Wednesday, May 8

Today I focused on instructional strategies.  The teacher started with an intro slip and a turn and talk.  This was a good way to get the kids focused, and they seemed engaged.  The math lesson continued with direct instruction.  Students started out engaged and on task.  As I took notes and watched the lesson, students began to get more fidgety.  It was a longer math day (we have three full math days a week and two are cut short), and I could tell that the students were getting antsy and needed a change of pace.  Part of the lesson was pouring water into different sized containers to show the relationship between different unit of measurement.  This was exciting for them and the teacher let them call out a bit more, but they were still moving around quite a bit.  Start to finish, the teacher was using direct instruction for about an hour.  I liked that the students had an engaging experiment to watch, but I felt that kids should have been able to get up or talk to each other at some point instead of trying to focus for so long.  One way that I thought this could be done was by adding some checking for understanding.  Having students take a break in their focus to reflect either verbally, in writing, or perhaps with some body movement would be a great way to integrate these two things. 

This was of course not the case for the whole day.  During reading, the teacher started with the students on the carpet.  They then split into groups based on how they voted on candy bars.  They usually only work in groups at their table spots with the same four people, so this was a nice way to switch it up.  There were some small issues with the groups-one group had six people, but they all worked well together and typically stay on task.  Another group consisted of four boys who are notorious for messing around during class.  I sat with this group, and although there was some difficulty staying on task, I think switching the groups was good for them.  Students gain a lot from working with people they are not used to. 

Using my checklist at the end of my observation sheet, one additional thing I think could be stronger is ‘make directions and expectations clear’.  Often there are added pieces to directions or an unclear expectation going along with them.  In my next focus on instructional strategies, I would like to switch things up and focus on either questioning or directions (how they are given, how students react, how the teacher reacts to students). 

Questions of the day: How much contact do you have with caregivers? Do most come to conferences?  Do you see them outside of conferences frequently?

At the first set of conferences, all caregivers came.  At the second set, all but two came and one of those did a phone conference.  There was only one student whose caregivers the teacher did not have contact with.  She said that outside of conferences, she doesn’t really see them unless they come to events that she also happens to be at.  She also said she used to do newsletters but hasn’t in a while.  The first week I was there, I did see one parent come in and chat with her child and the teacher.  At a music concert last week, a couple of parents came in and the teacher conversed comfortably with them.  She seemed to know what was happening in the family (new baby, a mom got a haircut, mom is pregnant).  It was nice to see her naturally keep up to date with the goings on of the families.  Other than that, she also converses with parents of certain students about behavior.  There are two or three students she has weekly contact with, and one who she has had daily contact with until just recently.  She also said she tries to contact for positives, although that doesn’t happen as often as she’d like. 

Tuesday, May 7

Today I observed for management strategies.  I think my observations may be getting a little shorter because I'm helping out during lessons more instead of taking notes.  During math, I noticed a lot of attention to materials management.  The students were using cubes to get more experience with volume.      Instead of giving students a bag of cubes, the teacher separated them all out beforehand so each pair of students had exactly 36.  This helped save time, as students weren't counting out their 36 cubes a bunch of times.  It also decreased extra cubes for the students to play with.  The only issue with this was when a pair dropped or lost a cube.  There were many directions surrounding the materials, such as "don't open the bag yet" "the bag should be in the middle of the table" "take turns stacking for volume".  I also marked using cubes with partners in instructional strategies.  This was a good way to vary from direct instruction, and the students were very engaged with the activity.

I also observed mostly for behavior management when another teacher came into the room for the reading lesson.  Mr. C. has a totally different way of managing the students than Mrs. L. does.  He has a much calmer attitude overall, all always brings that to the students.  He uses the same procedures as the rest of the school, such as the take a break chair, show five, going to the buddy room, etc.  He does this all very calmly though.  For example, a student who is off task gets a reminder that is firm yet spoken slowly and calmly.  He uses the tactic of stopping the class until everyone is on task.  During the lesson, a student was very antsy on the floor.  Mr. C. walked over in front of him and stopped the lesson, then said, "Do you need to take a break?  I am only in here for fifteen minutes a day.  I would think you could manage to behave for that long.  Are you ready to listen to your friend now?  You’re being disrespectful."  This was all said calmly but in a serious tone.  I thought it was very effective, especially for a student who is bouncing off the walls.  He also was using the popcorn method for reading out loud.  The students were just not able to do it, and were listening and not really following along.  Instead of getting mad as Mrs. L. may have, he said, "You are all not following along and don't know where we are.  Show me you're listening, but I will read because you aren't able to."  While I would have liked to see him persevere with this, I liked how he handled himself in the situation.  He was still very calm, and still needed student engagement because they were doing predictions, but didn't yell or get upset.  This is a management strategy I have not seen used a lot in classrooms, and I think it's a nice change for the students, and a new tactic I am unfamiliar with that seems effective in a lot of ways.

I am not sure if this would work with me.  I think Mrs. L.'s management is effective in a lot of ways, as is Mr. C.'s.  It works for them because it goes with their personalities.  I think I should try some of Mr. C.'s method to see if it works.  I guess I am not yet sure what coincides with my personality best yet.  This is very interesting to think about, and I think I might try observing someone else with a different personality, perhaps someone on the calmer side, or someone sillier to see what they do.  

Tomorrow I will be: observing instructional strategies, working with the yellow reading group, case study work.

Question of the day: What was the most challenging for you at the beginning of your career?
Mrs. L. said that the biggest challenge for her was being in a totally new area.  She had just moved to Texas, so she didn't really have contacts to help her start everything off.  It took some time to develop relationships with her colleagues and with the area in general.  It was an adjustment period, but as time went on she developed a lot of relationships that lasted for many years, and ended up continuing after she moved back to Minnesota.  Another challenge was getting used to the curriculum.  She was unfamiliar with the curriculum when she started, and ironing out the little quirks of it took time.  As the year progressed this got better and easier, but year after year there were always improvements.  Working through curriculum difficulties is still a challenge for her, and something that keeps improving as she gets more and more familiar with it each year.

Monday, May 6

Checking for Understanding

I was able to observe three lessons today, start to finish.  The first was math, where students were exploring weight.  The second was writing in which students were learning about writing reviews of places and things.  The last lesson was reading, where students were working on making and changing predictions as they read.  The first two lessons were taught by my host teacher and the last was taught by a ELL and reading specialist in the building who comes to the room three days a week.

I didn't observe a lot of checking for understanding in all three of these lessons.  During math, there was definitely one time when the teacher checked for understanding.  She asked a question to do this.  After explaining the difference between metric and US weight units, she asked if 600 grams was heavier than one pound.  The student who was called on responded with silence, then "...What?"  The teacher made the assumption that the student hadn't been paying attention (which could definitely be true).  Another student answered and seemed to guess between yes and no.  When the teacher revealed the answer, a number of students cheered that they got it.  I also heard a lot of "darn"s.  It seemed like students may have just picked yes or no.  The teacher gave an explanation for the answer, as provided by Everyday Math. This was the only time I caught a specific time when the teacher checked for understanding.  There was also a small activity where the students had to come up with examples of things that could be weighed with a specific type of scale (ex: produce scale weighs grapes and apples).  This was sort of checking for understanding, but it was also coming up with examples rather than making sure students were understanding the material.

During reading, the only thing I wrote down on my template was a turn and talk at the beginning of the lesson.  This seemed sort of review of a lesson they had done weeks ago.  It was checking for understanding of the previous lesson, but mostly a warm-up for this lesson.  This was a mini-lesson, so it was shorter and didn't have as much new information as a full lesson.

During writing, checking for understanding was done mostly through having students share their predictions.  They also offered edits to their previous predictions.  I thought this was somewhat effective, but it didn't really get at all of the students.  Predicting is something students have a lot of experience with, but I felt that changing their predictions should have been made a stronger point in the lesson.  There were only a few students who shared their changed predictions.  It was interesting to hear what they had to say, but I am wondering if there was a way more students could participate in this and focus not on the predictions, but the process.  I think something as simple as having students share with each other in response to a question about the lesson's point.  Ex: As we read, what happens to the predictions we made at the beginning of the story?  How does it help us understand the story?  In addition, after this, students could answer the question: Did our predictions from the beginning of the story change?  What changed or strengthened them?

Overall, I was looking for a few more instances where the teacher checked for understanding, especially in math with the brand new material.  I will continue to look for this throughout the week, especially on Thursday.

Tomorrow I will be: observing for management strategies, one reading group, working with case studies (especially N).

Question of the Day

After teaching for 17 years, what do you still hope to develop?  

I happened to ask this question (predetermined, not thought up on the spot) after a crazy dismissal.  The students were amped up for some reason, which may have influenced the teacher's initial response.  She responded after about two seconds saying "Patience."  Even outside of the circumstances, I think this is something all teachers always struggle with.  In many of my fieldwork placements, I have seen the teacher get frustrated at some point or another.  Especially in my extended placements where I have spent a significant amount of the school day in one room, I think teachers get frustrated more often than I anticipated as a grade school student.  I have even talked with professors in college who get frustrated often.  Patience is a huge part of the job.  Teachers are an overwhelmingly patient group.  I think patience is a good thing to work on throughout a career, however it is also wise to realize that frustration happens with students, and that it is something to acknowledge, work through, and manage. The second thing my teacher discussed was how to better teach the curriculum in the district.  She struggles with abiding by the curriculum, and even after being in Minnesota with the current curriculum for a while, still is finding ways to improve it for her students.

Annenberg Video 3, Friday May 3

Program 1. Building a Community of Writers

As you watch, look for the following key practices:

•   Teachers model respect for writing and writers.

One thing I wanted to comment on during this section was the importance morning meeting played in a lot of the example classrooms.  It was often a way for students to get to know each other better, and to be involved in one another’s lives.  It also let the teacher know more about the students and struggles they may be having.  It is fascinating to me that, although this video discussed writing workshop, it started by talking about classroom community as a whole.  Teaching students to respect each other and to have a strong sense of community is where it begins.  The video mentioned a number of times that students need to feel safe with their writing and sharing, or they will not take risks.  As a writer myself, I know that that is crucial to sharing work, and to taking chances in that work. 

•   Teachers schedule adequate time for writing and writing instruction.

•   Teachers provide multiple opportunities for community members to talk about their lives and their writing.

These two points are interrelated.  I thought the emphasis the video put on collaboration was also interesting.  At one point, it mentions that workshops are a messy place.  I love the idea of kids getting to talk to each other about their writing, and helping one another in the writing process.  I am instantly worried about students not getting adequate work done and messing around.  One teacher shared his struggles with that as well, and his attitude was sort of that messing around IS going to happen, and it’s something you need to anticipate.  His students were not on task, but produced work that they were proud of.  He said that that would not have happened had they been at their desks.  I think that coming to terms with the fact that kids are going to mess around is wise, and that it must be planned for.  Second, time seems to be something that writing workshops require a lot of.  I think careful planning for the rest of the day is also imperative so that students, and the teacher, don’t feel rushed.

•   Writers share their work and celebrate one another's writing successes.

•   Teachers are active members of the community, writing alongside their students and sharing and taking risks with their own writing.

The importance the video had on teachers sharing their writing is something I haven’t heard a lot of previously.  The teacher I am currently with did it once, and I thought it was pretty cool to see.  My initial concern was that it would intimidate the students.  This might be true for some, but at least in my class, it was not a huge issue.  It is a great way to show students that editing is a process that everyone needs to go through.  Students in my room see editing as admitting they made a mistake.  I love the environment created, that revisions are human and that there’s no way for it to be perfect the first time.  In my experience, sharing work can be the most important part of the workshop.  Students feel truly accomplished when they can read what they’ve written for the class, or even just for the teacher.  It also increases that environment of support in the room.

The most important thing I learned from this video was that classroom environment sets the stage for a productive writer’s workshop.  The video showed a lot of ways to increase this.  I hope to learn more about it in the coming videos, and more strategies for creating a learning environment of support and collaboration.

Question of the Day

To follow up with Thursday's substitute on top of also having a sub for the afternoon on Wednesday, my question was: What is the hardest thing about having a sub for a day?

The first difficulty my teacher described was writing out as many details as possible.  She explained that there are so many things going on in the classroom, so many small procedures and class norms, that it's basically impossible to write out everything that the students are used to.  She said that it was helpful having someone like me there while she had a substitute because I am used to all of these things (or most).  The second challenge she described was not being able to see the students, and not being confident that they're behaving and getting what they need.  She said this is on both sides of the equation: are the students behaving as they should?  Are they messing around too much?  And: is the substitute doing what they need to do for the students?  Is the sub effective?  I also figured out how to FaceTime on Friday, so my teacher got to peek into the classroom and see the kids a bit.  She said this was also very helpful, and definitely fun for both her and the kids!

Thursday, May 2nd

Today, we had a sub.  I let go of all observations, because I was primarily the one teaching.  My first reaction to sub day is: overwhelming.  It was quite a surprise to wake up from texts and voicemails from my teacher saying that she would not be there, and that I was included in the sub plans as the one teaching lessons.  I got to school at 7:45 like usual, and had only about ten minutes to prepare for the day once finishing talking to Jessica, which was mostly used talking to the substitute.  I was still writing the morning message when the kids walked in.

Math overall went well.  I was doing it mostly on the fly, so had a very poor timing plan.  We were looking at volume, and the students were filling up rectangular prisms with centimeter cubes to count their volume.  It was an engaging lesson, and the students were interested in it.  I flashed back to using manipulatives in my fourth grade room, and made sure to give directions on where the cubes should be and when.  There was one time when they were playing and getting there attention took too long.  I handled this by telling them to put both hands in the air, then counted down from ten as they put the cubes in the center of the table and out of distraction's way.  I did majorly botch my timing though.  Wednesday is one of our two days that math is extra long.  It's over an hour, and I've had no teaching in front of this class yet, so I could 'feel' when time was running short.  I glanced at the clock and freaked out because it was a quarter after, and music started in a few minutes.  I wrapped up very quickly and had the students put their materials away.  Just before I had them line up, the sub came up to me and told me we still had an hour.  It was kind of a major fail.  I decided to not have them get their math out again because I'd done everything in the Everyday Math plan.  I handled it though, and had them do a math game, then some independent reading, then read poems out loud to them and reviewed their poetry elements.  My host teacher was checking in a lot throughout the day, and had us facetime her a few times.  It was really helpful to have her presence there in the room, and she LOVED being able to see her students.  We used about five minutes before music to talk to her, and checked in with her via video twice throughout the day.

The next thing I want to comment on is reading.  My teacher had told me another teacher was coming in to teach the lesson.  I found out at lunch (about a half an hour of class time before reading) that he was not.  I also had to prepare this in about five minutes, although it wasn't impossible because they have a set reading curriculum (it was just stressful).  The students were working with a song, and it was a really fun lesson to teach and see them sing and get into.

Management was, as always, a challenge.  I felt confident about it for most of the day, with the exception of the end of the day.  The students had EDL (an after school program), so their end of the day schedule was not what I am most used to.  I don't yet know if busers line up first, carpoolers, etc.  It was hard to keep management strong when I was trying to figure everything else out.  On top of that, I had one student (my difficult case study student) in a very bad mood and making things hard for me.  I was also trying to organize passing out their take home folders.  I'm not experienced enough with the end of the day to do this fluently, so things got a little dicey.  I asked the substitute what she thought of my management, and she said overall it was effective.  I felt pretty good about it, and in the areas where it wasn't strong, I feel like I have ideas for what I could have done differently.

It was a really good experience for me.  I left school feeling busy and a little overwhelmed, but great!  It felt really good to be delivering lessons and being constantly in front of the classroom.  I only wish I'd had more time to prepare, and a bit more confidence with routines, especially at the end of the day.

There was no question of the day today, as my teacher was out.  I used today's experience as an influence for tomorrow's question...keep posted!

Wednesday, May 1

Today I observed for management techniques.  It was another weird day, as Jessica was out of the classroom after 11:30 and we had a sub.  I ended up kind of leading the activities, although another specialist came in for their reading lesson.  In terms of time management, we started a little late and had two lessons to do instead of one.  Instead of starting the second lesson, Jessica decided it would be better to play a game for a while instead of trying to squish a lot of info into a small amount of time.  The other major management note was that we finally were able to rearrange the classroom!  We didn't make any huge changes, but were able to move some shelves around, get rid of some smaller furniture items, and clear things up a bit.  Our whole goal was to get to the windows so we could open them (there's no air conditioning), but the changes ended up making everything less cluttered.  We also switched the front of the room so that the reading group table is on the other side, as well as changed the back of the room so that the ELL reading table can be walked all the way around.  It looks a lot better, and moving around the room seems much easier.  I was trying to comment on materials in my template, but then realized all material prep had been done by me.  Before the lesson, I made table bins containing centimeter cubes and paper rectangular prisms (folded by me as well).  We didn't get to this lesson yesterday, but those will definitely help things run smoother today.  I also had a small taste of my own management today.  A student was misbehaving, and when Jessica is there I usually let her take the reigns on the situation, but I finally had my first student sent to the take a break chair.  It doesn't seem like much, however I'm sure those instances and other pieces of behavior management are coming  my way soon.  I also made some notes during the reading lesson, conducted by another teacher.  He had difficulties with one student, and was close to sending him to the buddy room.  Ms. Keisha was called in to deal with him.  I also noticed how different the bus line was today with him running it (it's usually run by the other third grade teacher).  He took the students out late, but demanded silence and a straight line before we went out.  Despite being late, it was less hectic.

Question of the day: As a first time teacher, what do you wish you would have known before you started teaching?

Jessica and I had touched on this a few days ago, and her responses were similar to our previous conversation.  She talked at length about how difficult it was for her to set up her room, routines, rules, transition tactics, etc.  She said she wished she could do a run through before actually starting, because there's so much to set up at the beginning of the year.  I also have this concern, and I know many other pre-service teachers share it.  Jessica had the lucky chance of beginning her career in a room where she team taught.  Her co-teacher was a veteran, and showed her the ropes on setting up the room and the expectations and practices with the students.  I would like to know more about how most teachers do this, as I probably won't have that same experience.  It seems like a lot for the first few weeks.

Tuesday, April 30

Today I observed class using the instructional strategies viewpoint.  I could only observe one full lesson today, which was math (we had class game day and an awards ceremony all afternoon).  Today, the main instructional strategy used was direct instruction.  The students' responses to this were pretty much the same as they were last time.  Many of the students were engaged and on task, however the energy in the room was kind of low.  The teacher did mental math at the beginning, and students got pretty excited about this.  They were itching in their seats to get called on.  There were some students who this was difficult for, yet they still seemed to be thinking and trying (for the most part).  This lesson was shortened because the students had science, which they leave for.  I began observing another lesson (which also got cut short).  This was also direct instruction.  We were looking at a song.  The students liked this, and were trying to sing along and got kind of into it.  It was good to see, but I wish we'd had time for the whole lesson.  One thing that peaked my interest during these lessons was questioning.  I haven't focused on it yet, and am hoping to spend a day observing the use of questioning.

Question of the day: When do you decide to go to a parent or to the principal concerning individual students?  Do you make contact for positive and negative reasons?

My teacher said that for most things, she goes to the principal before parents.  These things are mostly behavioral.  She did say that, after talking with the principal about one specific student, she regularly went to his mom for behavior issues.  Before I asked the second part of the question, she brought up that she tries to contact for good reasons too, and that this is one of her biggest goals each year.  She expressed disappointment with the fact that she always seems to get too busy to keep this up all year long.  She began talking about the families of her students, too, and how in many instances she has tried to contact them for something positive, and they avoid talking to her and don't respond.  She said this is disheartening, however she still thinks it's important to try to contact.  She continues to work at this.

Tomorrow I will be doing two reading groups that we didn't have time for today, and observing for management strategies.