Thought and done. The week started as I expected. When we went to class with group B2, my tutor had forgotten her textbook in the department, so she asked me if I could start the class alone while she was going to look for it. Myself in front of 16 students for the first time, deep breath, a rush of energy coming up from my stomach and go! My tutor was out of the class for around 15 minutes, during which we started to do some new exercises all together in class. What a dynamic! The kids were very motivated and willing to participate all the time, even those girls who always speak non-stop were trying to answer their best. Loud voice, high intonation and very clear pronunciation, this all came by itself. Expression and non-verbal language came out from inside naturally too. The experience was extraordinary, as if I had been doing it all my life. When my tutor came in the class, my mouth was totally dry from the excitement and the unexpected circumstances I had been gone through. At the end of the class, my tutor suggested me to prepare the following class if I had enjoyed this experience. More than welcome, how could I refuse such an invitation!
And so it has been. I have been one whole lesson in front of 16 students on my own, while my tutor was observing me, taking some recordings of the experience and enjoying my class sitting at the back of the classroom. I have started with an introductory presentation, as it was my first full class. In this presentation I have asked them for their participation whenever they had any question, insisting on putting up their hands anytime they wanted to speak. I have tried to humanize me too, as it was my first class as a teacher ever, just in case they observed I was nervous: because I was. And my mouth, it was dry again. But it has only been during the first five minutes. After that, all has gone smoothly. The objective of the class was the students learnt the difference between the past simple and the past continuous, so I have started presenting this grammar point together view a review of the present simple and the present continuous too. As in the previous class, loud voice, high intonation, clear pronunciation and corporal expression have come out alone in a natural way, I have not had to worry much about this. I was confident with the issue I as teaching too, so this all has been very positive to be able to focus more on the students needs than in my own teaching procedures and strategies: In the middle of my explanations, among grammar and examples I have been writing in the blackboard, all of a sudden, when I have turned around, I have seen they were all very serious. I got a thrill coming out form the inside. Being such a social and dynamic class, I have thought I was boring them. But, then, I have realized their eyes were wide open looking at the blackboard, with complete concentration analyzing all what I had just written on the blackboard. The students were paying attention to me! The dynamic of the class was working. Therefore, I have decided to concentrate on the objective of the lesson and making sure all the students were understanding my explanations. I have approached to them and asked them if they had any doubts while they were doing some exercises (especially to those I know they have a lower level of English and have more difficulties to follow the classes). When we have corrected them, asking one by one and in sitting order, I have noticed all of them had understood this grammar point correctly: objective achieved!
At the end of the class, my tutor has informed she was very satisfied with the development of the class. The only thing to mention was about how to keep the girls at the back of the class quiet and silent during the exercises. All the rest had run perfect.
After the experiences of this week with group B2, my tutor and I have had a meeting to speak about the didactic unit I will have to implement with group D2. Their next unit will be about the present perfect and the difference with the past simple, as well as the use of related words such as already, since, for, during, ever, just, yet, etc. She has made some suggestions to me. Then, I have come out with the idea of using Jules Verne’s character Willy Fog and a power point with photographs of different countries of the world as the starting point for my lesson plan. I still have to organize it all, but at least I know where to start from. And I must admit it has not been easy. On the other hand, my tutor has suggested carrying out an activity, which would be very useful for both me and our D2 students: doing a presentation of both my student and professional life in the next class would let me feel more confident with group D2 before implementing my didactic unit. At the same time, it could be very encouraging for them to keep on working hard and to make them understand the importance of learning languages nowadays. It has been in fact an excellent suggestion, so no doubt I will be implementing this next week!
And so it has been. I have been one whole lesson in front of 16 students on my own, while my tutor was observing me, taking some recordings of the experience and enjoying my class sitting at the back of the classroom. I have started with an introductory presentation, as it was my first full class. In this presentation I have asked them for their participation whenever they had any question, insisting on putting up their hands anytime they wanted to speak. I have tried to humanize me too, as it was my first class as a teacher ever, just in case they observed I was nervous: because I was. And my mouth, it was dry again. But it has only been during the first five minutes. After that, all has gone smoothly. The objective of the class was the students learnt the difference between the past simple and the past continuous, so I have started presenting this grammar point together view a review of the present simple and the present continuous too. As in the previous class, loud voice, high intonation, clear pronunciation and corporal expression have come out alone in a natural way, I have not had to worry much about this. I was confident with the issue I as teaching too, so this all has been very positive to be able to focus more on the students needs than in my own teaching procedures and strategies: In the middle of my explanations, among grammar and examples I have been writing in the blackboard, all of a sudden, when I have turned around, I have seen they were all very serious. I got a thrill coming out form the inside. Being such a social and dynamic class, I have thought I was boring them. But, then, I have realized their eyes were wide open looking at the blackboard, with complete concentration analyzing all what I had just written on the blackboard. The students were paying attention to me! The dynamic of the class was working. Therefore, I have decided to concentrate on the objective of the lesson and making sure all the students were understanding my explanations. I have approached to them and asked them if they had any doubts while they were doing some exercises (especially to those I know they have a lower level of English and have more difficulties to follow the classes). When we have corrected them, asking one by one and in sitting order, I have noticed all of them had understood this grammar point correctly: objective achieved!
At the end of the class, my tutor has informed she was very satisfied with the development of the class. The only thing to mention was about how to keep the girls at the back of the class quiet and silent during the exercises. All the rest had run perfect.
After the experiences of this week with group B2, my tutor and I have had a meeting to speak about the didactic unit I will have to implement with group D2. Their next unit will be about the present perfect and the difference with the past simple, as well as the use of related words such as already, since, for, during, ever, just, yet, etc. She has made some suggestions to me. Then, I have come out with the idea of using Jules Verne’s character Willy Fog and a power point with photographs of different countries of the world as the starting point for my lesson plan. I still have to organize it all, but at least I know where to start from. And I must admit it has not been easy. On the other hand, my tutor has suggested carrying out an activity, which would be very useful for both me and our D2 students: doing a presentation of both my student and professional life in the next class would let me feel more confident with group D2 before implementing my didactic unit. At the same time, it could be very encouraging for them to keep on working hard and to make them understand the importance of learning languages nowadays. It has been in fact an excellent suggestion, so no doubt I will be implementing this next week!
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