So, what's next? For me, I am most interested in continuing, Scholary Research !
TOPIC 1
Vygotsky
A Vygotskian Perspective on Critical Thinking (Smolucha, Larry; Smolucha, Francine)
http://eric.ed.gov/?id=ED314770
TOPIC 2
Private Speech
Understanding the Role of Private Speech in Children's Emotion Regulation (Day, Kimberly L.; Smith, Cynthia L.)
TOPIC 3
Self Regulation
Developing Self-Regulation in Kindergarten: Can We Keep All the Crickets in the Basket? (Bodrova, Elena; Leong, Deborah)
Goals and Reflection
Retirement is no longer my goal. Knowledge has moved to the foreground. Exactly what I will do with this new treasure, I haven't nailed down just yet..But I am still considering:
1) Establishing a workshop/training session/program that uses Topics #1, #2, and #3.
2) Writing a book for beginning teachers to assist with motivation, morale, and avoiding burnout.
3) Continuing to teach, but moving into the advocacy and public policy, focusing on developmentally appropriate "best practices" for kindergarten assessment and goal establishment.
Julianne,
ReplyDeleteI have no doubt that however you choose to further your career you will be successful. Your passion and appreciation for young children is contagious. I want to thank you personally for giving me greater insight into the life of a Kindergarten teacher. The majority of my experience has been in a preschool environment. As my oldest began "big kid school" this year, I was insanely apprehensive. Luckily, her teacher is incredible, but I have several friends who are not having such positive experiences. Your words and concerns have taught me a lot about the struggles a Kindergarten teacher faces and has helped me interact with my daughter's teacher more effectively. I love that you are still pushing to keep developmentally appropriate "best practices" alive for your kids. Society is moving so quickly and I fear the day when experimentation, free-play, and creativity are overshadowed by testing--and I know we are close. I hope someday to be able to develop curriculum that stresses core learning concepts and our technological future, while still keeping smiles on the faces of our children and teachers. During a tired moment down the pike, I hope to be able to pick up your book for a boost of motivation and inspiration. Good luck to you! I hope our paths will cross again.
~Dana
Julianne,
ReplyDeleteI have looked forward to reading your blog each week. You have such a remarkable light about you that I am sure instantly attracts the students and families in your classroom each year. As a classmate, I have appreciated you sharing your passion, enthusiasm, kindness, compassion, and knowledge of what is developmentally appropriate.
If you write your book for beginning teachers, or ANY book, please be sure to let me know! erica.cooper-peyton @ waldenu.edu
Good luck!
Hi Julianna,
ReplyDeleteI've enjoyed reading your weekly blog. Your passion is contagious, I think it's great that you want to write a book for beginning teachers and will be a great contribution to the Early Childhood Education field. I'm looking forward to the publication. I have learned a lot about you from reading your blog and I look forward to collaborating with you throughout the program. Hope to talk with you soon
Hello Julianna,
ReplyDeleteYour blog site was an inspiration to me. It is so lively and full of colorful that I can tell right away that you are that Kindergarten teacher that every child remembers. Your creativity gleams from your page, which is a characteristic that is important in a teacher. A creative teacher is able to meet a student where their abilities lies and further expand them through creating a variety of learning opportunities to make that individual student a successful learner.
Each week your blogs were packed with interesting information and insights. I enjoyed reading them. From your work, I can sense your passion for the field of education and your pride in being a teacher. It's wonderful to have teachers who still love what they do.
Thanks for all you do in the life of children. I am certain that your future endeavors are successful. You have accomplished the first component of making your aspirations a reality...you have wrote them down. Now, all you need to is develop a plan to start making them happen and follow through.
I am also interested in developing some training classes for teachers, especially new teachers. Let's keep in touch throughout the course and support each other. Maybe we can even work together and develop some training classes together.
Tabitha Abney
Aww, thank you all for such kind comments! I live for kindergarten silliness and spirit!! I have enjoyed working with all of you as well!!
ReplyDelete