As I near the end of my journey, creating this ePortfolio has given me the chance to look back and reflect on everything that I have learned and everything that I have done over the course of my college education. So much has happened in my life during this time, and I have persevered through it all. Even more do I realize now that the path I have taken is only another step in my life that I have accomplished, and there is much more to come.
To summarize my student teaching experience, never have I learned so much until being in the classroom itself. From all of the courses I have taken in the Elementary Education program at UNLV to the observations at various elementary schools, nothing has enriched my education more than being in the physical classroom and experiencing firsthand what it is like to teach. I have learned to work with students of all abilities, from students with I.E.P.'s to Gifted students. I have learned to plan more effective lessons and differentiate my instruction, modifying lessons to suit the classroom rather than going by the book. In addition to this, I have also integrated various medias into my lessons, including technology and arts. I have learned how to more effectively assess my students and guide them, utilizing many of the teaching strategies from Lemov. I have also learned the value of having a quality classroom behavior management plan, being fair and also being a mentor to my own students.
I will be forever grateful to the preparation given to me by my educators at the college, but even more to the guidance and support given to me by my mentor teacher, Ms. Manago. In her classroom I was able to experience the joy of reaching out to students in need, working with them as individuals and seeing them grow and succeed. I feel that now I have the tools I need to be a highly effective teacher, thanks to everyone who supported me and gave me what I needed- a chance to reach for the stars!