As I get closer to the end of my practicum there are a few things that I still need to work on. One of the things that I have yet to master is introducing topics and material that is relatable and interesting for my students. I was super excited for this class because I thought that the students would find the topic super engaging and relatable. However, I am not certain that they did. I wonder if the online environment makes it harder to pick material that is tailored for my students. I find that despite virtually meeting with my students once a week for 8 weeks, I still do not know my students well. I’m curious if the lack of face to face communication and casual conversations before and after class have made it harder to get to know them. I would also like to work on knowing when to step in and provide more direction or elicit more participation. Again, I think that this would be easier in an in person class as I could use non-verbal cues to help.
One thing I am really excited about and think is going well is adding continuity to my lessons. This week I followed a very similar format to the previous week. I think that the students were already familiar with the major components of the activities and that this helped them learn more. This is something that I plan to keep in mind for the future. I do not have to reinvent the wheel each time, if it works, I can stick with it.