Artifact Reflection

Potosi Vacation Bible School

June 2014

Artifact Description:
This artifact is a picture of my students and me watching Veggie Tales. I had
been involved with VBS for the last five summers. I had assisted the art
director, and chaperoned various grade levels. However, this last summer I
had the opportunity to be the lead teacher for the 3 and 4-year olds. Since I
had the youngest group, I was in charge of creating the lesson plans.
Wisconsin Teacher Licensure Standard Alignment:
This experience best aligns with Wisconsin Teacher Standard 2 Development
and Learning The teacher understands how children learn and develop,
and can provide learning opportunities that support their intellectual,
social, and personal development. My experience aligns with standard two
because I understood that students physical, social, emotional, moral, and
cognitive development influence learning, and I learned how to address
these factors when making instructional decisions. At this point in my
students lives they are starting to gain many new experiences and I wanted
to promote that as much as possible in my lessons and activities. By
activating the students mind, the students were developing, learning and
growing as a whole.
As a result of this experience, I have learned the importance of being able to
meet the needs of my students. I had to find appropriate materials, videos,
music, and stories to connect with the children as well as the theme of the
week.
UW-Platteville Knowledge, Skill, and Disposition Statement Alignment:
This experience best aligns with KSD1.c. The candidate can establish
clearly written goals that reflect the curriculum framework and standards,
and can articulate high expectations that permit viable methods of
assessment and account for varying learning needs and styles, and prior
knowledge All I was given to prepare for my lesson plans was the theme for
the week and a program that was similar to the theme, but I was told to just
look over it and brainstorm. Each day had a subtheme, so it was easier for
me to connect my videos, music and stories; when my class joined back
with the rest of the students at the end of the night, they were on the same
page.
As a result of this experience, I can identify when and how to access
appropriate services or resources to meet exceptional learning needs.
Secondary Alignment: KS3.c. Engaging Students in Learning


Personal Reflection:
What I learned about teaching and learning
I learned that sometimes you have to think outside the box. At first I was
given resources more focused on upper elementary grades, and I had to
keep reminding myself that I was teaching three and four year olds. It was a
bit difficult finding the exact lessons that I had in mind, so I had to tweak
the lessons given to me to make it appropriate for the students that I had.
What I learned about myself as a prospective educator
I learned that its okay to reach out to others for help, and that its alright to
ask questions. This was my first time being a lead teacher for three and four
year olds. It took a lot of resources and research to find appropriate bible
stories and activities to relate to the theme and their instructional level. I
didnt do it on my own either; I had help and support from the other
teachers and staff of VBS.