National Education Association Representative Assembly 2015

Hey bloggers! I know that I have been away for several days; this is because I have been honored to represent both UT Martin and the Student Tennessee Education Association by attending both the Student Leadership Pre-Conference and the 94th Annual Representative Assembly in Orlando, FL. Students, teachers, paraprofessionals, and administrators have all worked countlessly advocating to promote Strong Public Schools for every student through the National Education Association. Picking through Amendments, New Buisness Items, and Resolutions for 2015-2016 has taught me so many things and helped me to appreciate how passionate our educators are to their students and schools. Adding to this remarkable First-Time Delegate experience, President of TEA, Barbara Gray, allowed me to represent and honor our state of Tennessee as I stood with 49 other individuals from our United States of America and sang in the NEA Choir for Independence Day. Carolyn Crowder, our Executive Director, helped as a founding member for this prestigious program in Oklahoma many years ago and we are very lucky to have her with us in Tennessee. Dr. Clinton Smith, a Special Education professor at UT Martin, who is here at the NEA RA dedicating his free time to the Student Delegates has been an exemplar throughout my time at UTM as he has been actively involved in numerous professional programs and community outreach, promoting students to do the same. Rhonda Thompson, Coordinator of Instructional Advocacy, iTeam, & Student Programs,  has been wonderful, as she has worked above and beyond to make sure that we were taken care of and treated fairly as 'teachers' and equal as a delegate. Although we have worked hard, she has helped to make this trip also seem as a vacation as much as she could without cutting into buisness.   I am so thankful for this incredible opportunity that I have been given the relationships that I have made along the way. I will use this professional development to help myself become a more effective educator in the near future. I would also like to think TEA and UT Martin for all of the huge support you have given me! 

GO TO THE LINK AND WATCH THE VIDEO TO SEE FLIPAGRAM! 

http://flipagram.com/f/YPeHAWRcH8

Twas the Night Before the NEA Convention

"Twas the night before the NEA Conference, when all through Nashville, TN

Hailey went through her paperwork and boarding pass- B 53.

Her clothes were packed, stuffed, and ready with care

In Hopes that everything will fit in the suitcase and make it there.

The family just made it home to get in their bed, But not Hailey- she had too many things going through her head.

Her Uncle Barry tried to help out, 

And all that help turned straight into doubt. 

Though Hailey was nervous and excited in one, she could not wait to wake up and see the sun. 

SouthWest Flights would welcome her at last, and this adventurous opportunity would go- oh so fast." 

 

As I sit and get things together for this great opportunity, I thought this would be appropriate! :) 

"Happy teaching to all, and to all a good night!"

THE HEART OF NEW BEGINNINGS

This week, I received my student teaching placements for this fall- Dyersburg Primary, 2nd grade with Mrs. LeAnn Duncan and Fifth Consolidated, 5th grade with Mrs. Blair McDowell. I absolutely cannot wait for this experience and great opportunity with both Dyer County and Dyersburg City Schools! More than anything, I am honored to move one step forward in my teaching career, learn from all of my surrounding teachers, and be a blessing in the student's lives! 

I HEART UTM

     

Flashback to 'I 💗 UTM Week' !!! Two of my favorite professors and I at the Senior Walk for 2015 Graduates! As I get ready for my last few weeks in my summer class, I am honored but yet so sad to know that my time at UTM is almost complete! #toocute #divastatus #iheartutm #FALL15 

The HEART of Sharon Creech

So. . .I have now realized that you can have more than one favorite hobby! Mine has been both laying out by the pool and reading books this week! I have been reading several books, but I discovered The Boy on the Porch by Sharon Creech when I decided to do an Author Study all about her! It is such a great book! You can find more information by going to her website: http://www.sharoncreech.com Don't forget to vote for your favorite summer hobby on my page! 

Each Kindness

YOU {Rock} Kindness

Each Kindness, a Coretta Scott King award-winning picture book, is a book written by Newbery Honor- Jacqueline Woodson and illustrated by Caldecott Honor- E. B. Lewis. This book is set in a school setting when her peers, because of the clothes that she wears, belittle the new girl Maya. Chloe and the other girls turn away from Maya when she consistently tries to befriend them, but miss out on the opportunity when she suddenly stops coming to school. When the teacher, Ms. Albert, gives a lesson on small acts of kindness, Chloe realizes that her she missed her chance with Maya.

This book shows the diversity and difficulty of human relationships. Think back to a time when you were rude to someone or when someone was cruel to you – At some point in time you have been either Chloe or Maya in the story, or maybe you are more like me, and been in both situations. This book can be a promoter for children at a young age so that they understand the importance of nice gestures and how small things can affect someone remarkably.

            When using this children’s book in my classroom, Each Kindness, is written on a third grade-fourth month reading level. This is an appropriate grade level for this particular book, because of the more serious message the author guides for her audience. The lesson that I will be doing with the activity will be a mock of the lesson that teacher portrays in the story:

I am going to start off by reading the book. Students will work in groups of 2-3 and use discussion questions to talk about the characters and how their actions and feelings contribute to the sequence of events that happen in the story. The students will then collaborate to determine an action plan: groups will think of a proposal for Maya, Chloe, and Ms. Albert. The teacher will give the students a copy of several parts of the sentences from the book as students discover the pronouns, nouns, and verbs in those sentences. I will conclude the lesson by giving each student a rock with YOU written on it. The students will then drop the rock into a large area of water, when sharing with the class an act of kindness that he or she has performed in the past. This will demonstrate and create a ripple affect and show how one act of kindness can be passed on. The standards used for this diversity activity will be:

 L.3.3. Describe characters in a story (e.g., their traits, motivations, or feelings) and explain how their actions contribute to the sequence of events.

SL.3. 1. Engage effectively in a range of collaborative discussions (one-on-one, in groups, and teacher-led) with diverse partners on grade 3 topics and texts, building on others’ ideas and expressing their own clearly.

o   Come to discussions prepared, having read or studied required material; explicitly draw on that preparation and other information known about the topic to explore ideas under discussion.

·       L.3.1.a Demonstrate command of the conventions of Standard English grammar and usage when writing or speaking.

Explain the function of nouns, pronouns, verbs, adjectives, and adverbs in general and there functions in particular sentences.

  

The Adventures of Beekle: An Unimaginary Friend

When asked to do a read-aloud book study, I chose this book. I was selected for a Scholastic scholarship offer from UT Martin's STEA Chapter as one of the three students to get money for books to go toward your own classroom library. When selecting the book, I chose it before reading it because it is the 2015 Caldecott Medal Winner. I think it has a great story and definitely has great illustration. This book brings imaginary characters to life and connects them with everyday people, like ourselves. For my mini lesson and activity, the class talked about feelings. The students were asked to work with a partner and discuss the feelings in the book: Using sentences from the book and matching the feeling with the sentence. The students were then asked to draw what his or her imaginary friend would look like and what it would be named. Each individual talked about and described his or her imaginary friend to the class. It was such a fun and creative activity.

Here are the standards below, and my imaginary friend that I created:
    1.RL.4

 Identify words and phrases in stories or poems that suggest feelings or appeal to the senses.

1.RL.3

 Describe characters, settings, and major events in a story, using key details.

Kindergarten Practicum Experience

The HEART of a Kindergarten Classroom

Last semester, I took the Kindergarten Practicum class. I was scheduled to meet with Mrs. Sherry Griffin's class at Hillcrest Elementary School in Troy, TN once a week for the entire semester. It felt so great to have a group of children that looked up to me and who were such a delight each morning. Having this experience made me even more exciting for my student teaching experience that is coming closer than I imagined! Here is a video that my teacher gave me of all of my teaching experience in her room! 

A Blast from the Past!

My HEART of Teaching

Hi! My name is Hailey Smith and I am very excited about this blog. First off, I love teaching! I am a senior at the University of Tennessee at Martin studying Elementary Education. I will graduate this December, Fall of 2015. When I was growing up, I admired the hard work that I watched my family spend on their classrooms and their students. On Sundays after church when we would eat lunch, I would get so jealous because they would be discussing school and things that I just did not understand. In my teenage years, I decided that I would go against the family loom and go to school to become a registered nurse.
Little did I know that near the end of my senior year in high school, I would be discussing a change of heart with my mom: I had decided that I wanted to be a teacher and I could see myself doing so for the rest of my life. I started observing teachers at the elementary schools in the afternoons and that eventually lead to substitute teaching after graduation.
So. . . Back to "A BLAST FROM THE PAST". Here is a cool and very unique fact about myself: I come from a long line of very prominent educators. Those Sundays after church have become to be the best part of my week and my "reward" to myself if I get discouraged or need advice!
Here are some of my role-models and the best educators a family can have!

In the back: Barry Olhausen- (My Great-Uncle)

The left in pink:Kerri Olhausen Newsom (My Mom)

 The center: "Miss" Mary Olhausen (My Great-Grandmother) 

Beside her: Brenda Olhausen Gray (My Great-Aunt)

Yellow: Me