interpretive listening
In this Interpretive Listening activity, students listen to a French song, "Elle me dit" by Mika," and are asked to complete the lyrics based on what they hear. After completing this, students are asked to review the lyrics of the song to determine the overall theme of the song, to review specific vocabulary (related to the current unit), and then to practice using the language structures and vocabulary in a personalized manner.
Running dictée
In a running dictée, students are divided into teams and they complete a relay race--one member "runs" to read the information on cards across the room, memorizes the information exactly, and returns to the group where they relay the information to their partners who must then write the information in a specific, logical order. This activity allows students to rotate through reading, writing, speaking, and listening modalities for increased understanding and use of the language.
teacher training for el students
In working with English Learners, it has been my job to also train teachers on ways in which they can improve their classrooms to be more inclusive to English Learners. The following is an example of one style of training I have developed for this purpose. (The full presentation is available below the image.)
![](http://www.weebly.com/weebly/images/file_icons/pdf.png)
barner_el_training_10-9-171.pdf |
Technology integration into the regular classroom
The image below demonstrates one use of technology in the classroom to aid student learning and increase teacher productivity levels (student names have been blacked out).
french elections research and presentation project
French 3 students were assigned specific presidential candidates to research. Students used iPads to perform research and had the ability to create either an infographic or Pages presentation to represent all of the information they found during the research process. Students were asked to provide at basic information about each candidate and his/her platform. They were also asked to share their own opinion of whether or not they believed their assigned candidate would be a good choice for France as a whole. After creation of the infographic or presentation, students were asked to present their candidate with the rest of the class. Infographics were printed and displayed in the hallway to allow passersby the opportunity to be exposed to elections other than their own.
French 1 future tense project
The image below describes a research project that allowed students to take material from the course and apply it to a real-world task with which they could connect on a personal level.
french 2 syllabus
The document listed below is the syllabus created for French 2.
french 1 semester exam
The document listed below is one of my exam styles from French 1 (partial exam shown).
Roller Coaster physics
Day 1: Introduction to Roller Coasters ~ Essential Question – What do all traditional roller coasters have in common as their energy source?
Day 2-3: Energy ~ Essential Question – How is a roller coaster able to travel up hills and do loops without an engine?
Day 4-5: Forces ~ Essential Question – What forces create a roller coaster ride?
Day 6-7: Safety ~ Essential Questions – What types of injuries might a person sustain on a roller coaster ride? ~ Essential Question—What forces play a role in injuries sustained from roller coaster rides? ~ Essential Question – How do roller coaster engineers and park safety managers address the excessive G-forces exerted by roller coasters on its riders? ~ Essential Question – Are roller coasters safe or unsafe?
Day 8: Engineering Design Process ~ Essential Question – What is the engineering design process?
Day 9-13: The Build ~ Essential Question – How do you use the engineering process to design and create a roller coaster that fits within budget and design specifications?
Day 14: Final Presentation and Assessment ~ Essential Question – What is the evidence that your roller coaster met the specifications of the challenge?
Day 2-3: Energy ~ Essential Question – How is a roller coaster able to travel up hills and do loops without an engine?
Day 4-5: Forces ~ Essential Question – What forces create a roller coaster ride?
Day 6-7: Safety ~ Essential Questions – What types of injuries might a person sustain on a roller coaster ride? ~ Essential Question—What forces play a role in injuries sustained from roller coaster rides? ~ Essential Question – How do roller coaster engineers and park safety managers address the excessive G-forces exerted by roller coasters on its riders? ~ Essential Question – Are roller coasters safe or unsafe?
Day 8: Engineering Design Process ~ Essential Question – What is the engineering design process?
Day 9-13: The Build ~ Essential Question – How do you use the engineering process to design and create a roller coaster that fits within budget and design specifications?
Day 14: Final Presentation and Assessment ~ Essential Question – What is the evidence that your roller coaster met the specifications of the challenge?
cell membrane lab
The document below represents a typical lab information sheet--with pre-information, procedure, and questions to answer during the lab.
lab safety contract
The document below represents my typical Laboratory Safety Contract given to students at the beginning of the school year.
first semester of teaching reflection journal entries
Friday, September 20, 2013
Today, I am officially four weeks into this year, and I am constantly realizing that this is not for the faint of heart. I knew I would be working really hard to keep up with my students, but not having a host teacher with whom I can talk is taking it's toll on me. I have had to find anyone I can who will listen to my problems and make suggestions for me. That has been my greatest lesson so far--asking others for help when I need it. I'm typically a very "on my own" kind of person, but this job is not for one person to do. If I can make myself realize that I need help sometimes, I will be able to breathe a little more easily--and I might be able to step back and see the "Big Picture." I love being able to see that my students and I are finally making real connections, and I can enjoy being around them almost as much as they seem to enjoy being around me.
Tuesday, November 19, 2013
As much as I always pay attention to my students' attitudes in my classroom, today was a day where it really struck me just how much more I need to focus on this part of my students. During one of my classes, I made a faux pas and several of my students burst into laughter. This isn't a rare occasion in my classroom, but today, it was coming from two students I've only seen smile on a rare occasion. This made me think, "How many of my students do I make smile on a regular basis?" Not that my job is to be an entertainer, but why can't entertaining while teaching be a part of my job? I've decided that from now on, it is part of my daily routine to do something that will make someone (if not everyone) smile. I might include a "Science Joke of the Day," or maybe just do something silly and make myself the object they are laughing about (within reason, and related to the material, of course). More than anything, I realized today that my students shouldn't hate going to Mr. Barner's class--it should be the one they look forward to each day.
Today, I am officially four weeks into this year, and I am constantly realizing that this is not for the faint of heart. I knew I would be working really hard to keep up with my students, but not having a host teacher with whom I can talk is taking it's toll on me. I have had to find anyone I can who will listen to my problems and make suggestions for me. That has been my greatest lesson so far--asking others for help when I need it. I'm typically a very "on my own" kind of person, but this job is not for one person to do. If I can make myself realize that I need help sometimes, I will be able to breathe a little more easily--and I might be able to step back and see the "Big Picture." I love being able to see that my students and I are finally making real connections, and I can enjoy being around them almost as much as they seem to enjoy being around me.
Tuesday, November 19, 2013
As much as I always pay attention to my students' attitudes in my classroom, today was a day where it really struck me just how much more I need to focus on this part of my students. During one of my classes, I made a faux pas and several of my students burst into laughter. This isn't a rare occasion in my classroom, but today, it was coming from two students I've only seen smile on a rare occasion. This made me think, "How many of my students do I make smile on a regular basis?" Not that my job is to be an entertainer, but why can't entertaining while teaching be a part of my job? I've decided that from now on, it is part of my daily routine to do something that will make someone (if not everyone) smile. I might include a "Science Joke of the Day," or maybe just do something silly and make myself the object they are laughing about (within reason, and related to the material, of course). More than anything, I realized today that my students shouldn't hate going to Mr. Barner's class--it should be the one they look forward to each day.