Kineta Abraham » lesson planning

We’re in the home stretch and I’m trying to finish strong, which is a challenge that is proving to be evermore challenging. There are only two more teacher training lessons to go and these will be the most independent and lasting lessons that I will plan during this course. It is independent in the sense that my partner Robin and I will not collaborate on any areas of the process and lasting because they will be the lessons that will remain most recent in the minds of our students. Putting this aside I am forced to draw on what I’ve learned throughout the lesson planning course to produce and facilitate a lesson that is most beneficial to our students. Among the many things I’ve learned in this course is that communication is key, cohesion for my students starts with me, and always ask “Why am I doing this?”

I still struggle with when to stop my students in order to move onto another activity because I feel like I’m cutting them off. Sometimes I find myself wanting to do an activity because I think it’s fun, but the truth is it’s not about me. I’m constantly asking myself why am I doing this. Is it benefiting my “ego” or my students. If the answer is me, well I simply swallow my pride and remove it from the lesson. And as for cohesion starting with me who ever knew a class who understood a teacher who didn’t know where she/he were going. That kind of direction or should I say lack of direction only leads to chaos.

It’s Wednesday morning and I’m feeling a little anxious because I don’t want a repeat of last week. Every Wednesday and Thursday my classmates and I are responsible for teaching from a lesson plan that we’ve created and last Friday’s class seemed to be going in too many directions.

Robin, my partner, and I have taught four lessons in the Midwest Teacher Training Program (MTTP) and have some awesome students from Korea, Brazil, West Africa, Japan, Taiwan, and more. Although they’re from different areas of the world, they have no problem collaborating. Some are studying to improve their TOEFL scores, seeking to get into a university, or need English for their jobs, so they’re eager to learn. They give me their best, so I want to give them my best. Hence the anxiety.