Bonnie C. Walker
Educator
Field Observations
Calebs Creek Elementary School
Kernersville, NC
Speas Elementary School
Winston-Salem, NC
Student Teaching
Meadowlark Elementary School
Winston-Salem, NC
Even before my first year of teaching in Knoxville, TN, I was fortunate enough to have various opportunities to be involved in various classrooms around the greater Winston-Salem area while studying at Wake Forest University. Beyond my experiences in Knoxville and Winston-Salem, I have also had other opportunities to work with children in an educational setting. All of these experiences have played a part of contributing to my identity as a teacher and the classroom I desire to create.
In the Fall of 2013 I completed my student teaching in a kindergarten classroom at Meadowlark Elementary School. Throughout the semester I was responsible for the classroom management, lesson planning, and instruction of the 23 students in my class.
This experience truly helped form my practical outlook for life as a first year teacher. I learned the importance of time management, formative assessment, and flexibility.
Over my four years at Wake Forest, I have been able to observe many different classrooms in many different schools spanning the range of elementary grades. In Spring 2012 I observed kindergarten and fifth grade and in the Spring of 2013 I observed third grade.
Throughout my observations, I became aware of how vital it is to have specialized instruction to meet individual students' needs
Through Commission Camping International, I spent ten days in Arraijan, a small city just outside of Panama City. We spent the first five days in the town cultivating relationships with a team of leaders at a local church. The next five days were spent in the Panamanian countryside instituting a summer camp program for the children of Arraijan.
Being in such a foreign culture, I learned quickly what it meant to be out of my element. This taught me the importance of striving for excellence even if the circumstances were unfamiliar to me. It also showed me how vital it is to consider the wide degree of backgrounds that can be in a classroom in order to make instruction relevent to all students.
Over the course of three consecutive summers, I had the opportunity to work with elementary aged students in the camp setting. Students ranged from ages 6 - 11 and could attend a week of day camp or stay for a week of overnight camp. I was tasked with caring for a group of 6 - 8 girls throughout each week, building relationships with them, fostering personal, intellectual, and spiritual growth, and creating unity among the group.
My time as a counselor showed me the true capacity that children have to learn and grow. I saw first hand their unique insight and understanding as well as their unique approach to the world around them.
Commission Camping International
Arraijan, Panama
Pine Cove Summer Camp
Pine Cove Camps
Tyler, TX
Professional Experiences
First Grade Teacher
Fountain City Elementary School
Knoxville, TN
During the 2014 - 2015 school year I have had the pleasure of teaching first grade at Fountain City Elementary. As a first grade teacher I was responsible for lesson planning, student accountability, instructional differentiation, and behavior management. While at FCE, I have been involved on several event committees, was in charge of the First Grade News, and was Co-Grade Level Chair.
This year has taught me so much about accountability and monitoring student growth at every step. I have also come to value the importance of meeting every student's needs, wherever they may be.