Princess Wade's Teaching Portfolio
Professional Development Transcript
Over the course of my teaching career, I've attended numerous professional development training. However, I would like to share the top five courses that supported the growth of my teaching practices over the years. Most of these courses initiated my personal journey of becoming a more effective teacher by learning teaching strategies that support students' individual learning needs.
Title I - Supporting Social Studies Teachers with Content Training - Grades 6-7
February 2015
This training focused on providing teachers with effective strategies to differentiate and scaffold literacy activities in a Social Studies classroom for students with various learning needs. As a group, we examined the benefits of a few teaching strategies, such as implementing the use of Graphic Organizers, Sentence Starters, and Guided Notes. This course has positively affected my teaching practices in both Math and Social Studies classes. I've become more aware of how to use scaffolding techniques to increase retention for my diverse learners. I provided evidence of my application of the strategies.
Using Manipulatives in Math -Grades 5-8 Title I
This course reinforced educators teaching practices of math manipulatives with their lessons. Prior to this course, I had a limited understanding of how to effectively implement math manipulatives. Due to this training, I learned practical strategies that support students' understanding of abstract concepts. I was encouraged to have students model using manipulatives, draw an illustration of their model, and write the steps that coincide with process of solving the problems. While following these steps, I support students' diverse learning needs and various learning styles. Over the years, I've utilized virtual manipulatives along side hands-on math manipulatives for a more engaging classroom.
Introduction to the Exceptional Child Course
January 2009
This course is designed to meet the Georgia Professional Standards Commission requirements for acquiring a Georgia teaching certification. In this course, I learned the process of identifying students with learning disabilities and focused on effective instruction strategies that best meet their learning needs. During this course, I began to understand the significance of commonly used terms in Special Education such as modification, accommodations, and Individualized Educational Plan (IEP). I also began to seek out guidance in creating a positive learning environment in an inclusion classroom setting. This was also the beginning of my journey towards creating flexible learning environments that support individual learning differences.
Effective Instruction in the Co-Taught Class
September 2008
The primary goal of this course was to present co-teachers with a structured process to plan effective teaching activities in the co-taught class. This training also provided more concrete examples of implementation and reinforced differentiated instruction in a co-taught classroom. I became more aware of the importance of collaborative planning and the amount planning time needed based on the preferred co-teaching model. After this training, I made a conscious effort to plan consistently with my co-teacher. Our effective planning created a more cohesive teaching team and permitted an increase rotation of responsibilities.
Effective Co-Teaching at the Secondary Level
September 2007
The Effective Co-Teaching training focused on co-teaching models. Principals, general education teachers, and special education teachers were requested to attend. As a team, we practiced various co-teaching models, discussed possible pros and cons of each model, and integrated the models into our lesson plans. This training also focused on classroom management strategies within a co-taught classroom. As the lead teacher, this training was very beneficial because I had to learn to share the responsibilities with my co-teacher. This course became my foundation for co-teaching in a middle school classroom for over eight years.
