Reflection of the Semester

I have to say, when starting out the semester I was worried about having class at four pm.  I would rather be done with class and have the rest of the day for what ever else needs to be done. This class however, proved me wrong. I was always delighted to go back to school for the pure enjoyment of the class. The environment that was set up by Kim Jaxon a the rest of my peers reminded me every class of the joy that can come out of the profession we are all working towards. There was a great fellowship in the classroom that was one of the most positive classes I have ever had the opportunity to take. Thank you everyone and Professor Kim Jaxon for all of that.

Now, to talk about what I took from the classroom. The real truth is that I still struggled to get some of the readings one hundred percent read. I did however, always have a solid idea of what was going on and what needed to be taken away from the reading. Class discussions brought color because so many of us had different interpretations of what was read. The readings were all over the place and really made me step out of my comfort zone for a lot of the readings. I liked that we were reading books that our future students may be interested in. I have to say for fairy tales it gave me such a broader view of what the world and culture plays into literature.  Reading original fairy tales up to the more modern day spins of them makes you really reflect on where societies have been and where they are heading.  This idea helps because we will be exposing all of these ideas to the future society! I had a blast doing the galley walk for Series of Unfortunate Events. I do not know how I never read those books in elementary school. My guess is that I didn’t want to read something depressing (which it clearly warns it will be). We were able to be creative and have a real hands on approach to reflect on the series.  I feel that every unit was able to give me some kind of surprise. I loved the humor and power of series, the idea that poetry doesn’t and shouldn’t be scary for us or our students, the continues themes in Laurie Halse Anderson’s books, my new connection and like for graphic novels, and my ability to be in a “book club”.  I was never bored during the semester and that really says a lot.

Overall, I wish I would have managed my time a bit better to be able to say I was able to fully read this semester. However, I can say that my mind has been opened to a much broader love of literature. I am excited for summer to be able to continue reading. I am also thankful for the great resources that have been brought to light for me. From the actual readings all the way to twitter. I never thought of using the social media for the profession of teaching. It has so many great ideas and resources. Once again thank you to everyone for a great semester!