Last Blog :(

 

Hello blog readers! 

    Sadly this is the last blog I will be completing for my FNED 246 class! During my time in this class throughout the semester, there were many ideas that have stuck with me. 

    The biggest est thing that has stuck with me is the idea of a troublemaker. Since working in a daycare for a while now, I know what a troublemaker looks like in a classroom. With this class though, I was able to turn my thinking around about what it means as a teacher to have a troublemaker in your class. This topic stuck with me because in the reading it mentioned that instead of teachers solely focusing on education (such as subtraction, reading, adding), teachers should also focus on teaching love and learn freedom. I want to remember this for when I have my own classroom because it is important to create community, and teach life lessons to those who are struggling with how they behave. These types of lessons will connect with students more and their "bad" behavior will decrease, when turned to learn something else that isn't just traditional learning. 

    Anther part of class that has stuck with me is the classroom tour that we viewed. I enjoyed being able to visually see a classroom, and all of the components that make is educational and functional for students. The teacher in the video created a bright and welcoming classroom, which is important in the success of education. Creating a positive atmosphere will make students feel welcomed and excited to learn. This will stick with me because I want to make sure my future students feel comfortable in the space they will learn. 

And lastly the reading Aria. This reading really hit home for me, I feel like it was a way to truly feel the emotions of students that have a language barrier in their education. The main reason why this is going to stick with me for when I am a teacher is because I will never want my future students to feel like they need to lose themselves and their identity to be successful in their education. I want to promote to them that they should be proud of their culture and utilize it within the classroom. 

    There were many things that I was able to learn being in this class but these were some of my favorite takeaways! Thank you for reading!

Goodbye :)

Maci Maiello

Sexual Orientation Video

 

Hello readers! 

Today in class, we watched a video called How A Sanctuary for Self- Expression Can Change Lives. In this video two women, shared their experiences with their own life and the life of their son. The young girl, Reed talked about her experiences growing up as a little boy who longed to wear a dress and heels. She explained in the video that her parents were unaware what to do at first, how to find the right care for her to figure out how she was feeling about her identity. Reed talked about how she found who she really was on the inside. She talked about how Camp I Am, was the first time she ever felt that she could be herself. How she could wear a dress, paint her nails, and put makeup on without being judged for being a boy, acting like a girl. She is now a woman, who is so thankful for her experience at the camp, it opened a new opportunity for her, it gave her the chance to be who she really is. From this experience she was able to say to her parents, "I'm a girl." And from then on she began her full transition so a women and she has never looked back. And is proud of who she is. 

    The other women in the video was a mom. She explained the early years of her son, who kept wanting the wear girl clothes and heels. In the beginning she explained she would turn him in the other direction, continue to buy cars and cut his hair short. She didn't realize until one halloween that it's not worth trying to make him change, that he should be able to dress how he wants. And wear the red ruby heels to playdates. This family also found Camp I Am, and they are. thankful for their experience. They were open up to a community of families and parents going through the same experience. They felt a wave of hope and thankfulness as Milo finally got to embrace who he was. They supported him and loved their experience. The mom, is photographer at the camp, and finds so much in the picture's she captures of children being them full selves with no judgement. In the end she talked about how her son is now a successful gay man working in New York. 

    Overall, this video was very powerful and it had a great message. I enjoyed watching it. And I think that this camp provides so much for children. 

Maci Maiello

Blog #10

 

Welcome back bloggers!

    This week in FNED we watched a video of someone reading a story. After watching and analyzing this film, I came to the realization that I had learned a lot of important lessons. Their ability to effectively engage the students and maintain their motivation throughout the learning process was one of the most important aspects. As someone who doesn't enjoying reading , I frequently struggle to concentrate completely on a book and understand the plot without using strategies like subtle actions or small predictions to aid in processing the information. The kids found the story much easier to follow and understand as a result of their exceptional ability to explain difficult concepts and offer simple, in-depth explanations.

    The way they included a range of components into the book, making it more interactive and more than just the story itself, also pleased me. In addition to holding children's attention, this method deepened their comprehension of the plot's concepts and specifics. It was motivating to observe the different elements of a book being examined since it demonstrated how literature can be an endless resource for engagement and learning. All things considered, the techniques and approaches used in this movie were thought-provoking and inspirational, demonstrating how good teaching and storytelling can genuinely change the educational process.

Thanks for reading ;) 

Maci

Blog #9: Eliminating Ableism in Education

 

Welcome back blog readers! 

    During this week's class in FNED, we were instructed to read, "Eliminating Ableism in Education" by Thomas Hehir.  In this piece, Thomas Hehir describes ableism as "the devaluation of disability" which "results in societal attitudes that uncritically assert that it is better for a child to walk than roll, speak than sign, read print than read Braille, spell independently than use a spell-check, and hang out with nondisabled kids as opposed to other disabled kids." Hehir draws attention to ableist practices by discussing the studies and history of teaching deaf, blind, and visually challenged kids as well as students with learning difficulties, including dyslexia. He argues that "the pervasiveness of . . . ableist assumptions in the education of children with disabilities not only reinforces prevailing prejudices against disability but may very well contribute to low levels of educational attainment and employment." Hehir concludes by outlining six specific recommendations for starting to confront and remove ableist behaviors. Hehir uses his personal experiences as the former director of the Office of Special Education Programs at the U.S. Department of Education, the Chicago Public Schools' Associate Superintendent, and the Boston Public Schools' Director of Special Education throughout this piece. 

    Also, this week we watched a video called, "Examined life" by Judith Butler and Sunaura Taylor. In the section, wheelchair-using Sunaura Taylor and gender theorist Judith Butler examine disabilities, bodies, and social spaces from a philosophical standpoint. By examining the concept of interdependence, they put doubt on the idea that disability is solely a medical condition and emphasize how socially constructed it is.  During a walk in San Francisco, Butler and Taylor use the activity as a platform for philosophical discussion about the drawbacks of having "an ideal morphology" of how a body should move and look. They study if we actually live in a society where people help one another and challenge the culture's concern with individualism. 

    This video had me thinking about the placement that I am currently in. There is a boy in the class that is physically challenged, and has a one on one aid to help him throughout his day. I love to see each time that I am there, that there is no separation between him and the other kids. They don't single him out because he isn't the exact same as them. The students in the class was kind to him, and help him out when he needs it. They will go and get this chair to put on the rug when it is circle time, because he can't directly sit on the ground. I am sure that these acts of kindness make the student with the disability feel better. 

Thank you for reading!

Maci Maiello