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Reflection of Today:

Special Education #303: Materials & Methods for Students with Mild Disabilities is so far one of my most valued courses.  It put into perspective the ideas of backward design in order create a specific plan for teaching to meet the Standards and Benchmarks for  a specific unit.  It taught me how to look toward the future and plan the present in an inclusive classroom setting in order to meet the needs of all students.  A critical point in this course is assessment of students and the importance of criterion based assessment to determine truly what and how a student knows, learns and retains.  I feel in order to be an effective teacher, I must research and utilize many tools in order to reach my goals as well as that of my students.  Learning never stops - it only gets better.  I want to become one of the better teachers.

Reflection of the Past:

November 11, 2002 Ms. Debbi Emergent Literacy Reflection #7 Children's Cartoon  From time to time I have watched in part a cartoon called Recess on ABC’s Kids on Saturday and Sunday mornings.  For this assignment, I sat down and really watched this cartoon.  The title of the cartoon was “One Stayed Clean.”  It is a very well written cartoon series about 4th graders.  The stories always have a real life, non-violent, moral values to teach young children approximately Elementary school aged.  The characters in this culturally diverse school setting are the tall, lanky, highly intelligent, stuffy nose, analytical,  red-headed girl with glasses and braids;  the short, bossy, tomboy with pigtails who always wears a knit cap; the tall heavy set awkward yet extremely nice boy; the slender good looking athlete; the “average Joe” who is popular and basically the “brains” of the bunch who always has an answer or solution to any problems that may arise with the group and the new kid, a son of a military commander, who is short, with glasses, a crew cut with great manners and not a mean bone in his body.  The story line is about picture day at the school.  All the kids are dressed up, hair neatly combed or curled, nice clothes and clean.  The boy whose dad is in the military has never been at a school long enough to have his class picture taken so this is a very exciting, yet scary day.  He and his father want picture day to be perfect.  It seems the 4th graders are the last to have their picture taken, so this is very stressful, especially during recess.  It seems there is this 5th grade bully who wants to ruin their pictures by trying to get them dirty by throwing mud balls at the kids.  Slowly but surely he manages to victimize each child one by one.  Finally he is after the last two children - the military son, of course and the “average Joe.”  The bully is waiting behind the bleachers to attack them with mud balls while they are on their way to the bleachers for their class picture to be  taken.  The new kid is encouraged  by his new friends to hurry up and run to line up while the “average Joe” stays behind to take care of the situation.  The new kid hesitates and re-evaluates his position on this bully problem – should he go get his picture taken or should he stand up to the bully beside his new friend?  Well, needless to say, as the military dad is looking at his sons first class picture, he brags how proud he is stating “That's my boy the one with mud all over him just like the rest.”  The one who stayed clean, the “average Joe!”   What a great story of friendships both old and new.  It expresses the idea of how well children do in a group of friends and how they stick up for each other when the going gets tough.  Finally a children's cartoon with issues dealing with friends, non-violence and true rewards in life.

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