Ashlee Unrau's Education Portfolio
Teaching Experiences
September 2015 - Present : General Stewart School, Lethbridge, AB
Grade 1
Principal: Dieter Witzke
This year, I am enjoying teaching grade one full-time at General Stewart School. I teach my students all subjects, except physical education. I also taught music to my grade one students for the first portion of the year. I use a variety of instructional methods and assessments to differentiate for the various learner needs in my class.
As a second year teacher, I am very comfortable with the grade one curriculum and am able to use my subject matter knowledge to create exciting and creative lessons. Having the opportunity to teach grade one for a second time has allowed me to focus on developing my classroom management skills and assessment practices, and to promote more balance in my life. I am so excited to see the success that my students are having and to reflect on the ways I have been able to help them grow this year.
My professional development goals for this year are to implement the Daily 5 program effectively and to develop some of the necessary skills to be able to teach music to my students. So far, I have been able to participate in multiple professional development workshops and work with colleagues to further my learning in these areas.
One of my strengths as a teacher is my ability to build relationships. I have worked hard to develop relationships built on mutual respect and caring with students, staff and parents at General Stewart School. So far this year, I have contributed to the school by participating in staff meetings and parent council meetings, attending the District Town Hall meeting, helping to plan special K-3 learning events, assisting with the Christmas concert, attending professional development opportunities, being an ATA representative, and performing supervision duties. I am also looking forward to the Hand Chime Choir that I will be creating and directing beginning in April.
This year has been a wonderful experience thus far, and I look forward to what happens next.
September 2014 - June 2015 : École Agnes Davidson School, Lethbridge, AB
Grade 1
Principal: Carolle Babin
I taught full-time in a grade one classroom. My class consisted of mixed ability children whom I taught using a variety of instructional methods, including cooperative learning and learning centers. I taught all subjects to my students with the exception of music. My students and I both love music, so I incorporated music into my classroom teaching in a variety of ways, including attention grabbers, classroom management, transitions, interdisciplinary lessons, and created a small classroom Christmas concert performance.
Grade one was a wonderful experience this year! My students were so sweet and I was genuinely excited to see them each morning. As this was my first actual teaching position, the learning curve was steep, but I enjoyed the challenges! I grew immensely as an educator alongside my students, and I look forward to continuing to learn in the future.
My professional development goals for this year were to implement the Daily 5 program effectively and to use the 7 Habits ideals consistently with my students and in my own life. I used the Daily 5 program in my classroom as part of my balanced literacy program. The academic support needs of my students were great this year, so I modified the program to better meet their needs and abilities. I also focused on using 7 Habit language in my daily lessons and in my regular conversations with my students. I completed my training in December and continue to develop new ways to incorporate the habits into my teaching practice.
This past year, I become part of the Agnes Davidson family and built strong relationships with students, staff and parents. I contributed to the school by participating in staff meetings, learning team meetings, response to intervention meetings and grade level team meetings. I was also able to help during school events, such as: the Division 1 and 2 Christmas Concerts, Pancake Breakfast, and a Movie Premiere held by two of my fellow teachers and their students. I was an active member of the Learning Commons Committee, planned guest speakers and field trips for my grade level, and performed supervision duties.
Professional Semester III: Senator Buchanan Elementary School, Lethbridge, AB
Grade 1/2 Multi-age
Teacher Mentor: Patti Caven
Administrator: Heather Hadford
University Consultant: David Townsend
January 6 - April 17, 2014 (15 weeks)
During my internship, I taught in a grade one/two multi-age classroom. I taught social studies, art and science from the grade two curriculum. I also taught math from the grade one curriculum. Additionally, I taught some computers, language arts, and calendar classes, as well as classes regarding community building and The 7 Habbits.
This was my first time teaching a multiage class and a class with such a large range of abilities. While it was not always easy, I appreciate the challenges that I went through, because those were the moments where I grew the most.
The students, staff and parents at Senator Buchanan embraced me, and I quickly became a part of the team. Some of the ways in which I was able to be contribute to the school include: participating in all staff and teacher meetings, contributing to Response to Intervention meetings, supervision duties, time-keeping for basketball games, performing a variety of duties at the Family Bingo Night Fundraiser, and attending after school events, such as the Conmoto choir recital and the annual talent show.
In this practicum, I taught half-time and used my remaining time for assessment, preparation, assisting my mentor teacher, and working on professional development.
Please click the button below to view my final evaluation.
Professional Semester II: Magrath Junior High School, Magrath, AB
Grade 7
Teacher Associate: Joni Wilde and Cathy Kusick
University Consultant: Sharon Hierath
March 7 - April 25, 2013 (150 hours)
In PSII, I taught two grade 7 English language arts classes, a grade 7 reading option, and grade 7 health. I began teaching half-time and quickly progressed to teaching two-thirds of the time. The remainder of my time was spent planning, preparing, supervising a grade 12 tutorial class and observing in the Learning Support room.
Since my primary Teacher Associate for this practicum taught half-time and was the Learning Support Teacher the rest of the time, I was able to work with three teachers, instead of one. This opportunity helped me to develop my collaboration skills and allowed me to build better relationships with more of my colleagues. I also benefited from this experience, because I was able to observe different management styles and a broader range of ways to teach.
I enjoyed the experience of teaching secondary students in this practicum, because it allowed me to see that teaching in each grade division has its own advantages. I was happy to teach in the subject area of my major - English - and I feel that my confidence and management skills grew immensely as a result of my work in this practicum.
Please click on the button below to view my final evaluation.
Professional Semester I: Our Lady of the Assumption Elementary School, Lethbridge, AB
Grade 2
Teacher Associate: Teresa Landry
University Consultant: Donna MacKay
November 7 - December 11, 2012 (125 hours)
During my practicum at Our Lady of the Assumption, I was placed in a grade 2 classroom where taught one-third of the time, assisted one-third of the time, and observed or prepared one-third of the time.
I taught lessons primarily in language arts, science and art. I also taught some math and physical education classes. In language arts, I was able to work with CAFÉ and Daily 5 for the first time, and I was pleased with how well my students responded to the programs. I know that these are popular literacy programs in many Elementary schools, and I look forward to possibly using them in the future.
Please click on the buttons below to further explore my teaching experiences in PSI.
Education 2500: École St. Mary, Lethbridge, AB
Grade 5
Teacher Associate: Robert Tratch
University Consultant: Dave Adams
May 9 - June 22, 2011 (60 hours)
I attended a seminar class for two afternoons each week, and spent Monday through Thursday mornings in the classroom.
This course allowed me to observe how a real classroom operates, develop my classroom management skills, build rapport with students, and prepare and deliver lessons. My experience in Education 2500 helped me develop the confidence needed to be a teacher.