Veena Vasudevan

Today was my first lesson, actually my first formal teaching experience and it was probably one of the most challenging things I've ever done. Six young women looking at me expectantly wondering why they were there and trying to figure me out. My co-teacher and I trying to figure out how to work together on the fly while moving through a lesson that I only felt partially comfortable about. The general outline was: ice breaker, charting norms, Girl Scout Law & Promise, Media Walkabout, Learning Camera Moves and then the friendship circle.I started the lesson asking each of the girls to share something about themselves. They were seated in a semi-circle and myself and my co-teacher sat in the circle as well. They each responded but didn't elaborate or explain when prompted for more details. Then, I tried to start a discussion on how we could work together over the next 10 weeks and what our group norms should be. The girls were really quiet and didn't seem like they wanted to share so I ended up using their names to call on them to solicit responses. Afterwards, I introduced the girls to the Girl Scout law and the promise and we recited both, as is customary at the beginning of a GS meeting. As a way to transition into the main goal of this lesson, I talked to the girls about media - what is it? what does it mean? What does it look like? Trying to have a discussion proved challenging, so I again called on the girls and also used some questions like "how many of you checked email today, what about facebook, did anyone watch television?" I think this helped to make some connections but ultimately wasn't the information exchange I had wanted. Then, it was time for them to do what the Girl Scout curriculum called a "media walkabout" where the girls were supposed to look at evidence of media in their environment. In this case, it was the classroom and eventually the hallway. I explained the activity, broke the girls up into pairs and asked them to start working but quickly realized, as I circulated that what they were really doing was writing down all the brands but not really understanding what I wanted them to do which was to observe all the places where media was present(e.g. the use of media like signs, flat screens, posters on classroom walls).The girls enjoyed the activity because it got them up and walking around but as far as understanding why we had done it and how it was connected to the bigger picture, I missed the boat. We ended with the Girl Scout friendship circle. We went around and asked the girls to reflect on what they liked about today and what they were looking forward to for next week. Most of the girls responded that they enjoyed the walkabout but one student just plainly and respectfully said "I don't think today was very interesting and hope next week is better." At the end, I was exhausted and unfulfilled. I wanted to get them excited and energized about this class but realized I hadn't really provided enough supports/context to make this happen. I can only imagine their frustration and confusion at the end of our 90 or so minutes together. I also realized we hadn't even gotten close to getting to the other activity that was planned, which was about learning camera moves.I recorded my immediate observations of the lesson on the train ride home. Here they are raw and unedited:Positives

I am comfortable with kids and can manage around them
I'm able to give instructions and have some instincts about classroom management
I treated the kids with respect
I was somewhat agile about making adjustments to what we were doing based on feedback
I learned their names quickly

Areas for Development

Preparation devoid of knowing students is not that helpful, most of what I had planned fell flat except the media walkabout
I did not ask enough specific or higher order questions
My lesson felt disconnected from the larger goal in some ways
I did not include checks for understanding but did include checks for mood
Some norms I forgot to include: sharing our feelings/ thoughts / opinions in an honest way is a good thing
I didn't know just how to deal with X student who was talking/ distracting and I think in general terms would be characterized as displaying behavior issues
Having a discussion was really challenging, the girls either didn't feel comfortable or I hadn't provided enough context Other observations- The girls are into music, cooking, animals, how can we incorporate some of their interests? Here is the e-mail I wrote to my co-teacher after the session:Hi there! Thanks for your support today during and after class! I'm still reflecting on today's lesson and how I can learn for next week. One thing I realize is that there is way more teacher talk (from me!) than necessary. I'm going to work really hard to focus on bringing out the student voice like you mentioned.The girl scout model is supposed to be.. "I do, we do, you do" and imagining you guys have a similar approach, so I will be conscious of that next week.