What I learned from teaching Mr. Holo's class...

            I was able to teach one period of Mr. Holo’s Med Science class after watching him do the same presentation of direct instruction on Sports and Nutrition and Food Safety Rules the period before.  This lesson fortunately coincided with one of the days of my Five-day Lesson Plan assignment that was submitted for my assessment class at National University. I was able to ask many of the types of pre-assessment questions that I had planned to in my lesson prep. To introduce a topic I would ask questions to the students that followed up their previous studies on the topic. This was a great experience for me but also very humbling as I prepare to student teach soon.

Mr. Holo had some advice for me after my teaching period was over and I took notes because he had great advice. He told me that I did great and that it will get better over time. He explained that he teaches the same topics over and over everyday and he can easily get on a roll and have plenty to say. With years of experience he has been able to really understand the subject area and expound on many of the students favorite parts of the course. We both talked about how I didn’t know the subject areas as well as I needed to in order to answer some of the students questions. The most important advice he gave me was positive, that I did a great job and that it will only get better after teaching more and more.

I feel like I did a pretty good job at making the students comfortable with me and helping them feel confident in asking questions and participating the discussion. I had subbed Mr. Holo’s class before and coached some of the students so the students were somewhat familiar with me and my personality. Although I did ask some assessment questions throughout the lecture I don’t think I had enough assessment planned into what I was presenting. I feel that after a little while of instruction it took me too long to get the students involved and talking about what they were taking notes on. I think I could have made the lecture better by being a funny or asking the students questions about their experiences with the sports nutrition and feed safety rules. The students didn’t have enough interaction and now I know more of how to get the students engagement.

            I will change a few things about my preparations for when I teach. I know now that the depth of knowledge need to have for health science should be more refined in order to answer many of the questions students will ask. I need to prepare lectures better with many stops for assessment and student interaction. I am grateful for the great teachers, like Mr. Holo, that will take their precious time to help students like me get my feet wet in the classroom.