WEEK FOURTEEN- Daily Log: Thursday, May 31, 2007

• I had a lot of fun working at my placement today because I got to do work both inside and outside of the classroom. My first job at my placement was to put together some french activity booklets for the grade seven students. I first I had to find the binder in the library, that contained the necessary activities. With the help of Mme. Mercer, I selected Activities A-F, as well as a vocabulary page. I then took the pages to the A.V. room where I would photocopy them back and front. Once I finished making the copies, I went back to the french room to sort them out into the booklets. Once I had them all sorted out, I stapled them and put them in the spot that Mme. Mercer had specified.


• My next job was to go in search of a song that Mme. Mercer wants to be presented at grad. Mme. Mercer found a copy, and I made ten photocopies of it. I then hole-punched them and put one at the back of every duotang.


• I then made my way to class, where Mme. Mercer was taking up the translation activity the students had worked on yesterday. The students seemed to really comprehend the lesson, and was also very active in sharing their answers with the class. It was then time for me to hand out the recipes that I had selected earlier in the week for them to translate. The recipes were long and challenging, and you could see how surprised the class was at this. At first they didn't think they could do it, but as time progressed, they became more and more motivated to translate it. I walked around the class and helped them in any way I could. I helped make sence of a translation, helped look for words in the dictionary, and helped with any other concerns they may have had. In the end it turned out to be a very fun day in class.


• During planning time I had to use the elevator for the first time. I had to get a key from the office first. I was supposed to bring a trolley back downstairs to the staff room. I didn't know how to work the elevator at first, so I consulted with someone who did so that I knew what I had to do before actually doing it. In the end, I understood how to work it, and completed the task. For the rest of the afternoon, I did minor jobs around the school. I worked for three and a quarter hours today.

WEEK FOURTEEN- Daily Log: Wednesday, May 30, 2007

• Over the last couple of weeks at my placement, I have noticed that working in an environment with air conditioning can make a person feel very cheerful! Co-op is such a great addition to my days, and I look forward to going everyday. When I first got to my placement, I hole-punched an activity that Mme. Colonna needed for the next class. After completing this, I proceeded to make five more copies of each of the songs I had put in duotangs yesterday. Once I had all of the photocopies done, I hole-punched them and put them ino the right order. I had to ask another teacher for five more red duotangs to hold the new copies. I then placed them into the duotangs and left them on Mme. Mercer's desk.


• During class today, I lead into the prayer, date, and weather. I then asked the students to take out their homework from last night so that Mme. Mercer could check it to make sure they did it. I then waited for Mme. Mercer to get to class, because she had left to get something from another teacher. During this time the class got very noisy, and I saw this as the perfect opportunity to use some conflict resolution skills. I raised my voice to get their attention, and this worked at a mild rate. The noise level increased, and so I told the class that the next person to speak would have their name given to Mme. Mercer. This seemed to work extremely well. I was very proud of myself, and I see that I am slowly but surely progressing in this area.


• I then took up the homework on the overhead, and the kids seemed to really understand the concpet. They participated, and I made sure that I was choosing both boys and girls. I think that I did a good job with this. I was comfortable with the class, and they seemed to respond well to how I taught them. For the rest of the class, they worked on translating a recipe from their textbooks. I walked around and helped in any way that I could without giving them the answers.


• During planing time, I worked more on the ensemble singers' duotangs. I also went in search for some lyrics to a song "His Name I Raise Out High" that will be for grad. I worked for three and a half hours today.

WEEK FOURTEEN- Daily Log: Tuesday, May 29, 2007

• Today was a very busy day at my co-op placement, and I worked as hard as ever in order to complete everything. The first thing I did was to continue marking the grade six quizzes from one of the classes. The majority of the students did very well, and this made my job a lot easier. After I finished marking all of the quizzes, I proceeded to record them in Mme. Mercer's markbook. I recorded them in the reading section, and made sure I was doing it correctly.


• My next job was to place some "On y va" textbooks (seventy-three of them) into the french storage room, with the help of Brian. We had to shuffle some things around, but we managed to put them on one and a half shelves. There were supposed to be ninety textbooks, but they were nowhere to be found. We looked in all of the grade eight classrooms and the french storage room, but found no textbooks. Mme. Mercer said that we would have to hunt around for them.


• In class today, Mme. Mercer was teaching the class a new lesson and she used one of the charts that I had typed up earlier in the semester. It felt really good to have my chart up there, because it made all my hard work worth the trouble.


• My next job was to find six recipes from the french cookbook and make four photocopies of each recipe. Once I made the photocopies, I cut them out neatly. I then went back to the french storage room to find some colourful construction paper for each recipe. Each one would have their own colour. So I glued each recipe onto their paper, and set them aside for the students to translate in one of the next classes.


• Mme. Mercer then told me that I would be teaching a lesson tomorrow, and she gave me the sheet I would be doing with the classes. I found the answers, and reviewed what I would say. I am very comfortable with what I have to do.


• At the end of the day, Mme. Mercer and I went in search of some instruments that the grad ensemble singers will use. We found a box in one of the primary classes, and Mme. Mercer also found out what classes she needed to order more instruments for. I carried the box of instruments into the french room and found a safe place for it. I worked for three and a half hours today.

WEEK FOURTEEN- Daily Log: Monday, May 28, 2007

• I did not go to school this morning (that's why I wasn't at the meeting!), however, I did attend my placement. I was busy as soon as I got there. Mme. Mercer had made me a list of things that had to be done in the next week, and so I got right down to business. The first thing on the list was to search for activities that dealt with "L'Imparatif" which is a format to give an order in french. I searched through two very thick activity folders Mme. Mercer had, and I also looked though a large folder that was full of tests. I found a few activities with this grammar. I also looked in an activity book called "Destination 1", where I found two activities that I photocopied seventy-five copies of, front and back.


• My next job was to somewhat organize Mme. Mercer's filing cabinet, which just needed some touch-ups. I even had some time to watch some of the grade six skits that they had been working on for the last few days. It felt good to watch them because I laughed and they turned out really well.


• During recess and planning time, I marked some of the grade six quizzes they had had on Friday. I got through two of the three classes, and will finish the other one before class tomorrow. I will also have to record these marks. The marking was pretty straight forward since I had the master copy. My next job was to organize the binders that hold the songs that the emsemble singers will be singing at the graduation. Mme. Mercer decided what order the songs would be in, and which ones would be included. I had to make copies of some of the ones we were missing. I then put the correct songs in each duotang, in the correct order. My final job of the day was to put a few late art entires into the display case. I managed to put them in, but it is a tight fit. I worked for three and a half hours today.

WEEK THIRTEEN- Weekly Journal

Co-op has proved to be an amazing experience for me; one that I will never forget. I look forward to being there everyday, and this is a requirement for a future in this field. Teaching is something I can see myself doing because being a student now, I see how much influence teachers have had on my life. They work so hard to make sure that each of their pupils understands the lessons. They go above and beyond what they are supposed to do, just for the well being of their students. I have learned so much from every teacher I have ever had, and I would love to be able to touch a child's life, just as so many teachers have already done to me. Kids and teens see their teachers almost everyday, and they become sort of a unit. I am definitely a people person, so always being in an environment where I am around people would be an advantage to me. After each day of co-op I feel refreshed and just happy to have an opportunity like this. The students have responded really well to my presence, and I can't be more thankful of that. It has just occured to me that some of these kids will probably remember me for a long time to come, and hopefully I have set a good example for them to follow. This thought really motivates me and makes me want to work in this field even more.
I do realize, however, that I do need to improve in certain areas for me to be a great teacher. I have my strengths, but I also have my weaknesses. One of my bigger weaknesses is my conflict resolution. I have been focusing on this area, and really trying to improve on it. I have come a long way, am I am very proud of myself for it. I do think that with age and experience I will improve drastically, because I will have more knowledge and authority. I will also need to be able to adapt very quickly to gel with students' behaviour and learning styles in order to be successful. I need to be able to respond to anything that may occur in the classroom, and this will come with education and more experience. The reason co-op is so great is because I get a head start in figuring out what aspects I need to improve on. In order to follow this career, I will need to get a University Degree, where I would get a Bachelor's Degree (eg. Bachelor of Arts), and then my Bachelor of Education. I then think I would get a Masters Degree to deepen my knowledge in this field, even though I could teach without getting this. I am a very motivated person, and believe I have the power to do whatever I want with my life.
Mme. Mercer has talked to me about this field when I have asked or espressed visible interest. Also, for one of my assignments, I had to ask some questions that pertained to teaching, where I learned a lot about what I would have to do to be successful. Mme. Mercer always slips me important information about teaching at random times, and I really appreciate this. I always remember the valuable advice she gives me. People at my placement enjoy their chosen career because it deals with helping kids triumph and learn what they are good at. They are constantly doing their best, and I can only compliment them on this. I can see that they love being around people, and teaching others what they know. And to be a great teacher, this is a quality that one must possess to have fun and teach others.

WEEK THIRTEEN- Daily Log: Thursday, May 24, 2007

• Today was a very different day at my placement because Mme. Mercer was not at school. She had a dentist appointment, and she had told me yesterday she would not be present. And so, I would be helping other teachers out with various jobs today. My first job of the day was to help Mme. Colonna write more students' names on some documents. I wrote about a whole class before class time rolled around.


• Seeing as Mme. Mercer was not here, I went to class with Mme. Colonna. She teaches grade four french, and the kids were so cute! They were working on posters that advertised a shoe that they had made up. They also had to have a slogan for their shoe, and the slogan had to be in french. My job was to walk around the class and help anyone who needed it. The students would ask questions such as how to write a specific word in french, or how to correctly pronounce a word in french. I had a lot of fun in this class because it was nice to have a change in scenery, and the kids were also very nice. They were also amazing workers and ended up accomplishing a lot in the period.


• After this, I made my way to help out Brian with the grade eight grad silhouettes. We set up two overheads in the hallway, and made the students sit in this projected light so that their silhouettes would show up on the wall. We stuck up a black sheet of paper, and traced their heads using chalk. I found this job kind of hard and stressful because the students were very judgemental, and I felt really bad if they disliked my work. I tried my best, and traced their shadow exactly! Most students were very happy with how their silhouette came out, and this made me feel great! I found this activity very fun and entertaining, and the kids were just awesome and allowed me to enjoy myself.


• Today threw some new experiences challenges at me, and I enjoyed every minute of it! I will not be at my placement tomorrow seeing as I have co-op integration. I worked for three and a half hours today.

WEEK THIRTEEN- Daily Log: Wednesday, May 23, 2007

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  • Today was a very fun day at my placement because I was very busy. I did a lot of different activities, and also got to work with the students. When I first got to my placement, Mme. Mercer had the menus from all three grade six classes laid out. I had to record all of these marks into the reading section of her markbook. It would have been straight forward, if some of the students had remembered to put their names on their work. Since some did not, Mme. Mercer and I had to go hunting to find out whose menu was whose. Once this job was complete, I made my way to Mr. Frenza's grade six class. I don't usually go to his class because it is in the morning, however he and Mrs. Cioccio had switched periods.
  
  
  • The students in each of the classes were working on their restaurant skits. I took a group from each class with me to work in the library. The groups were very well-behaved, and we had a lot of fun being creative. I helped them with french grammar and sentence structure, as well as coming up with ideas that would make their skit more colourful and entertaining. I also helped the students make props out of construction paper, and other materials they had brought. I think the skits will be done very well, because the students showed amazing initiative, and I can tell that they really want to do well. I was really happy to work with them.
  
  
  • During planning time, Mme. Mercer told me she had received some outstanding artwork from the grade eights that she would like to see me add to the display case. I had to move some things around, but in the end, I managed to fit everything in. I then had to pick out the best of the menus that were handed in. I looked for menus that were creative and looked as if the student had spent a lot of time on it. I was the supposed to staple them onto a bulletin board, however first I had to remove what was already on display. I then arranged the menus in a creative fashion in order to fit them all in.
  
  
  • Tomorrow I will hopefully be working on tracing the grade eights' heads onto black paper (silhouettes) for graduation. I worked for three and a half hours today.

WEEK THIRTEEN- Daily Log: Tuesday, May 22, 2007

• Today was an extremely busy day for me at my co-op placement, and I did not have a moment to myself. I like being busy though, because it makes the time fly by, and I also feel very good about myself and what I have accomplished at the end of the day. When I first got to my co-op placement, I continued to work on the graduation letters. Mrs. Stula wanted to me to redo the "G" because while she was laminating it, air bubbles found their way under the plastic. Today I finished cutting out the "2007" part, and also drew in the gold rimming around the lettering. The lettering looks great, but we just have to decide if we're going to laminate them.


• My next job took up the majority of the day. Mme. Mercer wanted me to take down what was already in th glass display case in the hall, and put them in Mrs. Stula's classroom, and Ms. Boyd's classroom. Once I had emptied the display case, I proceeded to arrange and decorate the cases with some art that the grade eights had done in french class. The art ranges from paintings, to clay figures, to people made from bottle caps and pop cans. The art was really stunning, and I had a lot of fun deciding where things would look best. I arranged the art so that each piece would compliment one another, and give an overall very polished look. The diversity of the art made the arrangement look even better. One major problem I had with making the display, was the dust! Dust was everywhere, and I think I breathed a lot in. Another challenge I had to overcome was the fact that there was so much art to fit in such small spaces. In the end, however I managed to get every last piece on display.


• My final job of the day was to make eighty photocopies (back and front) of an activity for Mme. Mercer. I then had to use the paper cutter to cut pieces of lined paper in half. I had a lot of fun today, because I worked really well independently, and ended up doing some of my best work. I am very proud of myself for being so committed today, and look forward to going back tomorrow! I worked for three and a half hours today.

WEEK TWELVE- Weekly Journal

Some opportunities that I've had at my workplace are dealing with children and learning how to interact with them. I see this as an opportunity because I am developing the skills I will need if I become a teacher in the future. Being around children and seeing their different abilities and learning techniques is a head start for me because in the future, I will be able to excell in this area due to the fact that I will have experienced more than others. Co-op has been a great opportunity for me because I have received a glimpse into what I could spend my whole life doing. I have experienced some highs and lows, and have seen how to work through them. This will most definitely help me in the future because it will look good to people that I already have experience in the field. I have been able to make mistakes and correct myself which is also a huge advantage. I have learned so much at my placement, and couldn't be happier working there.
My parents think that co-op is an amazing opportunity as well because I am learning about the workplace, getting valuable experience, getting more mature and responsible and also learning more about myself, and the adversity I will have to face in the future. My parents are very proud of me and the dedication that I have displayed towards co-op. My parents are both teachers, so they help me and give me advice whenever I need it. Being in the business, they have told me that having this experience is an advantage on my part because I have gotten into a comfort zone in this career, and have had an inside look in what it takes to be a good teacher. They have given me a lot of support, and have encouraged me the whole way through.
Some typical problems I have at the workplace are keeping order in the classroom, and just little things that I will sometims have to do over to appease those in authority. For example, sometimes I may have to change or alter a question I may on a quiz so that it is to Mme. Mercer's liking. I don't mind doing this because it keeps me busy, and ensures that I am doing the best work I can. Some other problems I may have at work are when the kids take advantage of my lesser authority. Sometimes I will have to supervise the class when Mme. Mercer has to run to get something or go to her next class. The kids see this as "fun time" and start yelling and fooling around. I have had to yell to restore order, and show them that I am in charge. Ever since I taught the lesson, I have seen that the kids see me in a new light, and treat me with more respect.
The highlight of the week was when I cut out the graduation letters. I loved being apart of the graduation, and helping the school. I truly felt that I did my best work, and they turned out great. I felt even better when I delivered them to Mrs. Stula and her grade eight class because they were genuinely gracious for all my hard work. It feels really good to be appreciated, and it was nice to have someone like my work. I really enjoyed doing the letters, and am looking forward to finishing them off on Tuesday. The low point of my week was strictly the humidity in the building. The heat is very suffocating, and it gets to my head. Surprisingly enough, I did not have a low point, which really shows how much I love this job. I love almost everything I do there, and have not come across a situation that I can really say is a low point. If anything, I don't like when the students pick on one another, so I try to set aside their differences and set things straight for the time being. Before co-op is over I hope to improve on my conflict resolution skills because that is something that I have been working on, and I have definitely improved immensely already. I would also like to do anything that Mme. Mercer still has planned for me, so that I do as much as I can. And lastly, I would like to work with the students as much as possible, because that is my favourite part of the job.

WEEK TWELVE- Daily Log: Thursday, May 17, 2007

• Today was a very straight forward but tedious day for me, and I found that I was going cross-eyed. When I first got to my placement, I proceeded to look through the foods that I had picked last night. I had picked a variety of foods, and I translated them in english for my own reference.


• My next job was to work with Brian on a Graduation Project. Brian's job was to trace the letters G-R-A-D-U-A-T-I-O-N 2-0-0-7 using the overhead, and taping black construction paper to the wall. He traced the shadow of each letter and number, and would pass them on to me. I was the designated cutter, and I had to be very precise with it. Mrs. Stula had made it very clear to us that this was an important job, because they wanted to use these letters for many Graduations to come. We were under a lot of pressure to please everyone, and I resolved to try my absolute best.


• Once I finished cutting, I was supposed to outline each individual letter in gold marker. Mrs. Stula demonstrated how she wanted this done, and it also proved to be a very precise job. I had to be careful to make my lines even and straight, and my eyes were going cross-eyed. I spent the whole day on these letters, and my back started to hurt from sitting and leaning forward all day long. The metallic gold marker made a great effect ontop of the black paper, and it is going to look fabulous on Grad night.


• When I finished outlining all ten letters, the school day was over. I still have to do "2007" on Tuesday. I cleaned up my workspace, and brought the letters to Mrs. Stula and her class for inspection. Thankfully, she was very pleased with what I had done, and it made all my troubles worth it. He class even applauded me, reminding me why I like my placement so much. I worked for three and a half hours today. I will not be at my placement tomorrow because it is a P.A. Day, or on Monday, because it is Victoria Day.

WEEK TWELVE- Daily Log: Wednesday, May 16, 2007

• The weather was a lot better today since the humidity was not as bad in the school. It's crazy how the weather affects your mood. I was a lot more cheerful today, and I got right to work when I arrived at my placement. The first thing I did today was listen to some of the grade eights present their valedictorian speeches in the library. Some were really good, amd Mme. Mercer is one of the teachers who will be deciding the winner. It is going to be a really tough decision, and I am fully willing to give my opinion. We will listen to the rest later next week.


• I then helped Mme. Colonna with some filing and I had to write the names of some students on sheets with some of their marks.


• I then made my way to class, where they would continue to work on their menus. If they did not finish their rough copies in class today, they would have to bring it home and finish it for homework. I took out about six students from each class to work on their menus. I helped them with any questions they had and proofread some of their work. I was not supposed to perfect their writing, only point out some of their more major mistakes. It was really fun to work one on one with the students again, and my groups behaved really well. They were very quiet and concentrated on their work, but we still managed to have a good time. I collected all the menus at the end of class, and showed them my example menu.


• During planning time, I helped Mrs. Malizia shelf books. It was pretty straightforward because I just had to alphabetize them and follow the numbers on the books' spine. I had a lot of fun today, and look forward to coming back tomorrow. I have to look through a real french menu for Mme. Mercer tonight, and pick out six foods for the grade sixes to translate next week. I worked for three and a half hours today.

WEEK TWELVE- Daily Log: Tuesday, May 15, 2007

• Today was extremely hot inside the walls of St. Andrew and I was dying in the humidity. I regretted wearing my sweater, but I was forced to keep it on. The first thing I did upon arriving at my placement is buy a water bottle! I then went to my co-op bin in the french room to see what Mme. Mercer had left for me to work on. I found some quizzes that the grade eights had done that morning, along with the answer key. I was to mark the quizzes out of fifteen, and it was pretty straight forward because Mme. Mercer had given me the answer key. If the answer was not the one on the key, then it was wrong. Usually, the answers will waver, but these ones were set in stone, which makes it much easier for me.


• I did not finish before class, so I had to bring the rest of the quizzes to class. Today, Mme. Mercer assigned the classes a menu. They had to create their own menu with five salads, five soups, five main courses, five desserts, and five drinks. They also had to use the partitive lesson that they had received and been working on for the past week. They were also allowed to bring in real menus for inspiration and a reference for their own menus. While the students worked, I continued to mark the grade eight quizzes. I then had to record these marks in Mme. Mercer's mark book.


• During planning time I proceeded to make an example menu for the grade six classes to use as an example. I put the appropriate headings, and actually put some effort into it, just to set the bar for the grade sixes.


• After I finished this task, Mme. Mercer wanted me to hunt for some paper for the grade sixes to use for their good copies for their menus. Mme. Mercer wanted me to get around eighty pages of construction paper, all of an assortment of colours. I went to the french storage room and sorted through the paper. I got just over eighty pieces. Mrs. Cekota then asked me to make some copies of an acivity on the risograph. For the rest of the day, Mme. Mercer and I worked on little tasks regarding organization, lesson planning and marking. I worked for three and a half hours today.

WEEK TWELVE- Daily Log: Monday, May 14, 2007

• Today was a very different kind of day because the grade sixes were on a field trip. All the classes that I usually go to in the afternoon were cancelled. Mme. Mercer had a bunch of jobs for me to do, so I got right to work. My first job was to stamp the work that the grade eights had done that morning. I did not actually mark the activity they did, but I did stamp according on how much they had completed. Mme. Mercer had given me stamps to account for work not completed and vice versa.


• When I completed this, I moved on to my next task, which was to mark and stamp some of the work the grade sixes had done for homework after my lesson. I had assigned page 56 for homework last week, and they were supposed to have completed it, however some did not, and I was forced to give them a stamp that said "Homework not Completed". If they did finish their homework, I gave them a stamp that said "Merveilleux". I marked the activity out of nine, and they got a bonus mark for writing their name (Mme.'s idea).


• Once I finished this, I proceeded to laminate a poster for Mme. Mercer. I then sat down with Mme. Mercer to make the lesson plans for the next couple of weeks. I am going to be assigning a skit project to the classes, with requirements that I made to go with it. We also decided what pages in their cahier will be assigned on different days.


• Something we did today caught my interest, and showed me how hard this job really is. Mme. Mercer and I sat down to average out the students' grades, however these grades were harder to avereage out becaue they are letters (A+, C, B-, etc) which makes it hard to average, and even more so if the marks are all over the map. We went through all of the grade six classes, and made a tentative mark for oral, written, and reading sections. This was very long and tedious, and I found that my eyes were going cross-eyed.


• I then alphabetized Mme. Mercer's filing cabinet, and we then threw out things she did not need anymore. Mme. Mercer also explained to me what an OSR is, and what has to be done to it each year. I found this very interesting, and did not even know what one was before this. I worked for three and a half hours today.

WEEK ELEVEN- Weekly Journal

Since starting co-op, I feel very differently about myself because I see that if I put my mind towards something, I will almost always accomplish it. I see that I have become very diligent and dedicated towards my work, and I know that I must continue to see myself in this way if I want to be successful. Co-op has taken me beyond my comfort zone, and pushed me in a world where I must adapt to change and jobs that I may not be familiar with. I have seen that I am very set on doing the tasks I am assigned to the best to my ability. I want to work at a high degree of effectiveness so that my work pleases those who assigned it to me. I find that I have become more confident in myself because I face every challenge that is given to me as an opportunity to prove myself to others. I like knowing I can do anything I set my mind to. I've learned so much about myself, and it makes me feel good when I complete something that I originally thought was going to be hard. I have also learned that teaching is something that I can genuinely see myself doing as a career. I love being around kids, and I love the responsibilities of teachers. I think that being able to touch a child's life is an amazing perk to the job because you somewhat influence their morals and could ultimately help the student see what they are interested in.
I have also learned a lot about the responsibility that supervisors have. Mme. Mercer is already so busy with the responsibilities she has at school, and yet she takes my presence very seriously and takes time out to help me with anything I need. She is responsible for giving me jobs, and explaining them to me, not to mention signing my time sheets and giving me marks based on my job performance. Mme. Mercer also goes above and beyond her responsibilities in that she cares about what goes on in my life. This results in me getting more motivated and doing the best that I can do. Mme. Mercer is not only a french teacher, but she is the health and wellness rep, the OECTA rep, and takes care of a bunch of other things.
I have learned a lot about how to work with others because I am constantly around people, and I have to compromise with them. I must learn to teach kids with different learning abilities, and I get advice pertaining to this from different teachers. Mme. Mercer and all kinds of teachers have given me advice on how to teach, and in doing so, they have also taught me how to treat colleagues. I see that I should be open-minded and willing to let people help me. I am now more comfortable with speaking in front of a group of people. I am not self conscious, and this results in me delivering a very effective lesson. I am so much more comfortable with assisting students, and I want to continue to improve and enter a new comfort zone. To show initiative at my workplace, you have to do get things done, even when you are not asked or told to. You must show that you take work seriously and that you want to help in any way you can. Initiative means that you go above and beyond your regular workload, and do things that exceed the expectations that people have for you. I try to do this by finding work that needs to be done, or asking teachers other than Mme. Mercer if they need any help. What I remember most about this week is teaching a whole lesson to the class. I loved doing this because I think the kids see me in a new light in that they see that I am too a teacher ( more or less). The lesson went very well, and took me out of my comfort zone. I handled the situation very well, and progressively got comfortable. I am proud of myself for doing so well, and hope to teach again.

WEEK ELEVEN- Daily Log: Friday, May 11, 2007

• I was very happy to be at my placement today because I really missed being there. I realized that it brightens my days, and just makes me happy to work there. The only downside to working there these days is the intense humidity that has settled in the building. St. Andrew does not put its air conditioner on until late May or early June to conserve energy. Since I am upstairs all the time, the heat is even worse, so I have to bring water and be prepared for these conditions.


• The first thing I did upon my arrival at my placement was mark some of the "dictees" that the grade sixes, sevens, and eights had completed this morning. I had to find out what the french words meant in english for my own reference with regards to marking them. The marks are based on spelling and the english meaning of the word. There were so many of these tests that I had to bring them to class to finish up. Before I continued marking, however, I had to dictate the afternoon class' dictees. Their test was on different types of food, and they were supposed to have studied throughout the week. I made sure that I spoke loudly, clearly, slowly, and with an evident french accent. I also made sure to repeat the word a few times to ensure that the students heard everything. The students seemed to respond well to my test, and there were no complaints.


• After the quiz, the students worked on page 58 in their cahiers. They were required to identify all of the ingredients on a picture of a sandwhich. There were about ten ingredients, and they had to write the food's name in french. I helped students with whatever they needed help with, however I do draw the line when the students ask questions that go beyond helping and basically want me to do their work. While the students worked on their activity I continued to mark the other dictees ontop of the ones that I had just dictated.


• During planning time I marked the last few of the tests, and proceeded to record the marks in the markbook. I then marked some of the bizarre meals that the grade sixes had made pertaining to the partitive lesson. I also recorded these marks. I worked for three and a half hours today.

WEEK ELEVEN- Daily Log: Thursday, May 10, 2007

• I did not attend my co-op placement today, due to the fact that I had to go to my aunt' s funeral. I did realize that I missed my placement a lot today, so I am very anxious to go back tomorrow!

WEEK ELEVEN- Daily Log: Wednesday, May 9, 2007

• Today was a very hot day, and I became even more hot when I got to St. Andrew's, because their air conditioning is not being used yet. It was torture being in that stuffy building! But the school is working through its problems and keeping the lights off so as to conserve energy. When I first got to my placement today, I looked through the lesson plans to see what I would be doing. Today the students would be working on an acitivity in their cahiers.


• When class time came around I brought some work that I would be handing back to the kids. Mme. Mercer assigned them page 58 in their cahiers. Their job was to identify what the bizarre meal was out of three; for example, which one doesn't fit in, mushroom soup, vegetable soup, or pizza soup (except they were in french). The activity also incorporated the lesson that I had been teaching the class; partitives. They were then supposed to make their own bizarre meal that could include anything they wanted. This proved to be really fun because the kids went all out. Some made meals such as sock pizza, and shrimp ice cream. I handed out the paper they would need to make their good copies. They had to draw and label their meal. I walked around the classroom and answered any questions that the kids had. Most of the class handed in this work, but those who did not finish had to take it home for homework.


• During planning time I marked the work that the students had handed in during class. I had to mark based on effort, appearance of their drawing and the correct use of the partitive. After I marked the activities, I recorded them in the markbook. I made sure that I let Mme. Mercer know I will not be here tomorrow due to my aunt's funeral. All of the teachers in my department gave me a card concerning my aunt's death and I really appreciate this. It made me feel a lot better! I worked for three and a half hours today.

WEEK ELEVEN- Daily Log: Tuesday, May 8, 2007

• Today was a very fun day because I continued to teach the classes. When I first got to my placement I got right to work going over today's lesson and the activities we will be doing. Mme. Mercer made up a sort of game for the students to apply what they had learned yesterday. I then looked over the pages they would be working on in class today, in order to prepare myself for any questions or concerns the students may have.


• When class time rolled around I made my way to the afternoon classes and lead them through their prayer, the date, and the weather. Mme. Mercer then told them what pages to work on, and I walked around the class to help out in any way I could. Some students were having trouble grasping the concept, and so I used a more hands on way to teach them. They seemed to understand what I was saying after a while.


• I then started to prepare for the game. I started by placing sixteen flashcards on the blackboard ledge and numbering them by 5's all the way to eighty. I then told them to make a cheatsheet in their notebooks by writing down all the names of the food on the flashcards with the right article (ex. le, la, les). Once they did this, I took it up with them to make sure we were all on the same page. I then split the class in two teams and told them to put their heads on their desks. I handed out little flashcards containing some grammar. The point of the game was that two people go up to compete, and whoever says the food with the right partitive gets a point. The kids really got into it, and this made me laugh because they really cared about winning, and it also showed their initiative to learn.


• During planning time I was asked to take down some artwork from a bulletin board in the hall. I was then asked to put more of the grade eight awards on display in a glass case in the hall. My final task of the day was to help Mme. Mercer and Mme. Colonna cut out some laminated artwork and game cards. I worked for three and a half hours today.

WEEK ELEVEN- Daily Log: Monday, May 7, 2007

• Today was a very hard day for me because it was filled with situations that required me to explain my aunt's death. I saw going to co-op as a way to cheer me up because the kids always seem to brighten my day. Today was a very special day for me because I was supposed to teach a lesson today. I was sure to tell Mme. Mercer that I will not be at my co-op placement on Thursday due to the fact that my aunt's funeral will be held on that day. She was very understanding and even said that I could stay home on Friday if I need to spend time with family. I will decide this later on in the week.


• I was very excited to teach a lesson, and I spent the lunch recess preparing. I went through the lesson plans I made last week, and talked to Mme. Mercer about what I should do. I then went to the first class during recess, where I proceeded to write their dictee words on the board. They will have a dictee on Friday, and they had to find out what the english word was for each word, and then we took it up.


• I then introduced today's lesson by writing the grammar on the board as well as handing out a sheet containing the grammar and examples. I made sure that I was very interactive with the class to encourage them to listen and learn. This time, I made a mental note to choose both boys and girls at an even rate, and I believe that I succeeded. I am very aware of this now. After explaining the lesson, I did a brief activity having to do with the flashcards I had made. They were to tell me the word in french, with the correct partitive. I then showed them the pages they had to complete in their cahiers, and made sure they all understood it.


• I found that I was way more comfortable in the second class because I was more comfortable with the lesson and myself. I am very proud of myself for doing my best and actually teaching the students something new. It gave me a great feeling in doing this. For the rest of the afternoon, Mme. Mercer and I discussed what we would be doing for tomorrow's lesson. I worked fore three and a quarter hours today.

WEEK TEN- Weekly Journal

I had a great week this week because I got to do a lot of new things, and prepare the lesson I will be doing on Monday. I feel angry on the job when I feel as if I can't get through to the students. I get very frustrated when they don't listen to me like they do Mme. Mercer, but I know that Mme. Mercer has a lot more experience and gets a lot more respect from the students. Other than that, I don't really get angry on the job because I love it so much and work through any challenges I come across. I am not an angry person, and I feel that it would take away from my hard work and learning. When I can't get the job done fast enough I just work through it slowly so that I do it correctly. I know when I can't do something fast enough, and so I do it as fast and efficiently as I can. I don't want to do something fast, and end up doing it wrong, so I just work through things at my own pace, and Mme. Mercer knows this. I usually don't have to do things in a specific time limit; I just task as long as it will take so that I do the best I can do.
Some "Joe" jobs I have to do at co-op are cleaning and organizing storage rooms and cabinets, typing out activities, photocopying various things, laminating sheets, and marking and recording different assignments. I do jobs for different teachers as well if Mme. Mercer is not there or doesn't have anything for me to do. I am never not busy, and am always doing little jobs around the school. I like doing a lot of little jobs because they keep me busy and make the time go by fast. My workplace is full of humour because the teachers are all very funny. Mme. Mercer has a great sense of humour and always finds ways to make me crack up. She is very laid back and funny, and this puts me at ease so that I can do the best I can at work. All the teachers are personable and find ways to make learning fun for the class.
When I'm nervous or unsure about something I always confirm and consult with Mme. Mercer. She always seems to put me at ease. She gives me suggestions on different things and offers some helpful advice. I gave a little quiz to the class this week, and we took it up as well. After the quiz, Mme. Mercer gave me some constructice criticism that she said she was given in her earlier years. She told me that when we were taking up the quiz, I was choosing all male students to give there answers. I did not even realize what I was doing, and was quite shocked when she told me this. I wasn't intending to do this, it just so happened that all the male students were putting their hands up to answer. I have to be more conscious about who I choose to answer questions. I may start to pick students in a boy-girl order, just to be sure.
A problem I solved this week was being more stern with the students. I made sure that I kept the students on task and showed them that I am a teacher as well. When I worked with groups this week, I was sure to keep them on task. Sometimes the conversation would drift from what they were working on, but I was there to redirect them. Overall, this week was very fun, and I learned a lot of new things. My weekend has not be the best, however. My aunt had been fighting cancer, and she passed away yesterday evening. I am not doing so well, and I realize that I will be away at least one day this week to attend her funeral and be with family. I will be sure to notify Mme. Mercer on Monday.

WEEK TEN- Daily Log: Friday, May 4, 2006

• Today was a lot of fun because I had a chance to really focus on planning the lesson I will be starting on Monday. Before starting my planning I had to do a few things for Mme. Mercer. First, I had to mark a couple more grade seven book reports on Vacances a la Western. I was then to jot down the activities I am planning for next week so that Mme. Mercer knows what to do with her morning class. I included the games I wanted to play next week, as well as the activities they will be doing from their cahiers. After I completed this Mme. Colonna asked me to photocopy a few activities for her class as well.


• When class time rolled around, I brought the flashcards so I could work on them. I wanted to put numbers on the back of each one for a game I wanted to do with the students next week. In class today the students presented the skits they had been working on all week. They were generally very good and they impressed both Mme. Mercer and I. After they presented, they had to do page 65 in their cahiers. The activity was that they had to buy a full meal (main course, dessert, beverage) for three members of their family as well as themselves, by choosing from a menu in their workbooks. The catch was that their costs had to total 55 dollars; no more and no less. They worked very hard, and some were getting very frustrated with themselves, but it showed immense motivation on their part. I walked around and helped them as much as I could without giving answers; I helped them use the dictionary and assisted them in others areas as well.


• During planning time Mme. Mercer and I went down to the office where Mme. Mercer wrote some announcements for Monday. I learned about some interesting events taking place at St. Andrew's such as the Amazing Race (a Health and Wellnes competition between the teachers of Halton). We then came back upstairs where we went over the lesson plans for next week. She verified some of the things I had planned and also made some suggestions. We made some photocopies for my lesson, and we seem to be ready. I am very exicted for teaching and I can't wait! I took home the cahier so I can go over the activities and be completely prepared for next week. I worked for three and a half hours today.

WEEK TEN- Daily Log: Thursday, May 3, 2007

• Today was a very off-beat day because we did not go to class due to the musical. My day started off kind of shaky because I had to skip my lunch period. Due to the fact that there was a very long mass at Holy Trinity today, I had to sign out of second period (I had already been signed out by Ms. R. because I read in the mass, but verified this with Mr. Aresta) and go right to my placement while eating my lunch on the way.


• I got to St. Andrew right on time and finished my lunch very fast. My first task was to make thirty copies of two activities. I then made some photocopies using the risograph for Mme. Colonna. I had to make them back and front, so I had to find a way to do this. I ended up just printing one side, then feeding the same pages into the risograph so the other side got printed on.


• Today is the finale of the musical, so the whole afternoon was dedicated to perfecting the play in the form of a dress rehersal. We brought the kids from each of the french classes down to the gym to watch the play, as well as perform. The play is really good, and I think that they will be amazing this evening.


• When the play finished I helped Mme. Mercer clean out Mrs. Malizia's office cabinets. I labelled some materials, and brought them to the storage room. I also brought down some old mugs and plates to the staffroom. I worked for three and a half hours today.

WEEK TEN- Daily Log: Wednesay, May 2, 2007

• I have noticed that the days have started to fly by, and the weeks are just speeding through. In about two months time, the school year will be over, and I think that thought has come across all of the students at St. Andrew. Today the first thing I did was hole-punch the activities that I had photocopied yesterday. I then organized them and put them into the file that Mme. Mercer wanted me to.


• Before class Mme. Mercer wanted me to make a numbers activity for her two afternoon classes. I had to pick any fifteen numbers from one to fifty. When we got to class I told the students to get a piece of paper out on their desk. I explained that I would say the number in french, and they would have to write the actual number. Some students were confused, but most caught on and got the job done. All in all the activity went well, and most seemed to get perfect or close to.


• The students the continued to work on the skits they will be presenting tomorrow. Mme. Mercer clarified that they would have to finish today in class because they will not have any time tomorrow. I took a different group into the hall with me today, and in the first class, they had some trouble getting their work done. However the second class's group worked very well and managed to finish the skit. I helped them look up words, be creative, and clarify any misunderstandings they came across. Mme. Mercer also advised them to bring props for their presentation.


• During planning time I made another numbers activity for the students, except this time the numbers would range from twenty to sixty. They will most likely do this activity tomorrow. I then did some photocopying for Mme. Colonna. For the rest of the afternoon I thought about my lesson, and worked on thinking up some games and activities to help the students learn the concept. I worked for three and a half hours today.

WEEK TEN- Daily Log: Tuesday, May 1, 2007

• I really enjoyed working at my placement today because I did a variety of tasks that involved me walking around as well as working at a desk. The first task I was asked to complete today was to help the Yearbook Committee. They had been working on finishing up the little personal blurbs about each of the graduating students. The blurbs included their name, nickname, pet peeve, favourite quote and probable career, and will appear beside their graduation photo. My job was to help type up the rest of the blurbs in size ten arial font, on a 6 cm wide template. I then printed all of them out and left them on Mme. Mercer's desk.


• My next job was to go to the afternoon classes. The kids were presenting the skits that they had been preparing yesterday. Mme. Mercer then turned the tables when she said that they would now have to write their own french skit. Mme. Mercer allowed me to choose a group and bring them out into the hall where I could give them some one on one assistance with their skits. I took out Reanne, Maria, and Laura. I helped them decide the content of their skit, and some grammar.


• Once class had ceased, Mme. Mercer wanted me to do some photocopying for Ms. Dover, who has been really busy of late. St. Andrew has been very busy with the musical, and that has required most of the attention of the staff and students. Opening night for the musical is tonight, so everyone is on edge. So to help out, I photocopied about ten copies of one sheet, and seventy of the other. I then had to track down Mrs. Cioccio to ask her about some religious symbols.


• I was very busy today, and I got some news that disturbed me and most of the staff. A case of lice was found, and I am now very uneasy about the situation. I am keeping my hair up and trying not to contaminate myself. I hope that I don't get lice!!! Talk about a safety issue! I worked for three and a half hours today.