What you might see if you walked into my classroom:
Students in a circle conducting a Socratic seminar over the reading of Chapter 3.
Charles, Maria and Jose going over to look at Michael’s neat web page using frames and asking, how did you do that?
A video camera on my shoulder interviewing Sue Ellen about her learning as I guide her through numerous re-takes to get the right answer.
A group of students at “The Table” trying to figure out the data definition to find the distance to zero from the origin. A class joining “The Table” to solve the same problem.Tony going to the overhead to lead the discussion to solve the problem.Tony walking out of my room saying, I understand now because I was at the overhead and did it.
Derrick getting very upset because I will not give him the answer and saying, I want to drop this course. Derrick the next week when the pendulum turned and he got it.
Students in the cafeteria cleaning up trash, another taking digital pictures. All this to teach a lesson on computer ethics under the guidance and idea of Asif.
My special needs student saying, I am going to e-mail you now Mrs. North. Go check your e-mail for my question. You see, he wants my undivided attention and he has learned to be patient and write his questions.
My shy student Sobia finally asking and answering her question, and all the boys wondering where has she been. (My classes are 90% male.)
Students presenting their web pages to be critiqued by the rest of the students. Student looking at their evaluations and correcting the grammar and design to make it better. Student presenting their work again, again and again.
Ayodele saying on the last day of class with a gleam in his eye and pride in his voice, “Gee, I did a good job. Look at where I started and look at where I finished.”
Mrs. North playing baroque music and taking students back in time to kindergarten where they sang the A,B, C's and counted while they jumped rope, all to learn the concept of scalar data types. Then the students saying it is nap time and asking their teacher to read a book. Of course I have the "Giving Tree" by Shel Silverstein in my closet for reading time.
Roberto behind the camera video taping the presentations and learning to set up the camera for his fourth period teacher. Roberto the next day after having been big man on the totem pole as cameraman in his Spanish class.
Mrs. North with her sock over her shoe and her shirt on backward teaching the mathematical order of operations.
Students dancing to music to show their choreographed computer program using control structures – loops and conditionals.
Jeffrey saying my brain hurts, you are making us think too much.
Mrs. North sitting in her little green stole checking off homework. You see, this way they have to face up to lack of work and they have the opportunity to ask individual questions.
Arpit reading his on-line final exam which said, "In this class not only have we learned the codes to developing a wonderful web page, we have also learned some of the necessary morals and ethics that our parents have implemented in us. The criterion that we covered I myself have never covered in any other class. Ms. North, taught us what we needed to know about computers, but more, about life. All her students were living in the real world in her class, and in its true nature has taught us the most about Computer Ethics."
Mrs. North just having a good time, because, if it is not fun teaching, it is not fun learning.