Teacher

Interview

Key
Interviewed by: Jesy Taylor
Teachers
Date: February 19th, 2016
Responses
Interviewee: Misty Belnap

Time: 3pm

Questions

Asked.
Planning Questions:
How do you write a typical lesson plan?
We teach with the end in mind so we figure out where we are going, and what we
need to do to get there. So we meet Mondays and Wednesdays as a team, during
this time we bring together all of our ideas. We tend to pull from a verity of sources,
to come up with the product that we plan on teaching. When teaching in a team you
are not limited with the materials that you have.
What types of materials do you need available when you plan lessons?
I have the standard course of study on my phone, so it is easy to see what the
objective is. Will use plan books from previous two years ago. Have a lot of games
available for the students to play.
In what ways do you plan to accommodate individual differences in the classroom?
Formative/Summative assessments to see what each child needs, and then we try to
meet the childs needs.

Instructional Questions:
What are some of your instructional challenges as a teacher?
This year is scheduling, trying to find the time to teach a whole group lesson with
everybody in the classroom. I typically have to teach the same lesson 3 or 4 times a
day, with the children in and out of the classroom.
What have been some of your instructional successes as a teacher?
Just building a community with the kids. It makes the children feel safe and secure,
and when the children feel this they will do most anything you ask them to do.
What do you consider essential characteristics for successful teaching?
Being flexible, you have to learn how to go with the flow. You will make mistakes,
but both you and the children can learn from your mistakes so it all works out.
How often do your students receive social studies/science instruction?
Theme centers, Tuesday/Thursday and sometimes Friday mornings. Mix and match
it up. High school students will come in and teach hands on lessons.
Are you satisfied with the amount of time that you currently allot for social
studies/science instruction? Explain.
Yes, if there were more hours in the day it would be nice to teach more. But you
have to do with what you have, but we get about 3 hours a week to teach social
studies and science.
What social studies and science topics/units will be studied during the second week
of my clinical experience?
Finishing up Colonial America then will be starting with the artists. Science will be
the earth solar system.
What are possible goals/objectives I could address for my lessons?

For social studies the competency goal is; the learner will characterize qualities of
good citizenship by identifying people who made a difference in the community and
other social environments. Science will be covering the earth and the solar system,
Math will be fractions, and literacy will be cause and effect leading up to the main
idea.
Do you have any instructional resources that would support these goals/objectives?
Yes I do, I have tons of books that you are more than welcome to look at.

Classroom Management Questions:
What motivation tactics do you use to ensure a desire to learn?
Try to instill intrinsic motivation, do not do pull charts or behavior charts. We want
you to be your best self at all times. Hold children accountable, will phrase children
for doing a good job.
Tell me about the classroom community.
Being with them for two years makes a huge difference. You have to make sure the
children know to be respectful to one another, and that everybody will make
mistakes but it is okay. Thats why pencils have erasers. A lot of times if you ignore
the negative behavior it will go away.
Tell me about the pacing of lessons and interactions in the classroom-use of time-
and other aspects of timewait time, and time using teacher talk and student talk.
What works well with your students?
Mixing it up, students may get bored with the same thing everyday. Will pull
numbers to answer problems so you dont have to worry about students raising
their hands and then I will put the numbers back into the bucket so they dont stop
paying attention. This is so students will always listen and they never know when
they will be called on.

Reflection:
My cooperating teachers responses really shows me that she cares about her
students. She wants them to do well in the classroom as well as life. She does not
believe in behavior charts, at first that took me off guard because I have never heard
of such a thing. Then she explained that if she would have one, that the same
students would be clipping down everyday. She prefers to stress to the children to
be your best everyday, she does so by talking with them before activities about how
the children should act. She also mentioned that as a teacher you have to be flexible,
before she said this I had never thought of it like that. A teacher must go with the
flow, and try their best to give every child the instruction that they deserve. Overall,
the teacher interview opened up an insight on what it is like to be a teacher, and all
the planning that is involved.