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.