Extracurricular Activities
"Try to be a rainbow in someone's cloud" ~ Maya Angelou
An essential aspect to teaching is participating in extracurricular activities. The teacher and student involvement in each category leads to a stronger rapport and mutual respect between students and teachers. In addition, working with multiple teachers and students in different areas (athletic, scientific, musical, leadership), helps me to become a better-rounded individual and teacher. I am always amazed when I watch the students perform in the school plays and band concerts, as well as in fencing and other athletic competitions. Witnessing students' accomplishments and then getting to congratulate them honestly shows how much we care and how proud we are of them. Also, I remember how great I felt when a teacher came to my soccer games in high school. By attending to students' lives both inside and outside of the classroom, as teachers, we could become " a rainbow in somebody's cloud."
National Honor Society Student Acceptance Committee
I had the opportunity to work with a group of faculty members when choosing students who had the credibility to join the National Honor Society. As a member of the acceptance committee, I read their essays, counted their hours of volunteer work, took into consideration their recommendations, and then collaborated with colleagues as to why that student should or should not be accepted in the National Honor Society. This was a wonderful activity to be involved in, especially during my first year at Oyster bay, because it reflects the high expectations that we always have for our students. I also met teachers from different departments that I had never had the chance to sit down with and share ideas.
International Night / Talent Show
International Night and the Talent show were two events that I am glad to have experienced. Celebrating various cultures by sharing what students have learned, including having cooked and shared specific food related to certain cultures, and having performed types of activities each culture is notorious for, is a beautiful event that Oyster Bay High School has every year. I enjoyed working with faculty members to help set up during the night of the event, and I learned a great deal about the Foreign Language department's goals and aspirations during this experience. The talent show also included international music and dance styles. Students who were involved in the talent show endlessly amazed me - first, simply with the courage to go on stage. Secondly, the talent that each student exposed the audience to was inspiring and quite incredible to witness.
Open Mic Night
Along with the talent that students shared with the audience at the Talent Show, our Open Mic Night is also an incredible opportunity for students. Watching my student, who normally sits quietly and keeps to himself in class, as he wildly strums the electric guitar and paces back in forth like he owns the world, is an eye-opening experience. At open Mic Night, students celebrate the arts by singing, playing musical instruments, or presenting poetry. As I watched all of the seniors celebrate their final Open Mic Night at Oyster Bay High School last year, it was evident how seriously they took held this high school experience in the arts close to their hearts. I always rave to my students that they should involve themselves in this after school experience because it holds a warm community of students and faculty who simply appreciate the beauty of words, musical notes, and a comfortable environment.
Superintendent's Book Club
This reading experience is open to the Oyster Bay community of all ages. There are about two book club gatherings per year, and they have all succeeded in being meaningful and enriching experiences for everyone involved. Although the texts are at a lower reading level for my high school students, it has been evident that higher-level analysis and questioning is still tangible. In addition, the content of the chosen selections is always incredibly interesting. I have attended all of the book club gatherings and it is especially nice to see the students take leadership and teaching roles within these gatherings. The superintendent creates a risk-taking environment where everyone is comfortable taking chances and sharing their ideas and opinions.
Additional Extracurricular Involvement
Other than coaching, attending school functions, and chaperoning, I also like to involve myself in anything with teacher and student involvement. Thus, I have participated in "Train Your Teacher," in which two students from a sports medicine class create a work-out guide/strengthening routine for me after they ask several sports/fitness related questions. I have participated in this assignment the past two years and I have reflected and told the sports medicine teacher that these students would definitely make strong athletic trainers and/or physical therapists.
In addition, playing in the student and faculty Turkey Bowl football game before Thanksgiving break, and participating in the Wheelchair basketball Game with the Knicks are two activities I like to do. It's fun for the students to see me have difficulty (especially in the wheelchair basketball game!), and to work as a team with and or against students. These activities add once more to the great rapport I like to have with my students, and the warm environment that Oyster Bay High School always has for everyone.
National Honor Society Student Acceptance Committee
I had the opportunity to work with a group of faculty members when choosing students who had the credibility to join the National Honor Society. As a member of the acceptance committee, I read their essays, counted their hours of volunteer work, took into consideration their recommendations, and then collaborated with colleagues as to why that student should or should not be accepted in the National Honor Society. This was a wonderful activity to be involved in, especially during my first year at Oyster bay, because it reflects the high expectations that we always have for our students. I also met teachers from different departments that I had never had the chance to sit down with and share ideas.
International Night / Talent Show
International Night and the Talent show were two events that I am glad to have experienced. Celebrating various cultures by sharing what students have learned, including having cooked and shared specific food related to certain cultures, and having performed types of activities each culture is notorious for, is a beautiful event that Oyster Bay High School has every year. I enjoyed working with faculty members to help set up during the night of the event, and I learned a great deal about the Foreign Language department's goals and aspirations during this experience. The talent show also included international music and dance styles. Students who were involved in the talent show endlessly amazed me - first, simply with the courage to go on stage. Secondly, the talent that each student exposed the audience to was inspiring and quite incredible to witness.
Open Mic Night
Along with the talent that students shared with the audience at the Talent Show, our Open Mic Night is also an incredible opportunity for students. Watching my student, who normally sits quietly and keeps to himself in class, as he wildly strums the electric guitar and paces back in forth like he owns the world, is an eye-opening experience. At open Mic Night, students celebrate the arts by singing, playing musical instruments, or presenting poetry. As I watched all of the seniors celebrate their final Open Mic Night at Oyster Bay High School last year, it was evident how seriously they took held this high school experience in the arts close to their hearts. I always rave to my students that they should involve themselves in this after school experience because it holds a warm community of students and faculty who simply appreciate the beauty of words, musical notes, and a comfortable environment.
Superintendent's Book Club
This reading experience is open to the Oyster Bay community of all ages. There are about two book club gatherings per year, and they have all succeeded in being meaningful and enriching experiences for everyone involved. Although the texts are at a lower reading level for my high school students, it has been evident that higher-level analysis and questioning is still tangible. In addition, the content of the chosen selections is always incredibly interesting. I have attended all of the book club gatherings and it is especially nice to see the students take leadership and teaching roles within these gatherings. The superintendent creates a risk-taking environment where everyone is comfortable taking chances and sharing their ideas and opinions.
Additional Extracurricular Involvement
Other than coaching, attending school functions, and chaperoning, I also like to involve myself in anything with teacher and student involvement. Thus, I have participated in "Train Your Teacher," in which two students from a sports medicine class create a work-out guide/strengthening routine for me after they ask several sports/fitness related questions. I have participated in this assignment the past two years and I have reflected and told the sports medicine teacher that these students would definitely make strong athletic trainers and/or physical therapists.
In addition, playing in the student and faculty Turkey Bowl football game before Thanksgiving break, and participating in the Wheelchair basketball Game with the Knicks are two activities I like to do. It's fun for the students to see me have difficulty (especially in the wheelchair basketball game!), and to work as a team with and or against students. These activities add once more to the great rapport I like to have with my students, and the warm environment that Oyster Bay High School always has for everyone.