I have realized during my time in my internship that I do not give students enough time to get to the correct answer. They sometimes need an extra push but that does not mean that I need to provide them the answers all of the time. According to Melissa Kelly's article "Wait Time and Education," teachers should wait "three to seven seconds" for students to respond to a question. I think what is difficult for me is that I want to fill the empty noise. Those seven seconds feel like a long time. I have been told multiple times that it does not feel that long to students but when it feels like I am being watched I need to fill the noise. It has gotten better throughout the semester but I know that I will need to work on it next semester when I am with students I am unfamiliar with.
One of my students invited me to attend the school play that he was a part of. He was proud of the fact he was in the play and wanted as many people to attend as possible. I was excited to get to see my student in a play for the first time. The play was "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow." I had a feeling of pride any time my student was on stage. The play was a great way for me to realize being a teacher is more than being at school every day and teaching lessons. It is more than trying to get to know students during passing period or when conferencing with them. Being a teacher is also getting to see your students participate in one of their passions and supporting them through the process. I look forward to seeing future students participating in their passions.
One question I want to explore next semester is how to put a positive spin on bad behaviors in the classroom. My MT has warned me of some of the behaviors in one of her hours I am teaching in. She said that they are not bad students but occasionally get off task and start doing things that disrupt the flow. I think I want to test out giving students jobs when they come in each day so they can put their energy into that. If any students like to talk without raising their hands I want to try the strategy of "talking chips." I hope that it will promote more quiet students to participate in discussion as well as help students who enjoy talking to limit what comments need to be made.
As the semester is winding down I look forward to seeing what challenges and triumphs occur during interning full-time.
https://www.thoughtco.com/importance-of-wait-time-8405
