Martina's Pre-Planning

For the upcoming teacher collaboration I would love to be able to put together a working unit that I will be able to implement sometime in the near future. One thing I am afraid of at the moment is not being completely clear about how to go about constructing the unit. I think the unit plan should be put together around one subject area and start off with a particular grade in mind so planning will run smoothly. One thing I am confused about is the way the unit should look. Are we putting together a few lessons in a formal lesson plan or are we putting together ideas for a plan without the formal lessons?

One strength of mine is completing work in a timely manner. I try my best to complete assignments before they are due to avoid any last minute stress on myself or my peers (if working in a group). One weakness I have is my lack of available time to collaborate with others working schedules. Right now I am working full time, completing practicum hours, and have 2 active kids at home. I have a crazy schedule and cannot always collaborate at the same time of day others are available. On a positive note, I always find some way to make it work and this has not really been a problem.

Witness accounts

I have witnessed both very successful media collaborations and unsuccessful ones. The successful partnerships I have witnessed occurred when both the media specialist and teachers worked together by putting time aside to meet and discuss the teaching units that were taking place and/or would be taking place soon. The SL took the time to sit down with each grade level teacher and discuss how the media center could be utilized within the units of study. The SL listened and came up with suggestions of materials to use, ordered materials from a local library for the unit and even went as far as co-teaching with the classroom teacher. It was a great partnership and the students all benefited.

One unsuccessful experience I witnessed was when the SL sat back and really did not collaborate with teachers or offer materials but rather worked on their master’s degree or other work not related to their job. It was sad to witness the lack of communication and unwillingness to get involved.

I think the best way to avoid falling into something like the experience I just mentioned would be to stay active and be sure to keep communication lines open with all staff members in the building. Playing an active role will keep the SL actively engaged.

Unit ideas

One unit idea I have is to work in the area of literature (Language Arts). I would like to somehow put together a genre study. Possible genres would include: fiction, non-fiction, poetry and Biographies. This type of unit would work well with all grades (I am thinking the elementary level) but the materials involved with each grade would have to be altered. If I were putting together a piece on genre for the lower elementary grades I would probably begin with fiction and non-fiction and possibly poetry. I might also consider doing an author study. I would pick an author to study and then incorporate a bit of writing into the unit and discuss the authors “craft of writing”. Eric Carle comes to mind because students are very familiar with his work and enjoy the illustrations.

Another possible unit would be to concentrate on one genre and develop lessons around

Finally, we may also be able to put together a research project for students where they would have to use various searching techniques to find information on a particular topic. This could also would on various levels as long as the materials and searching tools were considered and altered when necessary. Examples of resources would be: books, encyclopedias, Internet resources, maps, etc.

I am looking forward to putting a unit of study together and hopefully being able to implement it in the near future!