Taylor Gates
EDU 1010
Professional Portfolio
Resume
Taylor Gates
Objective
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To maintain a position that benefits the employer.
Very flexible, hardworking, and enjoys working with people.
Help to create a well working environment with fellow employees.
Give helpful and positive customer service.
Accomplishments
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Involved in many art shows and county fairs.
Involved in two science fairs with excellent scores.
Volunteer work for the Muscular Dystrophy Association Camp in 2007-2009.
Volunteer at Hanna Holbrook Elementary in Bountiful, UT during fall of 2011.
Education
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Farmington Jr. High; Farmington, UT.
South Davis Jr. High; Bountiful, UT.
Graduate of Woods Cross High School 2008; Woods Cross, UT.
Currently attending Salt Lake Community College, Redwood Campus since fall 2008.
Employment
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Local Babysitter.
Worked as a casher for Taco Time from July 2006-January 2008.
Worked for Winegars at the bakery from April 2008-December 2009.
Worked once again at Taco Time as a cashier from August 2010-May 2011
Currently employed as a cashier at Fresh Market since April of 2011
Writing Sample
The fog grew thicker as Shalla and Vera continued their slow climb up the rocky slopes.
Fresh snow covered every tree, branch, and boulder they passed; they could hardly hear the
sounds of their own footsteps. Shalla slumped weakly against Vera’s shoulder as her strength
continued to drain from her.
“My Queen, do you need to rest?” Vera asked and she readjusted her hold on Shalla’s
arm which was draped over her own shoulder. Shalla shook her head in response, “No, we must
continue, I fear we won’t be able to press on if we stop now.” Vera looked upon her Queen with
worried eyes, if they hadn’t lost the horses to that frozen river, they could have made it to their
destination by now, and Shalla would have been spared the wound she had received on her leg.
Less than a day had passed since they had been ambushed by two assassins, intent on
killing them. Shalla had fought valiantly and was victorious in the short battle, but not before
she had sustained a deep cut in her right leg by one of the enemy swords. Since then they had
been climbing through these mountains to find an old friend of hers, someone whom she thought
could help.
Vera stole another glance at Shalla; most of her head and face was covered by the thick
fur traveling cloak she wore to protect her from the bitter cold, but Vera could clearly see the
dread and worry in her emerald green eyes. She has every right to be worried, Vera thought.
The widowed Queen had had several attempts on her life in the past few months after the
untimely death of her husband. Shalla of course was one of the bravest souls that Vera had ever
known; she was sure that the Queen would have stayed at the palace if the assassins hadn’t
threatened anyone else. But that is exactly what had happened. Ralef, head of council and one
of the Shalla’s closest friends nearly lost his life when he took an arrow that was meant for her.
Vera looked forward into the empty grey void which stretched ahead for who knew how
long. She could feel the weight of her Queen bear down on her, but she couldn’t show
weakness, it was her duty to help her Queen as best as she could. There was a sudden lurch as
Shalla’s foot came in contact with a hidden branch beneath the snow and she stumbled forward.
Vera almost lost a hold of her but managed to pull her back to her feet.
“Curse this leg of mine!” Shalla exclaimed as she regained her footing. Then there came
a small cry from within the thick wraps of her cloak. She gave a quick glance towards Vera. “I
had hoped he would sleep a bit longer.” They both stood there for a moment when Vera
motioned with her head toward a couple of small boulders protruding from beneath the blanket
of snow, “My Queen, maybe we should take this opportunity to rest for just a little while,” Shalla
pondered for a moment as the small cries beneath her cloak, muffled as they were, continued to
elevate in tone. She gave a small sigh.
“Very well, but it cannot be long; we must press forward before dusk.” Vera looked
again at their surroundings. It was nearly impossible to tell where the sun was or any other
celestial markers in the skies. She left Shalla standing by a nearby tree and she proceeded to
clear snow away so that Shalla would have a suitable resting place. “Now, now Vera,” Shalla
called from behind, “we’re only staying for a short time, you don’t need to make camp.” Vera
turned towards her, “With all due respect your high-” “Enough with the formalities Vera,”
Shalla said cutting her off mid-sentence, “you may call me by my name here; we’re not at home
you know.”
“Well…” Vera hesitated, “you are injured. You might as well be comfortable your highuh, Shalla.”
“See? That wasn’t so hard.” Shalla smiled. She really hated formalities; in truth she
didn’t think she was any different from Vera. Who knows, if fate had decided to twist reality,
she could very well be the one making a place for her Queen to rest at this very moment; and
Vera could be standing here holding her infant son on one good leg. She could now feel him
squirming inside the sling hanging around her shoulder and under one arm.
Carefully she undid the leather ties around the collar of her cloak and lifted the thick
layers of cloth to reveal the tiny wide-eyed face of her one month year-old son. She looked
down at him with nothing less of motherly affection. He gazed up at her with his big golden
brown eyes; the same eyes he had inherited from his father. It pained her to think of her lost
love; and it pained her even more to know that their son would never know his father.
The infant started showing signs of protest of his current position by kicking his tiny legs
which were tightly wrapped in thick blankets. Shalla didn’t dare let more than his face to be
exposed to the wintry air. She knew it was extremely foolish to bring a baby, barely a month
old, out into this icy wilderness. But it would have been even more foolish had she stayed at the
palace where he was also in danger. She had to get him to safety before she could return to her
country where she was needed.
Shalla looked up from her son to see that Vera was placing thick blankets down on the
trodden snow. “This should do my Quee-Shalla.” Vera stuttered. Shalla shook her head in
amusement. Vera stood and helped her to sit down on the blankets. “If you would like, I could
get a small fire going and I can heat up some of the goats’ milk for the young prince.”
“You may call him by his name.” Shalla insisted.
“Very well then,” Vera smiled down at the tiny infant within the folds of thick blankets,
“Are you hungry Harell?” The baby looked up at her with wide, curious eyes. “I’ll take that as a
‘yes’.”
Shalla waited patiently as Vera wandered into the nearby trees to gather kindling and
wood for the fire. She rubbed her sore leg and looked out at the landscape which seemed to be
clearing of the fog. She could begin to see far off mountain tops in the distance. However
movement caught her attention and her heart rate began to quicken as she saw five figures in the
distance. Quickly she whistled two short notes and not a minute passed when Vera was at her
side. They both hid themselves inside a grove of thick trees.
“More assassins?” Vera breathed in a panicky whisper. Shalla nodded in silent response.
No one else in her court knew of her departure and these assassins were dressed the same way as
the other two just the day before. Each wore a small travel bag across their backs along with
daggers, swords, and bows and arrows. There was no doubt that they were following their trail.
Shalla could not take on four by herself with a wounded leg, and Vera wasn’t a fighter, she had
never been trained in combat.
In that moment, Shalla knew what needed to be done and she began to take off her thick
cloak. Vera watched in surprise.
“Shalla, what are you doing?” Vera asked as she watched her mistress unstrapping the
sling from around her.
“Take off your cloak.” Shalla said as she laid Harell and his thick blankets down under a
sheltered pine tree. Vera obeyed and took off her thick traveling cloak so that only her longsleeved tunic and traveling clothes protected her from the frigid air. Shalla then picked up Harell
and started strapping his sling around Vera.
“Wait! What are you doing?!” Vera protested.
“You need to go I’m only slowing you down.” Shalla said as she tightened the straps on
Harell’s sling. Vera grabbed Shalla by the wrist halting her progress.
“No, you’re coming with me!”
“If we both go, they’ll notice us. I’ll draw their attention away from you but you must
leave. I couldn’t bear it if they captured or killed you or my child.” Shalla finished strapping the
sling and then proceeded to tie Vera’s cloak back around her. “Baltor’s hut isn’t far from here
you only need to follow the gorge for five more miles.” Shalla instructed.
Vera was terrified; she could not believe what her Queen was saying. “I…I won’t leave
you here to fight them off…I’ll fight with you.” Vera tried to sound brave but fear was drenched
in every word she spoke. Shalla gave her a sad smile. Would this be the last time she would see
her friend? She then removed a glove from her right hand and took a ring from her finger.
“Vera I’m counting on you to give my message to Baltor,” she placed the ring on one of
her Vera’s fingers, “give this to him, he’ll know it’s from me.” Shalla replaced Vera’s glove on
her hand. “Keep my son safe.” Tears began to form in Vera’s eyes as she looked at her mistress.
“Will I ever see you again?”
“If not in this life, then the next.” Shalla answered simply. Vera could not contain
herself any longer and she leaned forward and hugged Shalla as tightly as she could. “Good luck
Shalla.”
“Goodbye my dear friend.”
Classroom Management Plan
There are many factors to classroom management. I have been able to observe in my
volunteer work that a well-organized system of classroom management brings about the best in
each of the students both individually and as a whole. I will elaborate more on the layout of the
classroom, the activities that were available to the students, and how they managed their time
when they were given some free time.
First off: the layout of the class room. I found that the teacher had made it possible to
maximize space for the students by arranging the desks in several V formations so that the
students could walk around the classroom with more ease, and they could also get to and from
their own designated seats with no problem. One of the students had a broken leg, so her needs
were met by placing her on an aisle seat so that she could elevate her leg properly on a spare
chair. The actual seating arrangement for the students was boy girl, boy girl, so there was an
equal mix of both male and female students. They had well organized slots in the back of the
classroom where they could turn in their work, and the teacher was well organized as to how the
assignments were handed out and received.
The many activities in the class included math, reading, science, etc. During math
sessions, the teacher would use an overhead to project math problems onto the screen. She
would go through some examples and give adequate feedback and explanations as to how to do
each problem. Once she was done, she would turn the time to her students so that they could
finish their assignments on their own. If they had any questions, they were instructed to go the
teacher for help where she would give them extra instruction. While the students were reading,
she would sometimes read aloud to the class and they would read along. Of course she also had
them pair up and read to each other, if she had papers to grade. I also found that she had a fun
way of relating a certain chapter of the book to an art project where the students could make a
map as to what they believed the underworld looked like (They were reading “The Lightning
Thief).
How the students managed their time when the teacher allowed them some spare time
also reflected on how the teacher as an individual dealt with her classroom. She made sure that
the students had plenty of work to do. Even when they were finished with catching up on their
assignments, she made it so that they would always be busy by giving them a book to read, or a
spare activity to keep themselves from getting bored.
I found the volunteer work to be both informative and stimulating on how I should
manage my future classroom when I become a teacher. I’ve learned that when the classroom is
well managed, it runs more efficiently and with fewer distractions from those students who
would disrupt the class if they had the opportunity to do so. Keeping the students in line helps
along with the management of the class.
Assessing Student Learning
When it comes to assessing student learning, I find that it is essential for the lesson to be
understood in order for the student to get the most out of the criteria. I have seen many teachers
that lecture and expect their students to understand it the first time, but this is not always the
case. There are those certain students that need an encouraging push in the right direction so that
they are able to understand the subject matter better.
I have found in my personal experience that a student learns the best when he/she can
easily relate to the subject matter, for example: A student who likes history will probably do well
in their history class, and a student who loves math, will also do so as well. Many of my
teachers from elementary to the present have always gone over certain criteria in their own
unique ways and they also have their own views on how to assess their students’ progress.
One of my teachers from fifth grade would take our math papers once we had completed
them. She would then go over each assignment and mark the ones we got wrong. She would
then tally which questions were missed the most and then she would go over it again with more
detail the following day. I have found this particular method to be very useful when it came to
learning certain problems that I had previously had trouble with.
There are some instances where the classroom is graded as a whole or a school as a
whole. I personally don’t think this type of assessment is the best that could be done. The
students should be assessed individually and over an extent of the years that they attend school.
They should not be judged by a singular test that they could choke on and get a poor grade.
Children’s Literature Activity/Lesson Plan
Name: Taylor Gates
Date Given: 9/28/2011
Book Title: “Officer Buckle and Gloria”
Author: Peggy Rathmann
Why did you choose this book? I loved this book when I was a kid. It really helped me to look
out for dangerous situations.
UtahState Standard: Responsible Healthy Lifestyles 3-6; Objective 2 a-c.
Objective (s): Students will be able to learn safety skills by avoiding potential dangers.
Materials: Book, and star handouts.
Background for Teachers: None.
Intended Learning Outcomes: (same as objectives) Students will be able to identify dangerous
situations and learn how to deal with or avoid them.
Instructional Procedures:
1-Read the story to the class.
2-Have the students create their own personal safety tip with the star handouts.
3-Have a few students share their safety tips.
4-Have the students take the safety tip home for them to keep and put on their fridge.
Family Connections: (take home activity)
1-Have the students take the safety tip home for them to put on their wall or fridge and
share it with their families.
Assessment Plan: (how do you plan to assess whether or not students gained the
skill/concept?) Students will complete their own safety tips, and share it with the class
before taking their own personalized safety tips home.
Philosophy on Education
No one will argue against the fact that education is important to everyone. It is especially
important to the young minds of the children as they attend their local schools. Of course it is
left to us, the teachers and parents, to enrich their minds in the ways we ourselves were taught in
our youth. We need to take great care in the education of the future generation, because it is they
who will be growing up in a much more challenging world than we were brought up in.
I believe that when it comes to teaching, the teacher and the parents should be equally
involved. The students themselves should be able to rely on their parents for emotional and
motivational stability, while the teacher provides them with opportunities to learn and grow in
other ways. It is the responsibility of the parents to provide for their child. Yes they need to
feed, clothe them, and give them a home, but they must also be able to provide their child with
caring affection and love. The teachers themselves, while they may not be responsible to care
for the student in the same way as their parents, have other responsibilities; such as providing
stimulating opportunities for the students to excel in their educational growth. The teacher
should almost be like a second parent, because they are responsible for the student for hours at a
time.
I find it rather disheartening to find a teacher or parent who does not put enough effort
into the proper care and education that is required for the student/child. Not only does it reflect
badly on how they raise/teach their child/student, but it usually results in the child’s studies and
how they learn. A child who is neglected at home will not be able to learn efficiently in school,
and a student who has a bad or short-tempered teacher will only dislike their schooling.
If both the parents and teachers are involved with the education of their child/student,
then they will further be able to bring about the full potential of that young individual.