Hunter's Moon

October 25, 2007.

Tonight’s full moon is the Hunter’s Moon. It’s also the closest and therefore biggest full moon of 2007.It will be about 50,000 kilometers – or 30,000 miles – closer to the Earth than 2007’s most distant and smallest full moon, last April.

Picture taken at 9:20 pm.

Amateur Photographer !

Hey in my spare time which I don't have I like to try and go out shooting. I took a grade 11 photography class and it was probably my favourite class to date! Here are a few of my shots I really like!

Worries Mount Up on the First Day

Worries Mount Up on the First Day of Teaching

This column could be entitled: confessions of a teacher teaching for the first time who, according to Brock Counsellors, “has nothing to worry about”.
My name is Mr. Carter and I don’t know anything.
I have new dress pants, a new dress shirt, a loose tie and I didn’t sleep last night. I am worried.
What if my alarm doesn’t go off and I sleep in and my principal calls my house?
What if I get stuck waiting for a train, and I’m late and miss the staff meeting?
What if I came in the summer and decorated the wrong room and now my room is empty?
What if the students don’t like me?
What if I spill my coffee on my lesson plans and I forget what I have to teach?
What if I’m boring?
What if I jam the photocopy machine and all the other teachers are waiting to use it?
What if my fly’s down when I’m teaching and all the students laugh at me?
What if I bite my tongue and can’t talk properly?
What if I spit on a student when I am talking?
What if I go to the washroom and toilet paper sticks to my shoe?
What if students throw paper airplanes around the room when I am not looking?
What if someone puts a whoopee cushion on my chair and I sit on it?
What if a student doesn’t come back to my class after recess?
What if a student falls through the cracks on the first days?
What if I can’t write straight on the blackboard?
What if a parent calls me on the first night to complain?
What if I give to much homework and nobody does it?
I’m just a first year teacher and maybe I’m smarter than I think I am. At least I know better than to tell a twenty-two-year-old with a loose tie who has never been alone in the classroom with 29 students before that he has “nothing to worry about”.

Autobiography

My name is Mr. Carter and I am currently in my pre-service year at Brock in the Concurrent Bachelor of Science Integrated Studies (Honours), Bachelor of Education Junior/Intermediate program. In addition, I have obtained a teachable in mathematics.

Over the years, I have had many exciting and rewarding experiences working with children of all ages. For eight years, I have been employed with the City of St. Catharines Aquatics Division as a camp counselor, lifeguard, swimming lesson instructor, and as an aquatic supervisor.
Throughout those years, I have developed a strong work ethic and professional attitude. I have been required to deal with a high degree of stress and responsibility as well as continual public relation situations. I have had to make daily and long term lesson plans, write midterms and final report cards, and complete staff evaluations. For three years I have been a tutor in the classroom at St.Gabriel Lalement School and also organized and taught an after-school tutors program. I have had the opportunity to assist teachers and students and experience first hand what it means to be a teacher in the classroom.

I have been raised in a Roman Catholic Family and attended Catholic elementary and secondary schools. I am a member of St.Thomas Aquinas Church community and I attend mass regularly. For ten years, I was an alter server and assisted in training new servers. Currently I am a Eucharistic Minister and help out with social committee events.

Throughout my educational career, I have taken my academics seriously and strived for my best. I achieved honour role in all four years of secondary school at Denis Morris High School, and for my third year at Brock. I believe that a balance between academics and extra circular activity is necessary in sustaining a positive learning community. I participated on several elementary school sports teams including soccer and basketball, as well as competitive swimming in high school with the experience of going to OFSAA in my grade eleventh year.
Outside of school I am active in the community. I participate in the Breast Cancer Runs, I donate blood regularly at Canadian Blood Services and have played competitive soccer for over 10 years. I understand the importance of team work and being a team player.

Throughout my post-secondary education, I have had the opportunity to take several educational and child development related classes. I believe that it is essential for a teacher to be grounded in their pedagogical beliefs before they can teach others. In my pre-service year I hope to explore, develop, and reflect on my personal philosophy of education. As a teacher, I want to create an inclusive classroom that fosters critical thinking, reflection, and authentic learning. As a part of a lifelong learning community, I hope to gain the most from my experiences in the classroom and through practice teaching which will help me to become a successful teacher and role model to my students.

Personal Philosophy of Education

Personal Philosophy of Education 2007

In society teachers have always played an important role in shaping our lives. We have all experienced great teachers and others who were not so great. I believe that to become a great teacher you must be aware of your own personal philosophy of education and how it affects and determines the decisions you will make in the education of your students. My personal philosophy has been shaped through my experience in school and in the courses I have taken to prepare as a teacher.
Since teachers are central to the success of the education of our youth I believe that they need to posses certain qualities that would make for an outstanding teacher. To name a few, teachers should be enthusiastic, organized, creative, authentic, knowledgeable, and caring. From experience an important quality in this list is caring, meaning listening to the students and genuinely wanting something good for them. As a teacher I will listen to the needs of the students and attempt to make learning authentic to them by teaching to their interests and looking deeper into elements of the curriculum that interest them while still addressing the required curriculum.
Another aspect of teachers is the teacher’s professional knowledge. I believe that as a teacher I need to be knowledgeable of what I am teaching, how to teach it, and how to make it meaningful for the students. For example teachers should attempt to stay current with developments and new teaching techniques in the field. When teaching I will attend workshops, meetings, and take further courses, for my continuing professional development. Teacher must also have knowledge of the curriculum and subject matter when they are teaching. They should be able to answer related questions that students ask or be willing to look further into finding an answer. As a teacher, I plan on being familiar and knowledgeable with the curriculum... I understand that teachers can’t know everything but they need to have a good grasp of what they are teaching. When they do, they can make better quality lessons and help deeper learning to occur.
As a future teacher the relationships I have plays an important role in my philosophy of education because relations help to define who were are as individuals. A teacher has many different relationships within the school community, and the most important relationship is between the teacher and the student. This relationship needs to be authentic, caring, and genuine. As a teacher it is my goal to develop authentic relationships with all my students. When I was a student I was motivated, I cared about school and I was willing to take risks when I had an authentic relationship with my teacher. An authentic relationship also involves the teacher recognizing that each student is an individual with specific needs and that they have a “backpack” of prior experience. It is important that I uncover these experiences so I can begin to connect and link those experiences with the curriculum and subject matter. I hope to develop these authentic relationships by showing interest in the student’s lives and taking the time to know them. For example during the year I hope to attend one outside activity that each of my students is involved. I also plan on being an active member of the community so that I can see the students and parents outside of the school.
Throughout my experience of Tutors in the Classroom and After School Tutoring for the Catholic Board, I have recognized that each student has different learning styles and different levels of multiple intelligences. By recognizing this I will modify and adjust my lessons accordingly to the needs of these students. It is also important to recognize and understand the student’s physical, social emotion and cognitive development. Before teaching I plan on familiarizing myself in to the works of Piaget and other theorists surrounding development. After being a counselor at a spring camp I have come to believe that behind each behavior is a need. By recognizing this I can help to eliminate needless trips down to the principle’s office or time outs because if I can identify the need then I can help to alter the behavior.
I consider the school environment a vital component to the success of teaching the students. For example, if a school environment is inclusive to every student, and promotes multiculturalism and equality then learning can occur for every student. When I teach I want to create an environment that is inclusive and promotes respect, critical thinking, self expression, multiculturalism, and celebrates diversity. If someone was to walk into my classroom, the room would feel warm and inviting and it would be a place where the students would want to be and learn. There would be space for the students work to be displayed and activity centers that promotes exploration and discovery. I would also use different desk configurations and I would change the room around several times during the year.
As I take more education classes my values, beliefs and assumptions have been challenged, and through critical thought and reflection I have come to understand who I want to be. I believe that critical thinking and reflection are part and parcel to teaching so that the teacher can understand who they are, what they stand for, and how they plan on teaching. As a future teacher I hope that I will be able to set aside the time to continue to reflect on my practices and experiences so that I may continue to examine my ever changing personal philosophy of education.

First Day in Teachers College