Introductions

Please introduce yourself, let us know a little bit about you, and where you are from.

Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by SOFIA ARMELINIOU on October 7, 2009 at 8:39am

I teach greek language & litterature to teenagers....I would like children love these lessons but I have difficulties...

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Permalink Reply by Mike Snavely on October 7, 2009 at 12:29pm

I am to start student teaching in the Spring and am having great difficulty with all of this technology. I am a bit overwhelmed by it. I am 60 years old and can surf the net, do word, excellent in Excel and pretty good in PowerPoint, but this blogging is getting me down. I can't seem to get the hang of loading videos, can't add my voice to anything and am becoming more and more lost everyday. I will be a Social Studies teacher....is there hope for me?

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Permalink Reply by Maria Alexaki on October 7, 2009 at 3:17pm

Ηi! I am Maria, educator from Greece, Syros. I use to work in a primary school in Syros...but for this year through i'm attending a postgradguate liiterature's program, so I'm away from class...

I'm glad to meet your group...as it's something I've always been searching for...I mean, to communicate and share ideas in the fields of education with other colleagues....

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Permalink Reply by Bajang on October 8, 2009 at 9:02pm

Hello maria...

You work at Primary school in Syros right? Can I have a little bit information about this school because my cousin plan to study there. I hope this is the right place to ask about this Primary School.

Baby Jane

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Permalink Reply by Maria Alexaki on October 12, 2009 at 1:30pm

Are you sure your cousin is coming to Greece for studies ? ...and especially in Syros?

Primary school is a scool for kids from age 7-12. There are six classes in primary education and I am a teacher in one of them each year. Classes have about 20 students each.

But just for this year I am out of a class, because I attend a post graduate program in literature in the University of Athens

Syros is an island of Cyclades, 3 and a half hours away from Athens. What is your cousin going to study in Syros?

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Permalink Reply by Scott Merrick on February 4, 2010 at 5:10am

Hey Maria, I ran a search for Athens and found this post. Please see http://www.classroom20.com/forum/topics/collaboration-in-athens-greece for a discussion forum posting that you might have some thoughts about? Thanks! Scott Merrick in Nashville, Tennessee

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Permalink Reply by Laura Beahan on October 7, 2009 at 4:41pm

Hello everyone! I am Laura Beahan I am currently opening a new school that has the first partnership with the space foundation. I am in Colorado Springs. Some of the struggles(ie nothing works, class sizes of 40+) we are going through are really tough and on top of all of this we are looking forward to starting project based learning in January and I am looking for people that I can help me as I start to develop this unit and work on getting the other science teachers on board with this style of learning.

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Permalink Reply by Michelle Ruggio on October 7, 2009 at 5:18pm

Hi Laura, Check out "Seamless Curriculum" at www.marionbrady.com for ideas! I'm a homeschool mom (Grade 7) and I hope your school isn't a copy of our public school system? I always wondered why teachers didn't use dividers in classrooms and just add a teacher to the room? Maybe sides could alternate...one side handles discussions and the other handles projects? Just an idea from a homeschool mom..with a class size of 1. :) Michelle www.monarchrock.com (My homeschool site has some great science links, and everything on it is FREE.. if that helps?!!)

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Permalink Reply by Laura Beahan on October 8, 2009 at 7:11pm

Michelle. Thank you so much for the link. We are gettng another teacher soon to help with the overcrouding. I have my classroom set up with stations that the students have to visit and they have a lot of hands on. I think homeschooling is harder than teaching in a classroom keep up the good work.

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Permalink Reply by Michelle Ruggio on October 8, 2009 at 9:52pm

Hi Laura: I think that teaching takes a lot of creativity, whether you have a 'learning disabled' child or a 'genius'. I don't personally care for labels, grades, or standards. My main concern is to teach the LOVE of learning and to guide. My son is at the 'genius' end of the spectrum, so he gets bored easily. No matter 'what end of the spectrum' a child is at, once their learning style has been identified (Visual, Auditory, Tactile, etc.) then you proceed to present subject matter in that style. I really can't imagine how this can be done in a class size of 30, unless you do a weekly approach towards each style and maybe then you can sort out the curriculum in a way that fairly addresses each style. I think discussion time should be at the forefront because when kids feel like their opinions matter (at ANY age!) they tend to pay more attention to the teacher's guidance. Of course, in public schools, you really need to have complete cooperation from the parents...so glad I don't have to deal with THAT issue! I think the whole system needs reform and maybe then when those children grow up and become parents our society will have a better chance at intellectual growth. It seems to me that we're seeing more bullying, absenteeism, apathy, and disenchantment in our public schools...I could be wrong, but from what I've seen personally, I prefer to homeschool. The hardest thing about homeschooling (in my opinion) is going UP a grade level each year! It requires an awful lot of research and creative energy. I always worry about 'gaps' in education...that's why I use a more seamless approach...and then I still worry that I'm not doing better and am constantly looking for ways to improve my style...I guess that's why I'm on THIS blog! :) Have a great time setting up your new classroom!

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Permalink Reply by Blair B Swecker on October 7, 2009 at 5:25pm

Hi, I am Blair Swecker form Mechanicsville Virginia. I am attending University of Richmond to get my teaching license after raising my two kids. I currently work with children with multi-categorical special needs and autism. My students are wonderful and hope to have them in my classroom next year. It is just a challenge to take this on much later in life and the support has been wonderful.

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Permalink Reply by Lucian on October 8, 2009 at 10:28am

My name is Lucian and I am teacher and education counselor in Special School Caransebes . I like very much to help and work with my students with special needs . Please vote me here ( see and write the code and vote ) . Here is our website
http://differentbutequaletwinning.webs.com/
A presentation with my students with special needs .