Denel+Rhyne


 * August 28, 2013**

After reading this article, by Tchudi and Mitchell, I realized that I would like to start teaching my first day of school off with the introductory letter activity. I have thought previously about doing one of the “Getting to Know You” sheets that teachers sometimes give to students but the introductory letter seems much more personal. The letter also gives student a way to really express in depth how they feel about certain issues. Also, “The Reading Inventory: A New Twist,” was also an excellent tool that I could see myself using on the first day of school. As a student, I always thought it was interesting and fun when the teacher required something of us that they too, did themselves, like the inventory. When looking at group work I thought the ideas of personal surveys and short-story groups would be really useful to students in the first couple of days of school. Not only would it help them get to know each other but it will also help them to begin to understand what it will be like to work in small groups within their new class environment. Secondly, I really enjoyed the idea about students writing a letter, to whoever they wish, and then sharing it in a small group. The creativity and freedom this assignment allows is great and I think students would find out a lot of interesting things about their fellow peers by hearing their letters. Lastly, I think the section that discusses handing out a note about what the teacher expectations are is an invaluable way to get students to see what is expected of them and why.


 * Timeline Life Map**

[|Denel's Life Map]


 * Writing Yourself Into Being**

As a teacher I plan to create a teacher website (like blackboard/wikis/etc.) where all my handouts, homework, and so on can be found by students and parents. I would also like to create a LinkedIn account for my professional identity.


 * My Teaching Philosophy**

My teaching philosophy is that I want to be able to encourage, nurture and support all the learners in my classroom. My goal is to create an environment that’s safe and allows students to express themselves and their feelings. I plan to incorporate new technologies into my classroom to help students grow and learn while using web 2.0 tools.


 * My "Ideal" Classroom**



Twitter User Name: @dkrhyne

Placement: Davis Drive Middle School, 8th grade Language Arts with Carissa Metoyer


 * My Name**

 My name is complicated. There are no websites to describe it or provide a definition. In fact, one website claimed I was lucky to be named what I am because it’s a name that is searched less than five times a year on google. Interesting. My mom named me after herself, my uncle and my poppop. The first part of my name, “den” comes from my mom’s middle name, Denise. The second part of my name, “el” comes from both my poppop and my uncle’s names, Elroy. After combining the two together, my dad and mom came up with Denel. My uncle died when my mom was a freshman in college and my poppop died when I was four years old. I’m proud to carry part of their name around with me everyday. My first name has meaning to my family, unlike most people who look themselves up on urban dictionary or under other languages, my first name has no meaning to the general public. My last name, Rhyne, is German. There’s rumors in my family that we were named after the Rhine River, maybe because our family originated from that area? Our name use to be spelled Rhine, just like the river, before one of my great-great-great grandfather, or someone like that, changed it to incorporate a “y” instead of an “i”. According to Google, my last name means drainage ditch, how exciting.

**Name Poem**

My name is complicated, it isn’t easy say or spell, D-E-N-E-L.

I was born in 1989, when the Berlin Wall fell, but my mom sure felt swell.

At four, I wrote my name on a library card, and it really was hard, I loved to read books, but we didn’t have Nooks.

<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">I loved school, <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">I’m becoming a teacher to teach, <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">not preach.

<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; line-height: 0px; overflow: hidden; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">
 * Name Representation**


 * Unit Plan Ideas**

__The Focus__

<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">The primary focus of this unit is on the people who risked their lives in our society for the better good of our citizens. The unit is mainly focused on World War II and the Holocaust. In correlation with this unit, the major piece of literature I will teach is, <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 16px; vertical-align: baseline;">__The Book Thief__ <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> by Markus Zusak. This piece of literature is especially important because the book’s setting is during the time of Hitler’s reign when he began taking over and sending citizens into concentration camps. Students will also have a chance in class to analyze historical documents, pictures and videos from this time period.

<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Rationale: Risk takers and <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 16px; vertical-align: baseline;">__The Book Thief__ <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> should both be taught in the classroom because of the relevance they have to the time period students are learning about.

__Materials List__

<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">1. <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 16px; vertical-align: baseline;">__The Book Thief__ <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> (the movie)* <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">2. <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 16px; vertical-align: baseline;">__The Book Thief__ <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> (the book, a class set)* <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">3. Novel Ties Study Guide - <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 16px; vertical-align: baseline;">__The Book Thief__ <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> * [|__http://sharepoint.svsd410.org/sms/loganc/class%20materials/book%20thief%20unit.pdf__] <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">4. <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 16px; vertical-align: baseline;">__The Book Thief__ <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> Packet * <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> a. Station 1-7 activities <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> 1. Holocaust letter <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> 2. Photograph <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> 3. Video <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> 4. Newspaper article <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> 5. Speech by FDR <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> 6. Speech by Hitler <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> 7. Holocaust children’s book <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> 8. Miep Gies story in Literature book <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> 9. Holocaust survivor’s story <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> b. Reading discussion topics/activities for assigned readings <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> 1. Create a storyboard of last nights reading <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> 2. Create last nights reading from the point of view of __<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> 3. Create a character bookmark __ __<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"> 4. Create a comic book (include ___ number of text bubbles, etc.) <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">5. Project Guidelines and Rubric (to wrap up <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 16px; vertical-align: baseline;">__The Book Thief__ <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 16px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">).

The Beach

As I close my eyes I picture my beach house, the warm sun, the waves crashing against the seawall. My family in the kitchen making sandwiches, taking the boat out, watching for dolphins and napping constantly.

The beach is warm, the neighbors are friendly, drinks are made, pigs are cooked, and the we enjoy family supper together.

I escape from my life at school and work. I run away from screaming kids and my panicked peers. I force out the smells of baby food, poop and breast milk. I retreat from the panic I feel when thinking about my unit. The beach is my safe place, it's my home away from home