Blog 4

• Questions you have with which your colleagues may be able to provide help and support.
•  My help is needed in understanding the written assignments better.  If anyone can give me hints to score better on my assignments I would greatly appreciate it.  I guess I am not understanding what all the professor wants in the assignments.   I have contacted the writing center for help but have not heard from them--I emailed them Friday. 
• Resources and information you are seeking.
•  I am seeking any information any one has on the teaching/learning modalities...kinetics, visual, and auditory.  I have gotten a lot of information from my colleagues, the Internet, and our local library.  The best information I have gotten is from my colleagues. 
• Resources and/or information you have found helpful and insightful.
• Talking face to face is the best resources for me. My brother has been a big help on my fear of public speaking.  He gave me the suggestion of using a practice audience before I do the real thing.  SOOOOOOOO this weekend I gave my speach to my family during our cookout.  My audience consisted of a high school teacher, an IT personal, a business manager, two bankers, and two factory shift managers.  Great questions were asked by all and now I have a better idea of how to make my speech better.  I asked them all to comment on my speaking skills and most said I need to slow down and make more eye contact....now I'm working on that too.  

Initial Bolg

1. What inspires and excites you most about your advocacy plan and being an advocate?
      What inspires me most about my advocacy plan is that teacher's may see students differently.  That they may not label children but see that they need to learn in a different style other than what they are teaching in.

2.  What challenges and/or anxieties do you feel related to engaging in the advocacy efforts you have targeted?
       The anxiety I fell related in my advocacy effort is speaking clearly in front of a group of teachers and convincing them to change their habits in teaching.  I have been sitting in meetings and watching speakers' body language and taking notes on how they present their information.
 
3.  What do you believe will be most effective in helping you overcome any challenging emotions you may be feeling with regard to presenting and implementing your Advocacy Action Plan?
       Practicing on small groups before will help me to overcome my fear of public speaking.  I will ask my 'practice' audience to give me suggestions on how to improve my presentation. I will take these suggestions into consideration to improve.  I will be asking someone to prof read my reading material as well.

4.  How can you encourage others in their advocacy efforts, and how can others encourage you?
       My encouragement for others in this class is to do as I am doing in #3.  If you do not speak well in front of a live audience then practice.  But to everyone my advice is to have someone prof read your paper and find mistakes you have missed.   A fresh set of eyes never hurt.  I'll take any advice anyone can give me; please and thank you :)
A quote that I like is "it takes a village to raise a child", I like this because I am always asking my parents and grandmother for advice.  I have a very close family structure and we all count on each other for one reason or another.