Classroom Confidential 8 and 9

Hello,
1.Even if you don’t teach Social Studies or the Arts, what are some ideas you could glean from Schmidt chapters 8 and 9 for your own teaching?

           I think the first line in the chapter is vital: "History is supposed to be a story well told"(164). I believe the same to be true for English. English class is supposed to be a collection of studying how the English language works as well as how to look, study, and interpret stories in a different manner. Another point from these two chapters, that I can apply to my own content area, is that the big idea about history (or English in this case) is that it's a story about people. Although at times, the story can be fictional people,it is still a story about people that we can relate to on even the most superficial levels. I believe that is powerful. Something that we can apply from history to English is that, "Primary source document are firsthand accounts that were created by people who took part in or witnessed the event" (171). I have learned in my time in Oxford that the primary source in English is the best source to have for your paper. When you combine your own thoughts with just the primary text you would be amazed with what ideas, thoughts, and questions can come up with.
           In chapter 9, I love the idea of teaching through drama. That is an English teacher's dream. "Dramatizing ideas creates an excellent foundation for writing assignments because drama creates images that can be translated into prose or dialogue"(194). This is very true, it also can help kinesthetic  learners. I am more than happy to reach learners of all different types and drama helps me as a teacher do that.

2. What types of authentic assessment have you seen? How could you use it?
              I, unfortunately, have not been able to see as much authentic assessment in the classroom this year. However, something my new CT said guides along the lines of authentic assessment. "I often put the students in groups and instead of rows, so they are the center of their own learning." I believe this is key factor of  authentic assessment. When the students are the center of their learning, they are able to assess their status.