Katie Lane

Lesson Presentation Discussion

            I presented a lesson on the history of FFA to two classes at Franklin High School. I used a power point to present the lesson followed by a game to reinforce the lesson. In my first class there were ten students and in the second there were seven. I was pleased to teach my lesson to such a small group since I was very nervous. The students were very well behaved and took notes over the lesson to help them with the memory game. Although I was not discussing the most interesting topic, the students listened to the presentation and answered questions that I asked them.

            Before I got started teaching, I was very nervous and anxious. Once the students were settled into class and I started teaching, the nerves faded away. Preparation was the key to being successful in this endeavor. I had a lesson, a game and a quiz ready for the students so there wouldn’t be extra time for them to get rowdy and loud. Overall the lesson went really well, the students were very receptive, well behaved and seemed to really comprehend the lesson. The students were very well behaved and sat quietly in their desks the entire time. Even when students were in pairs playing the game, they were still very polite and quiet.

            The only problem I experienced was when the students played the game I had prepared; there were a few mistakes with the cards. I should have taken a little more time going over the game and made sure that the definitions were clear and the cards all had matches. The lesson was long enough to leave time for the game but not too long to have students lose their interest. The kids really liked having a fun activity to reinforce the lesson; the game was a great way for me to know that they had listened without having to give them a quiz. The students were very receptive to the game and seemed to get a lot from it. At first they had to look at their notes a lot but by the end they were able to play without them. During the lesson I asked the students questions and they were very quick to answer and for the most part answered them correctly.

            I really enjoyed this experience and believe that it will be the most helpful task we completed for this class. I was very nervous about student teaching, but after this I feel completely different. I am excited to develop lessons which will engage and excite my students and give them many varied opportunities to learn. I also learned that students are all in all reasonably well behaved; they should be given the benefit of the doubt and should be treated equally and fairly. This opportunity dispelled all the fears that I had and helped me to get really excited about student teaching.