This is my electronic portfolio outlining my experiences in student teaching. Included are evidences of intstructing to North Carolina teaching standards.

2. Kimberly McDaniel
Pre-Service Teaching
Portfolio
Spring 2011

3. •Professional Data:
Resume, Professional
Development activities, Teaching
Philosophy
•Personal Data: About Me
(Hobbies, Awards, Honors, Schola
rships)
•North Carolina Professional
Teaching Standards and Evidences
NCPTS #1: Teachers demonstrate leadership
NCPTS #2: Teachers establish a respectful
environment for a diverse
population of students
NCPTS #3: Teachers know the content they
teach
NCPTS#4:Teachers facilitate learning for their
students
NCPTS #5: Teachers reflect on their practice

4. Resume
https://docs.google.com/d
ocument/d/1202A78Dmg1
ICdeNQYt6kDV5XY1ifyXml-
nIVPLRn6YE/edit?hl=en&a
uthkey=CN-KnCk
Posted on Google Docs

5. Professional Development Opportunities
•Positive Behavioral
Interventions and Support (PBIS)
•IEP Meetings/Student Services
Management Team (SSMT)
•School Improvement Team (SIT)
•NC Falcon Training
oFormative/Informative
Assessments

6. Personal Teaching Philosophy
I like to base my teaching philosophy off of this
quote from Lee Iococca: “In a completely rational
society, the best of us would aspire to be teachers and
the rest of us would have to settle for something
less, because passing civilization along from one
generation to the next ought to be the highest honor and
the highest responsibility anyone could have.”
Children are the future, therefore, why not take the
time to get to know each on and teach them as
individuals? Every child learns differently, yet every
single one can learn. If we as teachers can target each
child and find what motivates him or her to learn, he or
she can accomplish anything and reach new dreams and
heights.

7. Hobbies

8. Honors/Awards and Scholarships
 Dean’s List: Spring/Fall 2010
 Pamella Moll Scholarship
 Lacrosse Scholarship
 Academic Scholarship
 Academic All-Conference Carolinas: Spring/Fall 2010
 2nd Team All-Conference Carolinas (Athletic Award):
2009, 2011
 Team M.O.P. (Athletic Award): 2010, 2011

9. Looking Toward the Future
In the future, I see myself moving to
North Carolina and finding a teaching job.
I am applying for teaching positions in
Scotland County and surrounding Charlotte
and Wilmington areas. My ideal grades
would be 2nd or 3rd, however in a job
market like today’s I will not be picky!
Once I am settled down with a career I
would like to take graduate classes looking
to achieve a master’s degree in Curriculum
and Instruction or Special Education.

10. North
Carolina
Professional
Teaching
Standards

11. NCPTS #1: Teachers
demonstrate leadership
TEACHERS LEAD IN THEIR CLASSROOMS.
TEACHERS DEMONSTRATE LEADERSHIP IN THE SCHOOL.
TEACHERS LEAD THE TEACHING PROFESSION.
TEACHERS ADVOCATE FOR SCHOOLS AND STUDENTS.
TEACHERS DEMONSTRATE HIGH ETHICAL STANDARDS.

12. TEACHERS LEAD IN THEIR
CLASSROOMS
By leading in the classroom I took
responsibility for all of my students
learning. Students were able to clearly
view my vision for them each day because
I would post my essential questions for
each lesson on either the SmartBoard or
the whiteboard. Students worked
through a morning routine each day;
posted along with the routine was a list
of questions students should have been
able to answer at the end of each
day, based on their learning. Students
would write the questions down in their
planners every morning in order to
reference back to them throughout the
day. By doing this, I was able to assess
each individual, informally, and reflect
for future instruction.

13. TEACHERS DEMONSTRATE
LEADERSHIP IN THE SCHOOL
I demonstrate leadership in
the school by working collaboratively
with grade level staff and school
facilitators to reach each students’
individual needs. With each
benchmark taken, data and scores
were analyzed to base future
instruction. Because 3rd grade is an
E.O.G. grade, it is imperative to
analyze all data and fill in gaps. In
the past nine weeks, my class has
been reviewing for the E.O.G. and
will continue to do so until the
assessment. The data we received
from the benchmark scores led us to
plan together and create great
lessons. Tutors have been hired to
reach certain groups of students
and focus on small group
learning, targeting on the goals and
objectives that are lacking.

14. TEACHERS LEAD THE TEACHING
PROFESSION
I actively contributed to the establishment of positive
working conditions by attending School Improvement Team (SIT)
meetings and Positive Behavioral Interventions and Support
(PBIS) meetings. At a SIT meeting, the school improvement plan
was discussed. Each goal of South Scotland was deliberated and
ways to reach them were consolidated. One goal was based on
parent involvement and I worked diligently to help the school out
in reaching this goal. I stayed devoted to keeping the parents
and families of my students informed and avidly tried to involve
them in as many activities as I could.

15. TEACHERS ADVOCATE FOR
SCHOOLS AND STUDENTS
In order to advocate for schools and students I participated regularly
in the change of behavioral policies that were being practiced in the school.
The school was focusing on redirecting its view on behavioral consequences
and moved from a strike log, which gave demerits for negative behavior, to a
positive behavior plan which recognized desired behavior. This change to
operant conditioning allowed students who were caught demonstrating the
desired behavior to be rewarded. When other students were not following
suit, the reward to their classmates redirected their behavior and allowed
for a positive classroom and school. This P.B.I.S. behavior plan is called
“PAWS for the Scottie Cause.” Each letter in “PAWS” represents a desired
behavior (P- Personal Best, A- Attitude of Respect, W- Wise Decision
Making, S-Safety).

16. TEACHERS DEMONSTRATE HIGH
ETHICAL STANDARDS
In my classroom and throughout
the school I demonstrated high ethical
standards. Showing students this respect
allows them to follow suit and look to
you, the teacher and leader, as a role
model. Every morning when the student
announcer asks students to rise for the
“Pledge of Allegiance,” I would rise and
recite it as well. After, the student
announcer would ask students to remain
standing and repeat the school’s mission
statement. Instead of sitting down and
working on something else, I would remain
standing and recite the statement along
with the students. When teachers show a
high level of ethics, students are
encouraged to entertain the idea and
demonstrate it, too.

17. NCPTS #2: Teachers establish a respectful
environment for a diverse population of
students
TEACHERS PROVIDE AN ENVIRONMENT IN WHICH EACH CHILD
HAS A POSITIVE, NURTURING RELATIONSHIP WITH CARING ADULTS.
TEACHERS EMBRACE DIVERSITY IN THE SCHOOL COMMUNITY AND
IN THE WORLD.
TEACHERS TREAT STUDENTS AS INDIVIDUALS.
TEACHERS ADAPT THEIR TEACHING FOR THE BENEFIT OF
STUDENTS WITH SPECIAL NEEDS.
TEACHERS WORK COLLABORATIVELY WITH THE FAMILIES AND
SIGNIFICANT ADULTS IN THE LIVES OF THEIR STUDENTS.

18. TEACHERS PROVIDE AN ENVIRONMENT IN WHICH
EACH CHILD HAS A POSITIVE, NURTURING
RELATIONSHIP WITH CARING ADULTS
Students have a very safe, secure,
and nurturing environment in my
classroom. Each morning as students
would arrive, I would greet them with a
smile and a cheery, “Good morning!”
Instead of forcing them to be silent while
they unpacked their book bags I would
take time to ask how they were doing that
morning and let them fill me in on the
events of the prior night. Each day as
dismissal would near, I would open the
door and hold it for every child to leave,
wishing him or her a great afternoon and
letting each one know I was looking
forward to tomorrow. Some children
would even offer me hugs, which
reassured me that my relationship with
him or her was positive and caring.

19. TEACHERS EMBRACE DIVERSITY IN THE
SCHOOL COMMUNITY AND IN THE WORLD
The spring is a great time to
embrace diversity in the community and in
the world. February is “Black History
Month” and March is “Women’s History
Month.” My class did a lot of discussion
on each topic and throughout each month
did various activities to reinforce the
ideas. During the month of March, the 3rd
grade teachers and I decided in order for
the students to get a better appreciation
for significant women in history, they
should each research a woman in history
and present an oral production on said
woman. Each child was required to write a
report and make a visual diagram to
inform all 3rd graders of their researched
woman. Each 3rd grader was assigned a
different woman so there were no
overlaps. It was a great experience for
all of the 3rd graders and teachers
included!

20. TEACHERS TREAT STUDENTS AS
INDIVIDUALS
I hold very high expectations for
each individual student. I also like to let
each student know they are special and
unique in his or her own way. Every day
specials let out at 2:00 and by the time
the students arrived back to the
classroom, there was only about 15
minutes left in the day. This is the time
when I would allow my students to express
themselves and “free-write” in their
academic journals. This allowed for
individuality; I gave students the choice
of keeping it private or permitting me to
read what they had to write. If a child
chose to keep it private he or she would
leave the journal closed and away in their
pockets; if he or she wanted me to read
it, the journal would be kept open on his
or her table. On some days, I would ask
students to write their opinion and ideas
on certain classroom rules and
procedures, allowing them to have a say
and give them authority in the classroom.

21. TEACHERS ADAPT THEIR TEACHING FOR THE
BENEFIT OF STUDENTS WITH SPECIAL
NEEDS
Having a child with Autism in my classroom
broadened my appreciation for students with special
needs. I worked collaboratively with the specialists
at South Scotland to provide him with an education
that coincided with his needs. My lessons had many
levels of differentiation to meet his, and other
students with special needs, necessities. My lessons
allowed for me to work with this individual one on
one on many occasions. In order for this to work, I
allowed for student exploration in small groups while
I guided this individual’s learning. Having him seated
at a table with students who could also guide him was
very helpful.

22. TEACHERS WORK COLLABORATIVELY WITH THE FAMILIES
AND SIGNIFICANT ADULTS IN THE LIVES OF THEIR
STUDENTS
An increase of parent
involvement in academics in South
Scotland is a major goal in the School
Improvement Plan. Although parental
involvement is lacking at this school, I
worked extensively in collaborating
with the families of my students. I was
actively involved in parent-teacher
conferences and updated assignments
and activities on the class web pages to
keep parents and families informed. A
monthly newsletter was sent home for
families without internet access and
weekly packets of assignments were
sent home to be reviewed and signed
by parents in order for parents to
monitor their child’s progress and
performance.

23. NCPTS #3: Teachers know the
content they teach
TEACHERS ALIGN THEIR INSTRUCTION WITH THE NORTH
CAROLINA STANDARD COURSE OF STUDY.
TEACHERS KNOW THE CONTENT APPROPRIATE TO THEIR
TEACHING SPECIALTY.
TEACHERS RECOGNIZE THE INTERCONNECTEDNESS OF CONTENT
AREAS/DISCIPLINES.
TEACHERS MAKE INSTRUCTION RELEVANT TO STUDENTS.

24. TEACHERS ALIGN
THEIR INSTRUCTION
WITH THE NORTH
CAROLINA STANDARD
COURSE OF STUDY
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1k0qnlR
fnYA1e_QYBE1p1_m_t8fU_H8Qkzt5766ZvAM4
/edit?hl=en&authkey=COLy8v4K
Every lesson plan is
written while referring to
the North Carolina Standard
Course of Study. It is
imperative to align all lessons
to the curriculum. In my
lesson plans, the goal
numbers and the objectives
are written out at the top of
the page, along with essential
questions to go along with
them.
Here is just one example from a
reading lesson I modeled.
If you have the SmartBoard
software, you can view my slideshow
here.

25. TEACHERS KNOW THE CONTENT APPROPRIATE TO
THEIR TEACHING SPECIALTY
Before writing a lesson, I like to
become as much of an expert on the
content as I can, first. For instance,
when teaching fractions, I
researched several strategies to
teach and model it for my students.
I realized that I had forgotten some
strategies to find equivalent
fractions and even learned several
new ways, such as cross-multiplying
or folding paper to find the bigger
fraction. I not only did this with
fractions, but with every objective
that I taught my students. It is
important to know the content and be
prepared to answer any and all
questions students have. If there
were questions asked that I was
unable to answer, I would take the
time to research and find the
appropriate answer for the students
instead of just fabricating a
response.
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1N9PKTNexcjrR5gOM
v42Dj5PPAygd3-
nZM4oUBhiBG2g/edit?hl=en&authkey=CMj2vukE

26. TEACHERS RECOGNIZE THE INTERCONNECTEDNESS
OF CONTENT AREAS/DISCIPLINES
Whenever possible, I liked to
integrate as many areas as
possible, together. For instance, when
focusing on the story “Leah’s Pony” for
language arts, I connected social
studies into the lesson. I explained
the setting of the story, which was
during The Great Depression, and let
the students know that there was time
in history when farmers struggled to
keep crops growing due to a drought
and therefore ran low on money. We
watched an informational video on the
topic to increase knowledge on the
topic and then had a discussion about
the era while using the text to find
examples that proved that the story
was set during that time.

27. TEACHERS MAKE INSTRUCTION
RELEVANT TO STUDENTS
During the month of April the National Story-telling
Festival comes to Laurinburg. Students take a field trip on
the first day of the festival. In order to make my
instruction relevant to this field trip, during the month of
March, all of the stories we read in class were from the
theme “Tell Me A Story.” Among those stories were “Lon Po
Po,” “Papa Tells Chita a Story,” “Coyote Places the Stars,”
“Why Mosquitoes Buzz in People’s Ears,” and “The Crowded
House.” Before reading each story the class would discuss
why stories are told and for whom they are told. After the
field trip, students wrote their own stories and told them
to the class.
https://docs.google.com/leaf?id=0B4uO91nJLF3GN2MxYzA5MTMtOGY3Yy0
0ZTY5LWIwODItMzkwODhjNjIwMzk5&hl=en&authkey=CKjYvPoD
Below is a video from the Story-Telling Festival:

28. NCPTS#4: Teachers facilitate
learning for their students
Teachersknowthewaysinwhichlearningtakesplace,andtheyknowtheappropriate
levelsofintellectual,physical,social,andemotionaldevelopmentoftheirstudents.
Teachers plan instruction appropriate for their students.
Teachers use a variety of instructional methods.
Teachers integrate and utilize technology in their instruction.
Teachershelpstudentsdevelopcriticalthinkingandproblem-solvingskills.
Teachers help students work in teams and develop leadership qualities.
Teachers communicate effectively.
Teachersuseavarietyofmethodstoassesswhateachstudenthaslearned.

29. I understand that learning takes
place on different levels and children learn
diversely. In order to create a lesson to
meet the learning needs of all of my
students, I chose to do a lesson in division
focusing on my visual, auditory, and
kinesthetic learners. I did a small amount
of lecturing for the auditory learners, a
small amount of modeling for the visual
learners, and a hands-on approach for my
kinesthetic learners. We practiced
dividing “M&M’s” into different
groups, and in turn, learned how to divide.
TEACHERS KNOW THE WAYS IN WHICH LEARNING TAKES
PLACE, AND THEY KNOW THE APPROPRIATE LEVELS OF
INTELLECTUAL, PHYSICAL, SOCIAL, AND EMOTIONAL
DEVELOPMENT OF THEIR STUDENTS

30. TEACHERS PLAN INSTRUCTION
APPROPRIATE FOR THEIR STUDENTS
Planning with the rest of the 3rd grade
team was a tremendous advantage to
keeping instruction appropriate for each
student. I was able to discuss with team
members and bounce various ideas off of
them to aid my lessons for each student.
My fellow teachers had never taught 3rd
grade before so they knew some of my
students from grades prior and were able
to clue me in on different learning styles
and interests.

31. One way to use a variety of
instructional methods is to do whole
group learning and then break it down
into small groups. Every day for
language arts I would do about 5-10
minutes of whole group instruction and
then break down into what we called
“The Daily Three” which is a revised
version of Gail Boushey and Joan
Moser’s “The Daily Five.” Students
would choose between three learning
centers while I would pull a
homogeneous learning group for small
group instruction. This allowed for
differentiation while the rest of the
students could conduct other learning
by practicing
fluency, comprehension, writing, and
phonics.
TEACHERS USE A VARIETY OF
INSTRUCTIONAL METHODS
Read to Someone

32. I was blessed with being placed in a classroom
with a SmartBoard. This luxury allowed me to
conduct many lessons technologically. By doing
so, the students could get actively involved in the
lessons. I presented one lesson on grids using the
SmartBoard and the students were able to create a
picture using designated colors and placing them into
the appropriate coordinate. This was a great way to
get all students to participate and still use
differentiation; when students were called on and
were unsure of where to place their shape, other
students were there to support them and lead them
to the correct spot!
TEACHERS INTEGRATE AND UTILIZE
TECHNOLOGY IN THEIR INSTRUCTION
If you have SmartBoard technology, you may view the activity here!

33. Every lesson of mine
includes higher order thinking
questions to promote higher
order thinking skills. These
questions are actively used
throughout each day; when a
question is asked by a student, I
redirect the question with
another question that will require
the student to use critical
thinking or problem-solving skills.
Small group instruction is a
perfect time to target these
questions on students, forcing
them to make connections to the
objective we are discussing.
Using these questions is also a
great way to informally assess
students comprehension.
TEACHERS HELP STUDENTS DEVELOP CRITICAL
THINKING AND PROBLEM-SOLVING SKILLS

34. Students work in teams and develop leadership qualities
everyday in my classroom, whether they are aware of it or not.
Students are seated at tables and each table elects a “table captain” to
do various tasks for his or her table. Grouping students
heterogeneously at tables for regular seating arrangements allows
students to engage and interact with each other at all times of the day.
Sitting in groups also promotes social skills that need to continuously
develop throughout students’ lives. Collaborating with each other when
working on certain activities can help lead to new discoveries and views
that a student may not have seen but his or her table teammate may
have.
TEACHERS HELP STUDENTS WORK IN TEAMS AND
DEVELOP LEADERSHIP QUALITIES

35. Communicating effectively with my
students is a quality I stress. I have
felt, first hand, what it is like to be confused
and out of the loop. It is important to make
expectations clear to students and speak to
them on a level that they can understand.
Effective communication may not always be
verbal but can be physical, too. On several
occasions, in order to effectively communicate
the requirements of an activity, I would model
a finalized version and post it in the classroom
so the students could reference back to it if
they were unsure of any aspect.
TEACHERS COMMUNICATE
EFFECTIVELY

36. I was fortunate enough to go
through an NC Falcon development
session on informal and formal
assessments. This session informed me
on several strategies I can use in the
classroom to quickly assess students’
comprehension and understanding. One
way I assessed my students was to use
a method called “muddiest point.” When
finished with their class work, students
were told to write in their academic
journals the one point in the lesson that
confused them the most or that they
did not fully understand. I took the
time to read each child’s response and
reflected on each thought; I then
focused my future lessons on the
students’ “muddiest points.”
TEACHERS USE A VARIETY OF METHODS TO
ASSESS WHAT EACH STUDENT HAS LEARNED

37. NCPTS #5: Teachers
reflect on their practice
TEACHERS ANALYZE STUDENT LEARNING.
TEACHERS LINK PROFESSIONAL GROWTH TO
THEIR PROFESSIONAL GOALS.
TEACHERS FUNCTION EFFECTIVELY IN A
COMPLEX, DYNAMIC ENVIRONMENT.

38. I am a firm believer that
analyzing students’ learning is vital to
their progression. During my
experience, after the 3rd nine weeks
benchmark, I assessed students on
their knowledge of measurement by
having them take a pre-test on
mathematics goal 2. I then took the
results of the test and analyzed what
objectives I needed to focus on in
order to prepare my students for the
end of grade test. After all
instruction was complete, I then did a
comprehensive test to assess how
each child compared with their
results from the pre-test to the
post-test; finally, I calculated at
what level each student would fall if
this were the end of grade test.
TEACHERS ANALYZE STUDENT
LEARNING
If you have access to SmartBoard technology you
may view my lessons here:
Lesson 1: Length
Lesson 2: Weight
Lesson 3: Capacity
Lesson 4: Time & Temp.
If you have access to Adobe Acrobat you may
view the pre/post tests here:
Pre-Test
Post-Test
5 5
8
0
3
0
1
8
7
5
EOG Testing Levels
Pre-Test Post-Test

39. Throughout my student teaching
internship I have grown a tremendous amount
professionally and am now more confident that
I can reach my goals. Being actively involved
in SSMT and IEP meetings was a true eye-
opener for me. I never imagined the amount
of careful documentation and planning that
goes into this process. However, I’m glad I
got to witness all of the interventions and
meetings that are involved because it gave me
a deep understanding of the process and
procedures to take to get my students the
needs they deserve.
TEACHERS LINK PROFESSIONAL GROWTH TO
THEIR PROFESSIONAL GOALS

40. The education world is an
ever-changing world. In order to
function in this complex teaching
society I research new ideas to
help me better teach my
students. Learning new
thoughts, like “The Daily Five,”
was very encouraging and the
students seemed to love it. They
love being able to make their own
decisions and have direct
attention on them when in small
groups. During my career, I will
always be open to any ideas and
strategies that are available
because just like everything
else, the ways students learn
change, too!
TEACHERS FUNCTION EFFECTIVELY IN A
COMPLEX, DYNAMIC ENVIRONMENT

41. Bridging the Gaps
Student teaching was so enjoyable and an eye-opening
experience all in one. One strength that I did not realize that I
possessed is my flexibility. Sometimes lessons would go shorter
than planned but somehow I managed to create new activities to
keep the students engaged and using their brains; or, if a
strategy I am teaching does not seem to be working, I realized
that I am capable of coming up with new strategies that may
come easier to my students.
Although I believe my experience went terrific
overall, there are many changes that I will make when I have my
own students and classroom. One aspect of teaching that may
need a little tweak is my knowledge of technology and resources.
However, this is easily fixable; there are so many different
websites online to help new teachers out and coworkers are
always willing to lend a helping hand. I would also like to become
more familiar with the SmartBoard technology; even though I
used it everyday, I feel as if there is an abundance of other
activities I can use it for and I would love to learn all about
them.

42. Reflecting On This Experience
Thinking ahead to the future, I am concerned
with the way education will be viewed. So many
times I hear teachers being bashed and complaints
about teacher salary, for outsiders view teachers
merely as “babysitters.” Although there is not much
I can personally do about these issues, I will strive
to achieve my utmost in the classroom and schools
every single day. Each child is a blessing and just
like a snowflake- not one is exactly the same, and
each child will represent our future one day. I feel a
need to reach every student I teach on a level that
will point out how important education is. If all
teachers would visualize classrooms like this, I
believe there would be nothing left to be said by the
naysayers.

43. Reaching Every Child
In order to reach every child, I must
get to know each one as an individual. Not
all children learn the same and each comes
from a different background, so it is
crucial to be aware of the learning styles
each child possesses. Lesson plans that
include differentiation and higher order
thinking questioning, and focus on not just
one learning style, but many, will help me
reach each student, one at a time.

44. More Than Just an Educator
I believe that being an educator
assumes many roles. One must
teach, lead, nurture, delegate, and guide.
Providing a safe environment for every
child is one hundred percent necessary. If
a child doesn’t feel at home in my
classroom then there is no way I can
expect him or her to learn or even want to
learn. Once each child feels like he or she
belongs in the world and believes that he
or she will have a bright future full of
success, that’s when true learning can take
place!