food/activity journal reflection

I thought that the idea of the keeping a food journal and activity journal was going to really helpful experience for starting a healthy summer.  But, when I began to keep both journals I found that I was extremely unhealthy, and hardly active at all.  I did not eat nearly enough fruits and vegetables, and my water intake was pathetic.  The first week I did not feel so bad about this, because I was going to set a goal the next week and taadaa!...A new healthier me! It was not the case.  I did start to eat more fruits and veggies the second week, and I did drink less soda.  But, my activity level did not budge at all.  I found it very difficult to find that time to exercise.  Whenever I did have a free moment I used it to either relax for a few minutes, or hang out with friends.  I think that when I get into the classroom bringing a healthy lunch as a good example for my students is going to important.  My parents were very good at keeping healthy foods in the house, but now as an adult I need to leave the fast food industry behind!  When I was able to see good examples of healthy eating it was easy for me to eat the same way.  But, whenever I was around people (especially in college) who ate poorly, it was easiest for me to just eat whatever they ate too. 

I think it is very important to get students at least thinking about the things they are putting into their bodies, and the amount of physical activity they are participating in.  I was also thinking that setting classroom goals would be a good motivator to get the student wanting to live a healthier life.  For example, "This week are all going to try and eat a healthy snack at snack time".  Or, "At recess we are all going to try and play a game of..."  Have little manageable goals will allow the students to see that they are capable of making changes in their own lives, one small step at a time.

I think that this activity can led itself to many other fields.  With writing and English we could easily think about the things we eat and write reflective journals like we did in the this class, and we could also read about different ways that food helps our bodies (skin, heart, bones, etc).  I also think that it would be a fun way to incorporate geography.  Thinking about the different kinds of foods that other cultures eat, and how they impact their bodies, and maybe even being able to try new foods that some of the students have not yet been exposed to.  I think that this is a fun activity that really makes you reflect on how you treat your body and makes you want to do better, even if it is just one small step at a time.

Brain teasers!

I had so much fun playing with the brain teasers.  I thought it was a great way to get students interested in more complex subjects of the brain.  I think I need to spend some time and think about other ways to incorporate brain teasers into the class that might not have to do specifically with the body and health.  I can see how it is the most applicable with health classes, but I think that this is a great hook to get students interested in class, and get their brains thinking critically in a positive fun way.  Great activities!

teaching sex-ed

This was a topic that I did not think much about, because I did not know anything about it.  I was very unsure just how to approach this subject.  I did not know what we were allowed to teach, and what were topic that were totally taboo.  I found that teaching sex education through other means such as dissecting flowers, and looking at beans was a good starting point.  I like the idea of showing the students the purpose and result of flowers and reproductions and then letting them think about how that might apply to them.  Then, that could lead into the conversation of human reproduction etc.  I liked being about to see different ways to approach this subject.  :)

Mr. Yuk Box

I had so much fun playing and learning about the Mr. Yuk Box.  I thought that the box provided many useful tools to help control and inform our students and children about toxins and poisons in the house and classroom.  The candy and medicine activity was a good way to help the students really think about what they are putting into their body.  I liked how there were candies and medications that both had words, fruity flavors, and colors that could almost be interchangeable and see how the students react to these factors.  I would love to bring the Mr. Yuk Box into my classroom.

Abuse and Neglect

Wow! I thought as new teachers we already had a lot on our plates, and then we had Thursday's lecture.  I knew going into this program that I would be required to report child abuse to CPS, but I was not fully aware of the consequences.  I find it incredibly difficult to determine if the child is being abused, or if they are just kids being kids.  I would feel so terrible if I reported a case of abuse and there was nothing to it, but on the other hand my job and felony record is on the line.  The fine line of this situation makes our job very tricky. 

GLEs/EALRs

We looked over all the GLEs for all grade levels for health.  I thought it was very interesting the way the GLEs and EALRs built upon themselves and began to get more in-depth as the years went on.  From first grade safety, thinking about strangers and healthy bodies, to 8th grade, thinking about sexually transmitted diseases and taking care of themselves.  I like actually being able to see the progression of the grades and how each grade level approaches the subject of safety. 

Also I thought the microteaching groups that went on Wednesday were extremely helpful.  I like being able to see how a 1st grade lesson could be taught and the appropriate language to use.

what we eat

Before I started the Grocery Store Research I was sure that most of the cereal directed at kids were going to be full of sugar and were going to be far less healthy than cereals directed to adults.  I was wrong.  When looking at the labels I found that all cereals were about the same in sugar content and nutritional value, with some outliers.  I was shocked.  I am not one to usually read labels on my food, but I think I really need to start.  The food journal that we started on Tuesday should help me start this process.

relay race

We started our class last Thursday with a relay race.  The relay race was a way to start a lesson on bones. It was a good way to get the students excited about a new subject and also allows them to learn outside the classroom.  I liked this approach to starting a new unit.  This activity helped me think about the importance of hook, and the value of getting the students actively engaged with the material.

After we did the race we came back into the classroom and discussed lesson plans.  Looking at the GLEs and EARs with a group to start was very helpful.  I was glad to see how many different EARs can be covered in a single lesson.  I was concerned about hitting all the different EARs that are required in a year.  It seemed overwhelming, so going over this aspect of lessons plans in class was reassuring. 

journal #1

Today we discussed the importance of all types of health issue that need to be addressed in class.  Health is not just about physical health, but also about mental and emotional health. I think the most important thing I got from class was the first activity; the concept map.  I hope to get lots of different ideas about community building and initial engaging ideas to any subject that I will teach (in this case health). 

I feel like I will need more practice with concept maps until I will feel comfortable using it my own classroom, but I think it can be an effective tool to see the growth of students from the beginning to the end of a project.  Not only does it allow the students to show what they know, but also how it all connects.  I can see how the concept map could potentially be chaotic, but I also think that it is a good way for all students to be included and have an input. It will also help fill in gaps that other students may not have been thinking of.  For example, in my group's concept map we forgot about issues such as anorexia and bulimia.  But, seeing and hearing other groups we will be able to think about different ideas and subjects at the end of the quarter when we revisit our initial ideas.