Memorable experiences from the short practicum

First lesson:

One of my most memorable experiences during the short practicum was my very first lesson. I was teaching a grade 11 math class on the quadratic equation. Leading up to it, I was planning the lesson and decided to make them do 2 things: allow them to formulate the equation for themselves (by nudging them in the right direction of course) and also have an activity where they race to find solutions of x, with one side being able to use the quadratic formula and the other side had to anything but the formula. I alloted about 30-40 mins for the entire thing along with examples during the lesson. But as I started teaching, I quickly fell behind time-wise as students weren't able to get the formula themselves. I had a few students get close to it, but eventually I guided them through the process in front of the entire class. The amount of time spent on the formula did not allow for me to do the race as I had to give more examples and discuss properties of the formula. Though the lesson was far from what I imagined it to be, I did gain some valuable experience and also found that I really did enjoy teaching and interacting with the students.

Fight:

Another memorable experience I had was sitting in on an applications Math class. It was interesting to see the difference in what was being taught in this class and also the difference in classroom management issues the teacher had to deal with. But in this particular class, a fight broke out between 2 male students. Though it was terrible that I fight broke out, it was interesting to see how the teacher handled it, splitting them up right away and sending them to the office, separately. Because of the fight, it made me think about how I would have handled it and the importance of just getting them away from each other right away. I obviously would send them to the principal's office, but when I thought of what I'd do, I would probably go with them, together. This would likely increase tension between them. So it was nice to see how this teacher handled it and even how she discussed it openly in class afterwards.