Domain 4 Reflection

Name of Teacher: Brittany Smithkort Name of Observer: Chad

Scaling

This year presented new and interesting challenges, as I was given an

opportunity to teach a new course, 20th Century Perspectives. Furthermore, I
was consistently collaborating with the two new Reading and Writing for the
College Bound (RWCB) teachers (Hoffman and Mullins) in order to not only
share materials but to further develop and perfect the class. Therefore, I was
able to both contribute to and learn a lot from my colleagues at South Lyon
High School.

Because of some shifts in scheduling this year, there were two new RWCB
teachers, Erica Hoffman and Emily Mullins. As a result, I spent a good part of
the given course collaboration time and beyond collaborating with these
teachers in order to make sure that they were comfortable with teaching the
course. I not only shared materials, but made myself available to answer
any questions that they may have had. And, in turn, I worked closely with
Erica in order to develop the course. In this course of this year, we
developed a united that was piloted last year, consistently bouncing ideas off
of each other to see what was the most successful with the students.
Furthermore, we were able to pilot a novel for the course, Blink, and
collaborate on how to teach the text in an effective and engaging manner for
students. Lastly, I collaborated with Colleen Cox, a new English 10 teacher,
as well in order to discuss and exchange materials for the course.

In addition to collaborating with peers for RWCB, I also did the same for the
new course I was teaching this year. 20th Century Perspectives. I frequently
would have meetings with the other 20th Century teachers (ODowd, Ristich,
Weinraub) in order to get a better understanding of the curriculum for the
course. In turn, I also tried to return the favor (they helped me so much this
year) and provide them with any new ideas or activities that I developed
regarding the novels in order to be contributing and not just taking their
materials.

This is my third year serving on the 11-12 SAC Committee. During this time,
I have been able to share my ideas for my RWCB course with the teacher
that instructs this course at East (Jeff Steger), as well as with Erica. We were
able to revamp the midterm and final exams for the course, as well as get a
new book approved for piloting. Right now, we are in the process of trying to
find a book to use for the second semester, as the first one proved to be
successful. We are also working on creating a definitive outline for the
course, and potentially changing the courses name. I also worked with
English 10 teachers on further development on that curriculum.

Aside from collaborating with colleagues, I positively interact with parents

and students in order to promote positive home and school relationships. I
make it a point to promptly respond to parent calls and e-mails when there
are questions or concerns. My class Remind account has proved to be very
helpful for both students and parents, as it provides constant reminders of
upcoming tests, quizzes, or due dates. As for my students, I try and create a
comfortable learning environment, using tactics ranging from how well
students know one another to the setup of the aesthetics in my classroom. I
also make sure to stress to students to contact me anytime (personally or
electronically) with questions or concerns that they may have. Thus, I try
and make myself approachable to both parents and students in order to build
a positive learning environment.

Like the previous years I have been here, I volunteer to be part of various
events taking place at the school. I was able to contribute to the
Homecoming bake sale and the silent auction that was conducted at the
tailgate. I also plan to chaperone for prom this year and to attend
graduation.

To conclude, this year was full of new experience that I learned a lot from. I
hope to use what I learned from my peers, new and old, in the years to come
at South Lyon High School.