Third Hot Reflection Third Period

Describe It was around 11:10 a.m., and I was giving my last teaching practicum to students from the diplomado. I had to teach the modals “should and ought to.” This time I want to focus my attention on a speaking activity I included in the lesson. I gave students some pieces of paper with some problems. The problems were about being a teacher, studying English, the use of cellphones in the class and things like those because I tried to contextualize the activity with the problems they could face in their jobs for making it more interesting for them. They were assigned to work in pairs in a mingle activity because I had noticed that they really liked to work in that way. Then, they had to change partner. The point with the activity was that they practiced the modals I taught in the grammar part because I think that they could practice a lot with that activity. At the end of the class, I could achieve my objective because they enjoyed the activity, and they practiced in a correct way the use of those modals expressing their own ideas, and they felt identified with the problems because they were giving real suggestions. Moreover, they were asking for real advice because they really focused their attention on the problems they sometimes have in their jobs.
(Analyze)		Plan Action
Interpret	Generalize
Including mingle activities was important because students had the opportunity to practice with their classmates and they really liked to share their ideas in that way. Speaking activities are necessary in the classroom because students need to practice the target language. Moreover, they increase their confidence when they produce the language. Contextualizing the activities for making them more attractive for the students is really necessary because they enjoy practicing the target language when they feel identified with the topics they discuss.	Based on what I already know about the importance of providing interactive activities, I think that students need activities in which they feel free to express their ideas without the total control of the teacher. Most of the students have difficulties when they are exposed to talk for the wholes class. I think that the only way they can feel comfortable is by practicing a lot through the speaking activities. I think that it is relevant to contextualize the activities because students need to feel comfortable with the development of the class. That is why the activities have to be about real situations or things that are related to the topic of interest of the group.	So, in the future, I will always provide mingle activities because most of the students like to participate in the activities in which they have the chance to move around the classroom to share with different people. The next time I teach this lesson, I will always include interesting speaking activities for helping my students in all the areas it includes such as pronunciation and fluency. So, in the future, I will always try to give my best with the activities I include in the lesson because I want to make interesting activities to increase students’ participation and learning.

 

Second Hot Reflection Third Period

Describe The topic for my second class with  students from the diplomado was “Present Perfect Tense vs Simple Past Tense.“ This class was amazing since the beginning because I was not nervous since my confidence was really high. I think my attitude was good enough to motivate my students because they could notice my enthusiasm. I want to talk about the third activity I developed because I believe that it was the most important moment in this class. The activity was called “Question cards.” The following steps are the ones I asked my students to follow. First, I asked students to stand up and I gave them a page with many pictures that represented a verb in present tense. Second, I told them they had to ask questions in Present Perfect Tense or Simple Past Tense with the verbs each picture had. The page had two squares with the two ways students could ask. “Have you ever…? And Did you…?” Furthermore, students had to change partners and wait for my instructions because I had to tell them the tense they had to use while asking. I felt satisfied to see the way my students behaved during the activity because they enjoyed the activity a lot, and the were speaking full English and practicing both structures. That activity made my class very communicative and I was very happy to see my students using the language in that way.
(Analyze)		Plan Action
Interpret	Generalize
My confidence, attitude, and enthusiasm increased students´ motivation because they felt involved in the activities since the beginning of my class. They really enjoyed the activity because they are visual and kinesthetic learners who like to perform activities in which they have to walk around the classroom and change partner. Providing activities in which students had the opportunity to interact with others is amazing because they had the chance to increase their confidence while talking with different people.	Based on what I already know about the attitude of the teacher, it is important to consider the best way to increase students´ motivation because it is not possible to achieve if the attitude of the teacher is not the most appropriate to engage students in the lesson. That is why teachers need to be friendly with the students in order to make them learn in a comfortable environment. Most of the students like to share their opinions with their classmates because they feel motivated to express their ideas with people who are studying with them. Moreover, students learn from others and do not feel asked on the spot.	So, in the future, I will have the best attitude while teaching because I want to involve my students in the most comfortable way. Moreover, I will include interesting activities for visual and kinesthetic learners because they really enjoy practicing the target language in this way. The next time I teach this lesson, I will always include mingle activities because students practice the target language a lot, and they enjoy to share with different classmates.

 

First Hot Reflection Third Period

Describe It was around 11:10 a.m., and I was giving my first teaching practicum to students from the diplomado. I was nervous because it was the first time I had to teach them, and I thought it was difficult because they are adults, professionals in different fields, and most of them are teachers. The topic I had to teach was “already and yet”. This time I want to focus my attention on the last activity I developed. I gave students a page with five open questions, and I asked them to talk with a partner. I could notice that they did not know how to start the activity because they did not identify the way they had to answer the questions, so I explained to them in different ways and I responded the questions they had about the vocabulary and pronunciation. In other words, I gave them an idea and many examples they could use to respond, but they forgot them at the moment they were talking with their classmates. That is why I think that I had to write the possible answer of the first question in order to help them because in that way, they could have the opportunity to read the example many times while talking.
(Analyze)		Plan Action
Interpret	Generalize
My decision to provide many examples orally and not in the written form did not help to develop the activity more properly. Giving examples before performing the activities is necessary because they help students when they do not understand what to do. Monitoring helped me provide students with the meaning and pronunciation of new vocabulary, and it was really necessary because they needed to know the correct meaning and pronunciation to talk with the partner.	Writing the examples on the board or providing them in a chart helps students have the chance to look at them at the moment of a semi-controlled activity. Also, it helps visual learners to develop the activities more properly. Most of the students struggle a lot with activities in which they have to read or speak because they do not have a lot of vocabulary or they do not pronounce the words in the appropriate way.	So, in the future, I will always provide an example because I think that students need to listen to the procedure of the activities, but it is easier for them to read an example every time they struggle. The next time I teach this lesson, I will read the material to be used in the class in order to investigate the meanings of new words or the pronunciation because I think that it is important to be prepared. Also, in the class, I will ask students about their doubts so that I clarify any regarding meaning or pronunciation.

 

Third Hot Reflection ( Second Period)

Describe It was around 6:50 am, and I was giving my third teaching practicum to Advanced English II students from the major. I am satisfied because I have given my best to teach in an effective way since the group demanded a lot of preparation. I think that this group helped me to discover new challenges I can achieve because they asked a lot to clarify doubts, or they asked for the meaning of new vocabulary and I believe that it motivated me to overcome my fears to be asked by the students. Every single class I tried to develop different activities to catch students’ attention. That is why I developed the following activity. It is important to mention that the class was related to dreams. First, I provided students with a category list of dreams they could have once in their lives, for example family, food, animals, etc. They had to select one category. Second, I asked students to think about a dream they had and draw three easy pictures on a page to represent it. Then, they had to come to the front one by one to show the pictures while their classmates had to guess the dream the person had and so on. It was really meaningful for students and for me to see the effectiveness of this activity. Students got my directions quickly and drew lines and circles to make easy drawings that could represent their dreams. Then, at the moment they passed to the front, it was rewarding to see and hear them create the story out of the drawings and speak freely to share information with their classmates. That moment made me realize about the friendly environment that was in my class and therefore about the good rapport I had with my students.
(Analyze)		Plan Action
Interpret	Generalize
My interest helped me to enjoy my class because I gave my best to develop every single activity. Moreover, my confidence and attitude facilitated me to make students participate in my class. They felt comfortable to ask when they had doubts about the class or new vocabulary.	Based on what I already know, having a kind manner to teach a lesson helps to obtain a good relationship with the students because they feel motivated to have an active role in the lesson. It happens because the teachers create the most appropriate environment.	So, in the future, I will always increase my confidence to show security because it is a key to involve students in the lesson. However, I will be sincere if one day students ask me something I do not know because I want to keep their confidence to have better results.
Developing activities to increase students ‘critical thinking was important in the learning process because they needed to have challenges to  increase their imagination. The way they expressed their dreams with simple pictures was amazing because they enjoyed it.	Some students do not like to develop activities in which they have to draw. It happens because they believe that they cannot do it. However, the teacher can give them confidence to draw lines and circles. Moreover, students sometimes do not feel good when they have to use their imagination because they are not familiar with it.	The next time I teach a lesson, I will consider activities in which students have the opportunity to increase their critical thinking because I think that they need to become aware of the importance to have outstanding ideas in activities that demand imagination.

Second Hot Reflection ( Second Period)

Describe It was around 6:50 a.m. and I was about to teach my second class with Advanced II students. This time I was comfortable because I had already had the opportunity to work with the group, and they had a good attitude towards my class.  I really liked the way this group helped me to develop my class. In general, I think that my class had positive results because I achieved my objective. However, it is important to mention that I developed an activity to teach vocabulary. I asked students to stand up and I pasted some phrases on students’ backs. Then, I asked them to look at their classmates´ back and guess the meaning per each phrase. They had to guess as many meanings as possible. Some students struggled a lot because they did not have an idea about the phrases they read. That is why they were asking me all the time to find the meaning. It made me discover that it was not a good idea to start teaching new vocabulary in that way. What made me feel happy was the way students liked the activity because they were developing their critical thinking. They tried to give their best though they were struggling to do it. At the end of the activity, students matched the phrases with the meanings I provided in a chart, and though they made mistakes, it was rewarding to see them doing their best.
(Analyze)		Plan Action
Interpret	Generalize
Having my students try to guess the meaning of the vocabulary make them struggle too much and made the activity too challenging.	Students need to have prior knowledge to connect with the new vocabulary. If they cannot make that connection, making meaning of the new vocabulary becomes hard for them.	In my future classes, I will continue working to improve my activities when teaching new vocabulary because I do not want to see students struggling.
Letting students share their ideas with their classmates helped them to improve their communication skill and their critical thinking because they had to provide ideas in different ways.	It is significant to cultivate activities in which students exercise the target language. Moreover, it decreases TTT. Critical thinking, on the other hand, lets student autonomy grow.	In my future lessons, I will use as many speaking activities as possible so that I can help my students work on different tasks. Also, I will inspire their critical thinking by having them share ideas with their classmates.
Having a short matching activity of the new vocabulary to be taught helped students to have an idea about the meaning.	Teachers need to present the new vocabulary in a dialogue, conversation or any way to help students become familiar with new things.	In the future, I will select activities in which students can have the chance to notice the meaning of the new vocabulary because it can help me to have better results.

First Hot Reflection (SECOND PERIOD)

Describe The second period has started, and I was going to teach my first class in the English major. At the beginning, I was a little bit worried and nervous because I was about to switch from a Basic level in Access Program to an Advanced English II level in the major. However, I had 10 students who were looking at me with the best attitude, and they made me feel comfortable to start my class. It was my second activity, so it was around 7:05 a.m., and I was asking students to talk about some homework my tutor assigned them the previous day. It was about choosing three shortcomings students have. I decided to give students time to discuss with their classmates about it. Then, I put a desk in front of them to ask one by one to take a seat and share the shortcomings. Additionally, I took a seat to share some of my shortcomings to make them feel comfortable to express their own personality. It is important to mention that it worked because they were enjoying my speech, and they laughed to notice that I was open to talk with them. Also, my tutor was happy to see students´ reaction. Then, Omar came to the front and made a comparison between my shortcomings and the ones he has to deal with.  After that, I was surprised to see Diana walking to the front to share her shortcomings because she is so shy, and I did not ask her to do it.  The rapport I got with the students was amazing since the very beginning of the class. It made me appreciate the pleasure to teach them. Students continued passing to the front to talk about their shortcomings until almost everybody had passed.
(Analyze)		Plan Action
Interpret	Generalize
My attitude, confidence   and enthusiasm to perform the activity helped students´ understanding. They saw me doing everything happily and not just saying things to spend the time. The activity had a special purpose.	Having a kind manner to teach a lesson, and demonstrating the activities with passion to avoid boredom help students to enjoy the lesson. The motivation students develop depend on the attitude the teacher shows like an example to follow.	Before giving my lesson, I will increase my confidence and give my best to encourage students. It is important to have a positive attitude to show security while teaching to a new group. Also, students behave better if they respond to a good action.
My being friendly with the students increased their motivation while participating because they felt relaxed to express their ideas and thoughts. They wanted to participate all the time without the pressure of the teacher.	Most students fear being asked to do something right in the moment, mostly when it is the first time they produce the target language with a new teacher.	The next time I teach a lesson, I will consider the activities to break the ice with new students to have possible results. Moreover, I will create a good atmosphere to engage students in the process.
Developing activities to increase student’s confidence facilitated them to practice the target language, as well as monitoring helped them to notice the interest the teacher has to check their work in order to provide necessary feedback.	Some students do not like to practice the target language because they are not accustomed to doing it. Likewise, they need to have the teacher near checking their work to clarify doubts.	Before giving my lesson, I will take time to choose a variety of activities to let students practice a lot. It will help them to increase confidence. Also, I will keep monitoring to provide feedback in order to help students to develop all the skills to improve their English.

THIRD HOT REFLECTION

Describe It was Friday, February 19th at 3:00 p.m., and I was giving my last class at English Access First Year. At the beginning, I was really nervous because I was not in a good mood. Nonetheless, it was a good opportunity to challenge myself because I had to teach and create a good environment in the class in order to achieve the objective of the lesson. It was the first time I had to teach “Quantifiers,” and I was worried because I have noticed that most students struggle with this topic since they tend to confuse them. I tried to vary the activities, and I found interesting ways to teach in this class. Now, talking about the last activity students developed makes me feel happy and proud because it was better than what I expected. I asked them to work in pairs to create a conversation using Quantifiers to discover how much they had learned from my lesson. Then, I asked them to share their conversation in front of their classmates, and they participated willingly. I really loved the way they performed the conversation because they used Quantifiers correctly, and they were not afraid of making mistakes.
(Analyze)		Plan Action
Interpret	Generalize
To have a good attitude helped students to feel comfortable and motivated during the lesson.	Making students feel you like to teach them helps you to encourage them. It happens because they notice the effort you have while developing the lesson.	In my future classes, I will continue working to improve my attitude to create the best context, and I will not allow my mood to be an affective filter in my classes.
Letting students work freely helped them to increase their imagination and to put into practice all what they know about the language. Also, they developed the speaking skill.	It is important to develop activities in which students decide what to do and how to do them because they practice the target language and develop independence. Moreover, it decreases TTT.	In my future lessons, I will use as many speaking activities as necessary so that I can help my students work on different tasks and use the target language freely. However, I will be careful to provide feedback.
Sharing helped students to increase their confidence while talking because they learned how to control their tension when they were in front of the whole group.	Teachers need to tell students the importance of increasing their confidence. Moreover, students need to discover that the benefit of making mistakes is that they learn a lot.	In the future, I will select activities in which students can have the chance to share their ideas with others. Moreover, I will help them to notice the positive fact of the mistakes.