while also leaving time to take care of our responsibilities in the greenhouse. After a busy week, we were able to get into the greenhouse on Friday to give the plants a little TLC.
I completed my final week in Animal Science by completing the Introduction to Poultry unit. Though I only had this class for a few short weeks, I really enjoyed the class. With 26 kids, they were my largest class this semester, but they were still very well behaved. The highlight for both Animal and Vet science students this week was a field trip to the Cargill Regional Beef plant in Wyalusing, PA on Wednesday. I was unable to go with the students, but instead stayed behind to teach the students who were not able to go on the trip. I designed a virtual field trip for the students to complete by working through the website. I lacked the enthusiasm for the students who were in the classroom, but with the help of Dr. Foster, was able to learn from the mistake and realize the importance of bringing variety into every lesson.
The favorite part of my week was Thursday, hands down. After first period, we loaded the bus with ten students and headed out to participate in the county Dairy Judging CDE that was organized by the Troy FFA. We visited two farms, each with four classes of cows. The students judged each class, gave two sets of reasons, took a written test, and completed a parts ID test. I loved seeing a barn full of young people working to learn more about the dairy industry. I also enjoy seeing different facilities, and learning more about how they run, what works well, and what they would change about their facility if they could. I felt right at home, helping kids learn in one of my favorite settings!
After being out of the classroom all day Thursday, we had just enough time to change clothes and get back in the van to head to Williamsport for the Northern regional PAAE meeting. We took one student with us to participate in SOCS (State Officer Candidate School). On the way home, I was pleased to learn that she is now seriously considering running for state office! All in all, it was a great day! Not only did I get to see some great cows, but I also got to see other teachers and student teachers and hear about how they are rocking out their last few weeks!
It has been a different experience as I work to back off of full load of teaching responsibilities. I was wrong to think that the workload was going to lighten up, though, because even with the lightened class load, there is still a lot to be done! As I look into this coming week, I am working to find ways to add variety to my lessons. With only three short days this week, and the end of the marking period, this week is full of review and tests. It is sad to think that I will be handing these classes back in such a short amount of time. I plan to maximize every day I have left!
No comments:
Post a Comment