INSTEP Summer 2014
"I am what I am not yet" -Maxine Greene
Lincoln Center Education NYC
Week 1: English and The Language of Art Professor Pat Zumhagen
Before arriving for orientation at Teachers College, we were asked to read Variations on a Blue Guitar and Releasing the Imagination both works of the great philosopher of education Maxine Green. The teachings of English Education at TC as well as at Lincoln Center Education are inspired by Maxine's philosophies. LCE takes Maxine's work and applies it to lessons teachers can use in the classroom. Maxine emphasizes becoming a part of the work [or art or literature] before encountering it. For my first week in the INSTEP program (Inservice Teacher Education Program) I was thrilled to work with some great educators at Lincoln Center in NYC. Through Lincoln Center Education, I learned about the many Imaginative Thinking Capacities that I now incorporate into my classroom instruction. As a language teacher, it was exciting to learn about how art is a language itself and how to incorporate art into the teaching of English. Our cohort embodied themes, noticed details of paintings,poetry, photography and theatre, and made deep connections between our experience at Lincoln Center to our future units and daily lessons in the classroom.
Imaginative Thinking Unit PlanUnit Plan Created by Ashley Gramolini, Jackie Steves and Shannon Walsh
Photo Above: "Cathedrals" by Raymond Carver activity
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Aesthetic Education Inquiry and ImaginationAbout Lincoln Center Education
Photo Above: Noticing aspects of "Rosamond and John" at the MET in
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Week 2: Teaching of Reading Professor Sheridan Blau
For my second week of INSTEP I had the pleasure of working with Professor Sheridan Blau. He is distinguished in the English Education program at Teachers College who is a lover of Milton and enjoys pottery when not teaching. This week of class was engaging because of the many conversations we had about the instruction of reading. As high school teachers, we initially go in to the field of education assuming that students are able to read at some level. Unfortunately the reality is that students come from many different reading backgrounds, many not on the same grade level. This is something that high school teachers need to take responsibility for in their classrooms through different reading strategies as well as differentiation.
Creating the Confidence to Respond
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Reader Autobiography
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Week 3: Teaching of Writing Nicole Callahan & Adam Wolfsdorf
Week three of INSTEP was inspiring for me as a writer. We were assigned the Daily Discipline of Writing which I not only strive to continue each day but also have assigned in my own classroom. Writing instruction is something important in this day in age because go the increase of technology. Students today must learn how to use writing as a way to communicate appropriately and responsibly on their devices. In this course, out cohort bonded through writing groups, participated in different workshops on writing instruction and completed our provisional philosophies on writing and the final audit of our daily discipline of writing. This class inspired my fictional writing that I continue today.
Provisional Philosophy of Writing
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Final Audit of Written Work
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