Reflection is Good for the Soul

Through @teachthought I have accepted the challenge of reflecting on my teaching for 30 days and blogging about my thoughts.  Today I will actually be reflecting on days 2 & 3.



Day 2:  Write about one piece of technology that you would like to try this year and why.  

Hmmm....... this is a difficult question.  I consider myself fairly "techie".  I am very fortunate to have a great variety of technology in my classroom.  I have a laptop, 2 student computers equipped with assistive technology, iPads, iPods, SMARTboard, and Document Camera.  So, as you can see, I am not lacking for any technology equipment.  However, I do have some technology skills that I would like to develop this year.  I am actively seeking out further training on developing lessons in SMART tools.  I can utilize SMART Exchange with the best of them, and I can design simple games or single page lessons.  But I would love to design more complex pages that could meet the specific needs of my students with special needs.  I would also like to become more versed in using Google tools.  I know the basics, but I feel there is so much yet to learn.   To any of my "techie" friends out there who might be reading this, if you have any suggestions on training, or any tools I might explore, please let me know!!!  I love to learn!




Day 3:  Discuss one "observation" area that you would like to improve on for your teacher evaluation.

Wow, another good one!  Our district has just implemented a new, fairly complex, evaluation system this year... and to be honest, I am still familiarizing myself with it.  But, I do know that I really want to look at how I assess my special kiddos and how those results look in developing their IEP goals and implementing curriculum.   Assessment has always been a difficult component of working with children with cognitive impairments, however, in the age of NCLB, IDEA, CCSS and the obsession with teacher accountability, there is no escaping assessment, even with my students.  So as I go through the school year I will be doing my research, seeking out the best methods for assessing my students and applying those scores results to my daily instruction.  I'm quite sure THAT is part of our evaluation! :)