2 more characteristics and artifacts

Characteristic 2 says that the novice teacher should be an effective communicator. Communication is key in any form of a relationship, from personal to professional. A teacher must be an effective communicator with his or her students in order to become an effective teacher. If a teacher does not talk with students, the teacher will not be able to tell what the students think works well and what does not. Communicating with students will allow teachers to modify lessons to match students' needs. Teachers need to communicate with their coworkers in order to gain constructive criticism. Teachers need to communicate with parents in order to make sure students are receiving the support they might require.
Artifacts for this characteristic could include letters to students' parents or e-mail correspondence. Also, things where students give feedback to the teacher can be included.Other artifacts could be notes from a PLC meeting or even an IEP meeting agenda.

Characteristic 10 is quoted as "We believe that the novice teacher should be liberally educated." To me, this means that a teacher is creative, flexible, and well-versed in a variety of subjects. Some students may struggle with learning certain concepts, so by being able to Teach across the Curriculum, a teacher may be able to present an idea in an inventive way utilizing another subject that helps the students gain a deeper understanding.
One artifact that I personally could include for both characteristics would be my lesson plans for a recent Pi Day celebration I taught at my school. Instead of continuing through to a new lesson after my students took a test, I decided to celebrate Pi Day (albeit a day late) in order to give them time to recuperate but still learn something. Instead of having students try to memorize the digits of pi or explain the history and have them to practice problems, I created interactive activities that incorporated English as well as Music. Some of the activities included in my lesson plan are:

• Read "Sir Cumference and the Dragon of Pi" - reading comprehension
• Create a Pi-ku (haiku about pi or using a 3-1-4 scheme)- English skills, creative writing
• load http://avoision.com/experiments/pi10k. This is an interactive website where students can assign a musical note to a number. When played, the computer would go through the digits of pi, playing the associated note with it, creating an original composition. -Music Education