This week has been smooth and uneventful. Last Thursday students were finishing up a lesson from Wednesday and started a new lesson on political and non-political cartoons. We are still in our comedy unit. Yesterday was MSP testing so for the last three periods of school we watched Jim Carrey's first movie Rubber Face and the TV show Modern Family.

A highlight of my week does not necessarily have to do with me but it is something I have seen. When I first arrived at Shaw in February, there was a student in my sixth period class who was unmotivated and did not have much self confidence. When it came to doing her work she would say that she didn't know how to do it and would not listen to anyone who would help her. She was quiet and a little standoffish. A few weeks ago, this student came to school with new clothes, new hairdo and a new attitude. This could have been due to her birthday but whatever it was she has been participating in class, developing a closer relationship to peers and teachers. In the faculty room I overheard the science teacher talking about this student and the great effort she has been putting forth in the classroom recently. She had been turning in all of her work. At the end of the day, she also asked my coordinating teacher what she could do to bring up her grade. Seeing this kind of progress makes me happy. This is what makes teaching rewarding.

This situation is not only a highlight but something that made me think differently about kids. Changes can be made. Teachers should not give up on students when they see that they are failing. This is an opportunity to lend a helping hand and help them to do better. Sometimes all a student needs it to know that teachers or parents care about them. If they see that tithers have confidence in them, they will make that confidence their own. It is possible for every student to succeed.

A practice that I will adopt in my teaching is standing my ground. I know this seems like a obvious one, but in certain situations it can be hard for me. Some students will listen to me if I tell them to stop a disruptive behavior but others like to challenge me. Tuesday, a student was playing with a toy while the rest of the class was MSP testing, he was also talking to neighbors and not facing his computer screen. I went over to him, after telling him several times to turn around and asked for the toy, he challenged me, saying he needed it and pulled it away from me but I was persistent and stern and told him that he could have it after testing. I confiscated it. It was hard for me to not back down and just say to put it away.

A conflicting situation this week I would say happened yesterday. Its funny because i just did research on showing films in the classroom and how to make it an effective teaching moment. My coordinating teacher showed a film in class and it went against my research. First off, we watched the movie Rubber Face that was Jim Carrey's first film. My teacher had never watched it and expected it to be funny. I was the worst move ever, after 25 minutes we turned it off and watched Modern Family. My teacher had not previewed these episodes either. The humor did go along with our comedy unit but some parts were inappropriate for school. Although the class was engaged, they did not have to do any assessments. The teacher before the movie asked if they could determine whether it was low or high comedy, but we did not ever discuss it. This situation helped me to know the conflicts that I can run into if I do not properly prepare a lesson where film is involved.