The Moon and Me

Happy First Day of Fall! 

Fall is my favorite season! I was outside looking for the moon this morning at 6:15, and it was a beautifully crisp, chilly morning. I love this time of year, and the weather makes my walks to student-teaching and to campus all the more pleasant. 

If you're wondering why I was looking for the moon at 6:15 this morning, then you're not the only one. I definitely get a lot of weird looks when I'm walking around my neighborhood with my nose pointed toward the sky. Usually my boyfriend will go with me and make sure I don't walk into anyone, but this morning I was on my own. Bad news: we're approaching a "new" moon, which means the moon isn't visible right now. *sigh*

I have to keep a Moon Journal for my Science Methods class. In this journal, I draw pictures of my moon sightings, noting the moon's color, direction, and height in the sky (among other things). Every week in Science class we share our moon sightings and draw conclusions about the moon's behavior. Here's an example of our weekly moon drawings:

Our professor, NancyLee Bergey, even led us through a moon simulation using pencils, Styrofoam balls, and an unfiltered light bulb. Science class is always full of hands-on activities, which is really preparing me to be a science teacher.

It's about 4:15, which means it's time for me to head to class, but I want to leave you with some great quotes I heard in my kindergarten class this week (mostly from my Classroom Mentor), as well as some upcoming recruitment events for Penn GSE!

Until next time!

-Rachel
 
Overheard in Kindergarten...

“Why do we keep a calendar?"

“U – U is a vowel that says its own name. U as is unicorn, U as in umbrella.” 

“Is it important to know order while you’re counting?”

“My hands are at my side. I’m standing straight and tall. My eyes are facing forward. I’m ready for the hall.”

“Q doesn’t go anywhere without who?”
       “The baby!”
“Right! Who’s the baby?”
       “U!”

This week in Recruitment...

If you would like to speak to a Penn GSE representative at a recruitment fair, see below!

·         Philadelphia residents!

o   Consider coming out to the Philadelphia Idealist Grad Fair today, September 23^rd, to speak to a represent from Penn GSE. The Fair is from 5:00-8:00 pm, at 3301 Market Street!

·         College students at…

o   University of Virginia: Check out your school’s Professional and Graduate School Fair tomorrow, Wednesday, September 24^th, from 12:00-4:00 pm!

o   College of William and Mary: Check out your school’s Graduate and Professional Career Fair on Thursday, September 25^th from 1:00-4:00!

o   Fayetteville State University: Check out your school’s Career and Graduate School Fair on Thursday, September 25^th from 1:00-4:00!

o   Smith College: Check out your school’s Fall Career Fair on Friday, September 26^th from 3:30-6:00 pm.

Introductions

Greetings!

My name is Rachel, and I'm excited to be writing this blog about the Teacher Education Program (TEP) at the University of Pennsylvania's Graduate School of Education (Penn GSE). I'll start off by telling you about the Teacher Education Program, why I chose it, and then close with some information about myself. 

The Teacher Education Program at Penn is divided into two strands: the Elementary and Middle Level strand, and the Secondary strand. I am studying Early Elementary Education, and will eventually be certified to teach PreK through 4th grade. My friends who are pursuing Middle Level certification will be able to teach 4th through 8th grade in a specific content area like Science, Social Studies, Literacy, or Math. The Secondary certification is also in a specific content area (Science, Social Studies, Literacy, Math) for grades 7-12.  

A little over a year ago I began researching different graduate programs for education and was originally drawn to Penn GSE's Education Policy program. After a lot of reflection, I realized that policy was absolutely NOT what I wanted to do for the rest of my life. I have always loved teaching and working with students in the classroom, so the Teacher Education Program at Penn was a great fit. Here are the top reasons why I chose Penn's TEP:

• Full year of student-teaching: Most student-teaching experiences take place over the course of one semester. At TEP, I get to student-teach two days a week from the first day of school until the last day of school before winter break, and then four days a week until the end of the year. 

• Penn Mentor: Every student-teacher works with a Penn Mentor, who is a retired teacher from the Philadelphia area. My Penn Mentor taught for over 30 years at an elementary school in West Philly, and is a huge source of advice and inspiration. As I progress through my student-teaching, she will be observing me and giving me feedback on how to improve.

• Cohort Model: I am one of 27 students in the Elementary/Middle Level strand, and we take all of our classes together. Needless to say, we got to know each other pretty quickly, and I love learning from my classmates' diverse educational backgrounds and experiences. It is important to have an academic community, both as a student, and as a teacher, and the cohort model gives me just that. 

• Location: I love Philadelphia and the students that live and go to school here each day. It was important for me to find a Teacher Education program that was steeped in the context of Philadelphia and its unique school district. My student-teaching placement is a public elementary school in the School District of Philadelphia, therefore I am learning how to teach in an environment similar to one I hope to teach in. 

Why do I love Philly and its students so much? So glad you asked. 

Two years ago I moved to Philadelphia to serve with City Year as an AmeriCorps volunteer. City Year is a national non-profit that places diverse teams of 17-24 year olds in high-need urban schools. City Year Corps Members tutor students who are off-track in attendance, behavior, and/or course performance (math or literacy), provide after-school programming for all students, and work with teachers to help keep students on track in school. 

During my City Year, I served as a Corps Member in a 6th grade classroom at a public K-8 school in East Germantown. I cannot overstate how much I LOVED working with my 6th graders. Everyday presented new challenges and opportunities, and since I wasn't the classroom teacher, I had a lot of freedom within the classroom. I was able to work with individuals and small groups, to create and implement a positive behavior management system, and to form unique relationships with all of my students. 

Being a City Year Corps Member was a life-changing experience, and it put me on the path to becoming an elementary school teacher. I continued to serve another year as a Team Leader with City Year, in which I was able to co-lead a team of 18 Corps Members at a public middle school in North Philly as they worked with their own students.  

Before I moved to Philly for City Year, I attended Lebanon Valley College in my hometown of Annville, Pennsylvania. I studied Music Education, and I come from a family of musicians. I have two musical parents, two brothers, and three sisters - all with enough musical talent to put together a family band (which I've always wanted to do, but the idea never took off). Philly isn't too far from home, which is another reason why I love being at Penn. Sometimes those weekend trips home take can help take my mind off of all the homework I should be doing! 

Hopefully this post introduced you to the Teacher Education Program at Penn GSE and gave you a little bit of background knowledge about who I am. 

Until next week!

- Rachel 

Pre-Introductory Blog Post - Disclaimer

Hello!

My name is Rachel Beazley, and I am a student in Penn GSE's Teacher Education Program. My program started in early July, and I will graduate in May 2015 with an M.S.Ed. in Early Elementary Education and certification to teach grades PreK-4. I'm writing this blog as a way to document my year at GSE, as well as to inform anyone out there who is curious about Penn GSE, particularly the Teacher Education program.

Before I introduce myself and delve into more exciting stuff, I just wanted to include a little disclaimer and to let everyone know that this blog is going to be full of my own views and opinions. I promise to be honest, but do not promise that my views will always align with those of Penn GSE, my professors, or fellow students.

That being said, let's move on!

- Rachel