Goodbye Ipoly

It's the end of May. Meaning almost the end of the school year, the end of senior year and the end of Ipoly. I've spend four years of my life in a really weird and not normal school, (we went to school in a parking lot for crying out loud) with a bunch of pretty weird people; and I have enjoyed almost every minute of it. 

High school was nothing like I expected it to be and I have made so many memories. I also feel like I've been doing this for too long so I'm super ready to graduate. But as much as I can't wait to leave, I would also want some more time because it feels like everything is going by way too fast. High School is ending and there's nothing I can do but enjoy these last few good days and hope I'm ready for what's coming.

I've met some pretty great people and I don't think I'm ready to stop seeing them five times a week and go our separate ways. How do I stay friends with people that are going to be really far away from me and we probably won't see each other for a good couple of months. Am I suppose to get a new squad in San Fran?

With four years of projects, presentations, groups and stress, I think it's safe to say I've done my time.  I guess now it's time to move on and let the underclassmen suffer for a while longer. IPoly was great, but it's time. 

Up next: Graduation. 

Lets do this.

Blog 23: Senior Project Reflection

(1) Positive Statement
What are you most proud of in your block presentation and/or your senior project? Why?

I'm most proud of myself and how I was able to handle everything that senior year had to offer. I handled myself well and I was able to get all of my work and hours and research done. I'm also really proud of how well my whole senior project came out because it all worked really well and I learned a lot this year.


(2) Questions to Consider
a.     What assessment would you give yourself on your block presentation (self-assessment)?

I would give myself an AE because I met all the requirements for a P; I had all my research and I had a lot of information, I made time and I feel like my presentation went really well. I also had decorations for the classroom and made sure I had a good classroom environment so it would give a good impression of a kindergarten classroom. I also provided snacks and I just feel like all that really tied everything together, I didn't just teach them about kindergarten, I kind of gave them a feel of it.

b.     What assessment would you give yourself on your overall senior project (self-assessment)?

For my overall Senior Project I think I would give myself a P or P+ simply because I know how Ipoly works and I know that even though I had all of my assignments and everything turned in on time, that really only counts for a P. For my senior project in general I didn't do a lot of "above and beyond" things. 

(3) What worked for you in your senior project?

Something that worked for me was that I really enjoyed my mentorship and my topic in general so it wasn't like a drag having to do all of the work.  Having a fun and enjoyable topic and mentorship really made everything easier.

(4) (What didn't work) If you had a time machine, what would you have done differently to improve your senior project if you could go back in time?

What I would mostly want to change is the end of my senior presentation. I got confused with how much time I was suppose to reach so I thought I was running out of time so the last couple of slides I was rushing them and I didn't go into as much detail and then I ended up having like 15 minutes extra and I used them with Q&A's.

(5) Finding Value
How has the senior project been helpful to you in your future endeavors?   Be specific and use examples.

The senior project has been helpful mostly because I now have all this information about my topic and I'm able to say I have experience in the classroom. I sent my whole senior year with kids so now I'm able to work with kids better as well. I also gave me the chance to see how much patience I have which is always helpful in the outside world.

Blog 22: Mentorship

  Literal

·     Log of specific hours with a total and a description of your duties updated on the right hand side of your blog

   Under Senior Project Hours

·     Contact Name and Mentorship Place

   Mrs. Dahline, San Jose Elementary School

 Interpretive

     What is the most important thing you gained from this experience? Why?

I would have to say everything that I learned throughout the year and the experience I now have with kindergarteners. I feel like I learned a lot about my topic but I also learned a lot about myself and how much I enjoy listening to what they have to say. 

 Applied

     How has what you’ve done helped you to answer your EQ?  Please explain

My essential question, "What is the most effective way a kindergarten teacher ensure a successful school year?" was answered mostly through mentorship. A lot of what I did was observe my mentor while she taught the class then go around to help the kids when they were working on their own. Through mentorship is how I got most of the ideas for my answers and how I realized how important my answers are. My mentorship really did have a big part in answering my essential question.

Exit Interview

Content:

(1) What is your essential question, and what are your answers?  What is your best answer and why?

My essential question is "What is the most effective way a kindergarten teacher can ensure a successful school year?" My answers are: The teacher's attitude, classroom environment and classroom management. My best answer is classroom management because even though the other two are very important, you won't get anywhere if there is no proper classroom management. 

(2) What process did you take to arrive at this answer?

I read a lot about classroom management and about the kids' behavior online and I have a lot of articles on it so that mostly gave me the idea of what my second answer should be but I didn't officially make it my answer until I saw how important it is while I was at mentorship. 

(3) What problems did you face?  How did you resolve them?

I had a lot of trouble trying to figure out my third answer because I kind of felt like a lot of the answers were either not good enough and I had a lot to pick from. I wanted to really get that kindergarten aspect on my third answer. It wasn't until my  third interview with Mrs. Hansen and she brought up classroom environment and how important it is.

(4) What are the two most significant sources you used to answer your essential question and why?

The most significant source was definitely my mentorship because I wanted to know how to have a good school year so I just had to observe the classroom and my mentor and the kids. I was always able to ask my mentor any questions that I had so that was very helpful to me. Another source was a book by Ellen Junn called "Child Growth and Development". I got this book at the beginning of the year and it helped me most at the beginning of the year because it taught me the beginning parts of how kids are.

April extra blog

Today I saw one of the funniest and cutest things ever. Just so you know, the kindergarteners always have this huge basket that is usually filled with crayons. It's always in the middle of the class so that everyone can get any crayon if they need to. Today while they were working on a worksheet, they wrote sentences and once they were done, my mentor then told them "okay you can color the pictures now." All the kids went to the basket of crayons in the middle of the table like they always do except for one girl that went straight to her backpack. She then pulled out a box of 36 brand new crayons and put them on her desk. Right then I heard all the other kids drop their crayons and run to her with all the "oh my god!" "New crayons?!" "How cool!!" "I want crayons!" "36??????". 

I just thought it was funny how they have a basket with at least 100 crayons there but they were more amazed with the new box of 36.

It makes me wonder the things that go on in their minds.

Independent Component 2 Blog

LITERAL

(a) I, Daniela Diaz, affirm that I completed my independent component which represents 30 hours of work.

(b) Cite your source: Mentorship at San Jose Elementary School with Mrs. Dalhine.

(c) Log updated.

(d) In those 30 hours for my independent component, I mostly focused on the arts and crafts and all that "fun" stuff kindergarten is all about. I go to mentorship two days a week; Thursdays and Fridays. I would focus on Independent component on Fridays because that is when the kids to paint and make things which lets them be creative. That's what I wanted to focus on more because of the kindergarten mindset they still have and what I believe we should all keep as well. I got to see more clearly how they see certain situations and how they're not afraid of things like their painting or drawing looking bad. On Fridays where they would paint or create things, I would mostly just supervise and made sure nothing got out of hand. 

INTERPRETIVE 

Provide evidence:

APPLIED

How did the component help you answer your EQ? 

This component helped me answer my EQ because it helped me figure out my answer 3. With all the drawing and paintings from the students, all the work had to go up in the walls for display which made me realize that the classroom environment like the actual classroom in general is very important because the work and the colors is what makes a kindergarten classroom.

March extra blog

One of the most important things about kindergarten is the classroom and the kind of vibe it gives off as soon as you walk throught the door. As soon as you walk in a kindergarten classroom, you should see many bright colors all around the room and plenty room for the children to sit and work or play. Something that is very important is the children's work up on the walls. If it's worksheets or paintings, the work should be displayed on the walls. It adds character to the room and it gives the children a reason to always do their best and neatest. It also makes the children feel comfortable in the classroom because it makes it feel like their own when they see their work all around. Classroom environment is always important.