Reflection #8 Music day 1

Honestly, I was kind of dreading class this week. I am one of those people that says they hate singing. I really can't hold a note or stay on beat. I do enjoy listening to music, but I knew that in this class we were going to sing. But I have to say that I ended up really enjoying the class. When we were singing it wasn't about staying on key it was about experiencing music. Music can set a mood for a classroom, it can be used as a teaching tool, or just for fun.
Now that I have experienced this class I am not so afraid of teaching music. Music doesn't have to be about staying in key. I want to pass that on to my students. I want them to use music as a tool to learn, or even just relax. Today we talked about how some students may not be exposed to classical music anywhere besides your class room. I had not really thought about this but it is something I defiantly want to keep in mind. I won't say that I particularly love classical music but I do appreciate it. I hope to even get a little understanding to my students.
As far as planning for the future, I believe I can handle teaching kids songs and fun things like that. But as far as the classical music goes I would like to become more knowledgeable about it. I would also like to brush up on the piano and other things that will help me give my students a variety of ways to teach my students.

Reflection # 7 dance day 2

For the past few years I have been invited to my cousins schools on there dance day or field day to see them dance. Each grade learns dance and presents it. So when I thought about dance in elementary schools this is what I envisioned just a once of year thing. So since we have learned about dance, and including it in your class my whole view has changed. By letting the students experience dance they can internalize the materials they are learning through movements.
As I continue to learn about teaching, and different arts methods I think that dance will be one of my favorite ways to integrate the arts. Its not complicated and I really think the students will love it.
I want my future students to know that dance is more than just something they will do at the end of the year. I want them to know that it is more than choreograpy. I want them to know it is something they can use to experience what they are learning. I want them to know that dance can help them internalize material they maybe learning.

Reflection #6 Dance

Going into this week I thought I knew what we would be doing. I had taken dance when I was younger and remember some of the stuff I learned then. After I got out of class I thought, wow I was so wrong! When I think of dance I think of choreography and dance class. I did not expect to be able to dance a book or feelings. I now know that dance is really important. Not only is it a way for kids to express themselves but it can be away for them to connect with a text or lesson.
As we worked in class I learned that dance is much more than just choreographed moves. There were so may different ways to express dance through different movements. I really enjoyed the activity as we all did our sections of the book then made it into a play. Just having each groups activities work together was a great idea. Going into field this next week I have so many great ideas to incorporate arts into my teachings.
Now what I would like to do is get more comfortable and confident in dance. I will love incorporating it in my class I just want to be able to show my students that it is fun and there is nothing to be self concise about. I think that will be my biggest challenge, but as I continue to use dance I believe it will get much easier.

Reflection #5 Process Drama

I really enjoyed this week! I thought process drama was a lot of fun! My group did a process drama to The Story of Ruby Bridges. I learned so much from my group, how we all look at something and get different ideas and feelings about what is happening in the book. I loved how the use of process drama helps you understand the book in a whole new way. Other groups also taught me a lot, I loved that we all choose different books and each had our own take. I thought it was great that some groups used different props and others just had us imagine. In the future I hope to remember to ask others opinions and get there take to add to my lessons.
I hope to implement all that I have learned about drama in to my teaching! I know it will be hard but I really think it helps the students learn. They can experience the story or information in different ways that they can really think about the lesson and remember so much more!
To prepare for my future class and teaching and integrating creative drama, I would like to take more classes that will help me understand how the students will learn best. I would like to start now including drama in just my little lessons so that I don't forget it is such a great thing!

Reflection #4 Creative Drama

Going into this week, when I thought of drama I thought of a play and acting. I would have never thought of using it in my class for anything else. Now I am able to see that drama is a lot more than just acting in a play. Its about how you think of something, how you can figure out what others may have been thinking and a great teaching tool.
As I begin teaching I think I will use a lot of drama while reading stories, especially when it is a story that I really want the students to understand and think about. I really liked the activities that have the students answering questions as if they were the character.
Students need creative drama because it opens up a whole new way of thinking for them. Integrating drama with other curriculum will help the students process the information from different subjects and help them learn in what maybe a new way to them and help them remember the information taught.