Happy last Friday of January 2015 and the second week of student teaching for the Spring Semester!
As you began this journey last week with excitement, anticipation, and many other emotions, you had expectations in your mind of how the first two weeks would unfold. Lets take a look at these weeks and share with one another the most exciting event that has happened to you in your experience thus far. Similarly, please comment on the single event that has caused concern, hesitation, or left you with a feeling of thinking, "I need to know more about this." Please make at least one entry to this blog before Monday, February 2, 2015.
Good luck and happy blogging!
As always...
Dr. Licata
Hello everyone. I hope you are all having a great field experience. I must say that I am astounded by the amount of paperwork required of teachers. It appears very overwhelming for even the seasoned educators. I am also intrigued in finding ways to make all student work count. For example, homework, morning work etc... Considering we are to keep all sorts of data, I would like to take advantage of any and all work that I give my students in providing information. Beyond that I am glad to be back in the classroom!
ReplyDeleteGlad you are enjoying your placement. I also am astounded by the amount of paperwork required of teachers. After being in the classroom everyday for the past few weeks, I see just how much paperwork and emailing my teacher does throughout the school day. Two students are leaving for vacation this week and will not be back till the very end of next week and my teacher had to prepare work for both students. Just the work involved in making sure she had her lessons planned, note sheets printed, worksheets copied, and homework provided completely blew my mind.
DeleteThe paperwork is absolutely insane! My current placement is a special education placement, and paperwork is out the wazoo! We progress monitor the students every other week in math and reading. Last week, I helped organize the papers into each students respective folder and it was a nightmare. The stack of papers my co-op had was so overwhelming! Even all of the worksheets I have to copy for the scripted reading program is a lot. My roommate went to the library with me to make photocopies and was making fun of me for copping half the book and killing a forest. I hadn't even copied the whole unit when she'd said that. It makes me really start to think about the paperless classrooms we talked about last semester.
DeleteHola Jess! I am so happy to see that you are using your students work as data! We are so well informed that we need so much data and it is nice to see someone make all work count!
DeleteI absolutely love my first grade placement at Colebrookdale Elementary. After volunteering in schools in Darby (right outside Philadelphia) where most of the students are at-risk or below basic, it was exciting to find out that all of my students are either on or above grade level. It is really fun to do so many different things with these students because they are proficient or advanced in all areas. I look forward to to working with these students and watching them grow for the 4 weeks I have left to spend with them.
ReplyDeleteIt really must be awesome to be able to challenge students in a way so different then you are probably used to. There is such a difference in the classroom climate and structure with a class full of students who are on or above grade level. I'm assuming you've also seen much less stress surrounding standardized testing/test scores/PSSA's etc.? Test scores and testing season dramatically changes the dynamic of the building and the classes. It will be nice to see the growth in the children over these next 4 weeks!
DeleteSarah, it has been interesting being able to talk with you about your first graders compared to my first graders. It is awesome to hear that you are able to expand their minds and help them to continue to grow.
DeleteSo far I love my placement at Tamaqua Area High School. It has been a little crazy since my cooperating teacher's wife just had a baby, but it is going very well! I have started to get to know the students very well already, but this is mostly because I was lucky and got a teacher with small class sizes. I am super excited to challenge my social studies background by teaching Economics and Criminal Justice. Both of these courses were two of the courses that I was always afraid to teach, and I am so glad that I get to face it head on in my first half of student teaching! I am already finding that Economics is not as hard to teach as I thought it would be!
ReplyDeleteI'm glad that you're enjoying your small classes! I started this placement off with nine students and am now down to eight. I really enjoyed that it was so small and I feel like I know the students on a more personal level. My last placement I had 25 students, and I frequently felt overwhelmed and like I didn't know much about each student besides their name. Also, good for you for tackling your challenges head-on! I am so reluctant to take over aquaponics (a once-weekly science course at the school) because it requires messing around with chemicals, and I am so afraid of messing up and killing the plants or fish or something. So if you have any tips on how to get over my fear, they would be greatly appreciated.
DeleteSeventh grade science at Govern Mifflin is off and running with microscopes! We had a bumpy start with snow delays, snow days and wrapping up second quarter but we are now on track- until the next delay/snow day! I just gave my first quiz on organisms and taxonomy- the class average was 85%- I think I was more nervous for the quiz than the students were! We will be looking at other insects and pond life under the scopes, for some students this will be their first experience with microscopes! I am trying to navigate all the paperwork, getting to know the curriculum and the needs of the students while writing engaging lesson plans that reach all the learners as well as use the time effectively in the classroom and keep the co-op happy too! I am tired by the time Friday rolls around! It is all worth it- I am learning so much for the students and the staff.Hope everyone has a great third week teaching and I look forward to seeing you all tomorrow- hopefully!
ReplyDeleteHi Rebecca! Microscopes are always fun, I am sure that the students are excited. Congrats on the first quiz. I could not agree more about being tired by Friday, Anxious to share stories with you.:)
DeleteGlad to hear that your time so far at Mifflin is going well. I find making sure I use the class and students' time effectively while being engaging in my lesson plans sometimes difficult and prepare more than what we can cover in a class period. If you do not mind me asking, did you make your own quiz or use other resources? I know we created test questions in class before, but I have yet to create a test or quiz of my own and I was wondering how you handled the situation. Also, I completely agree with you about Friday's. These past couple weeks have left me tired, but I already can see that I have learned and grown so much as a teacher.
DeleteJessie- I had to write the quiz myself using objectives from lesson one. My co-op approved it. I must have written four times before I showed it to my co-o!. It was only four questions,worth 20 points and each question had multi-part answers. Overall the quiz, was used to see how much they retained and if I needed to reteach any parts before moving on. Only had 9 students out of 145 failed it- most passed with 17 or higher. I felt that they understood the concept but it was a learning process to write an assessment that counts towards their grade!
DeleteRebecca,
DeleteThat is always an awesome part of being an educator. When you are able to introduce a student to something new. I am sure that the students appreciate the fact that you are taking your time to help introduce them to microscopes in their class. I can agree that it is always nerve racking when you have to write a quiz or test yourself. I actually enjoy it a little though because I know that if I write the test myself I know what I need to cover while teaching the lessons. I personally have learned that the easiest way to make tests and quizzes is to make them before you teach the content so that you know what needs to be taught to the students. Good luck with your students!
I'm enjoying my time at Daniel Boone middle school. I am with a 6th grade classroom where I am teaching both language arts and geography. The students are great, and it's much less daunting being that I know the students, school, teachers, etc. from last semester. Right now, we are focusing most on PSSA prep, as I am sure most language arts classrooms are. Writing is one of the students' weakest areas, so I am doing much around writing techniques, styles, and structure. I face many IEPS in the geography class I am teaching; it has me a bit worried as I am making attempts to meet the needs of all learners. Nonetheless, I am nervous, excited, and anxious, all at the same time, as I am looking ahead in the upcoming months. I am happy to see that most everyone is having great experiences thus far, and I am equally as happy to meet with everyone tomorrow!
ReplyDeleteGlad to hear that you're placement is going well! That's a great point about IEPs! I wondered the same thing. Although I don't have very many students with IEPs, there are a few. As student teachers, what is our level of responsibility for helping with these documents. It makes me nervous, since they are legal documents and we've had very little coursework in this area. I'm sure you'll be great in both areas! :)
DeleteKaila,
DeleteI am so glad that you are enjoying your placement. I am a little jealous of you for getting to teach geography, I personally love that subject, and was very sad when I found out my school district removed it from their curriculum. It is vitally important that students have some idea of geography for them to succeed in the world. Good luck dealing with their IEPs. It can definitely be challenging, but it is always great to be able to adapt a lesson and help a student learn in their own way.
Also, I wish you luck with your language arts classes. I do not think I could teach those classes.
Kaila! So glad to hear everything is going well for you. As far as geography goes, I am always here to help if you have any trouble with the content. And I completely understand the stress of teaching two subjects because I am currently struggling with that as well in teaching both history and math. It is definitely challenging but we will benefit so much from the experience.
DeleteI am also having a little bit of a freak out over the many IEPs I face in a few of my classes. It is so hard to make sure I am meeting all of my students' needs.
Keep up the amazing work! I'm sure you're great!!
Glad your placement is going well. I haven't yet encountered too much with having to adapt for IEPs but I anticipate that will come soon. I am in a fourth grade class, and it is often hard to get writing in during the week because of a lack of time. One thing that really kills us is the fact that Band and Chorus rehearsals are Tuesday an Thursday afternoons (respectively) and leave us with only 6 or 7 students. The goal is to finish up their current narrative pieces with dialogue this week after not having worked on them for a week. Hope to see you tomorrow at Seminar!
DeleteI love that you guys mentioned IEP's. Being a regular ed. major, I have not had as much exposure to IEP's as the special ed. majors have, however in my current placement I have students with IEP's in the classroom, and I have gotten to attend an IEP meeting for one of the students. Just being in the meeting allowed me such insight to what goes into planning and preparation for these students, and the amount of information I received was extremely valuable.
DeleteI am having a great experience so far in my fourth grade placement at Brecknock Elementary (ELANCO)! I'm really thankful that I was able to "roll-over" my placement from last semester, because I already have an idea of my students' needs, and have a great relationship with my co-op! Because of this, she has allowed me to restructure our math block according to what I see may benefit the students. We have started a "hybrid"-type of structure for our math students, and they are benefiting from small group collaboration, as well as very focused instruction. This structure also allows us to make sure the students are able to do their online work through ST Math and IXL, which is how the district collects most of their data. My co-op also asked me to come up with a system to help the students persevere more as they move forward into more problem solving. As I put the system into place last week, I could see a drastic change in the students' attitudes and willingness to try their best, even when their work got difficult! However, my biggest challenge so far (without a doubt!) has been trying to plan for our language arts block. There is no set curriculum to follow. Although there is Reading Street available as a resource, there is no given resources to teach the students in-depth writing or grammar skills. My co-op and I have found it very challenging to try to fit reading, grammar, spelling, writing, and reading groups in, given our limited resources. This makes planning a challenge, and I would like to learn more about how to plan effectively and efficiently when the district does not have a set curriculum to follow. I wish you all the best, and cannot wait to continue on this exciting journey!
ReplyDeleteHey Steph, happy to hear you are having a great experience! It must have been a very nice transition to start student teaching where you completed your 150 hour field. It is also beneficial that you have established a close relationship with your cooperating teacher! It sounds like you are accomplishing a lot so far. Good luck with everything! Can't wait to hear how it all goes.
DeleteI, too, teach language arts in a block schedule. I have 2 classes of about 25 students each that I see daily. ELA is the only subject that is double blocked at Daniel Boone Middle School, so I have 90 minutes each day with the 2 classes. It was a bit difficult for me to begin planning my weeks because I am covering so much material in one day. Reading Street is our ELA guide, as well. I completely agree with you in saying that Reading Street does not go in-depth with writing and conventions. I guess it is up to us to ensure we get those skills to them in some other way!
DeleteHey Steph! It is nice to hear you are enjoying your placement. I also thought it would have been nice to roll over from my last placement but I have found that the variation in styles is quite beneficial. In fact, it makes me want to be in as many classrooms as possible. Also I would have to agree with you in that creating instruction without a curriculum is quite challenging. Ironically, it gives us the freedom to infuse our flair into education yet quite intimidating at the same time without a framework. Needless to say I have become an internet guru (on my phone lol) watching videos and gathering as many ideas as possible. All in all it is a great feeling to know that little minds depend on us and we have the power to make a difference!
DeleteHey Steph! I bet it's so much easier for you being closer to home since it is a bit of a drive for you to get up to the Reading area. I do slightly envy you in being able to roll over just because of the benefits of already knowing the teacher, the students, and the school as a whole. At the same time, I personally don't have the patience for kindergarten so I am glad to be in a higher grade level, fourth grade. My class just started using IXL and the students absolutely love it! My co-op has showed me the kind of data that she receives from it and it is very cool and a great way to reinforce the skills the students have already learned or to help introduce new skills.
DeleteSteph, I think its so interesting that you and your cooperating teacher are having trouble with the broad curriculum, because my cooperating teacher and I are having somewhat of the opposite problem. She is given a very detailed and planned out curriculum and lesson guide, which is nice, however she struggles to implement more interactive and engaging activities into the specified plans.
DeleteI am in a seventh grade math classroom at Conrad Weiser Middle School and I could not be happier with my placement. I got to sit in on several parent-teacher conferences and I found this experience very helpful. I was able to talk with the other teachers on the team and see the importance of communication. I also found it interesting to see how much the students look and act like their parents. This past week my teacher and I have co-taught several lessons and I will be taking over the one class starting tomorrow. The students in this class tend to be rowdy at times since it is at the end of the day and right before specials. I am slightly nervous that I will not always be able to keep them focused on the lesson. While I was teaching the class about solving one-step algebraic equations on Friday, I noticed that some of the students were not getting the material whatsoever. This made me doubt myself a little because I thought that I was not scaffolding the material enough or I was explaining the concepts at too high a level. After talking with my teacher, however, she stated that students tend to have trouble with that lesson because it is abstract math. I am hoping to learn better ways to communicate the concepts of algebra to all students over the next several weeks. I am both excited and nervous for what is to come in the remaining weeks of student teaching. Good luck to all!
ReplyDeleteHey Jess, glad to hear you're having a good experience. I think it is very beneficial that we, as student teachers, get to see parent-teacher conferences. That is something I have yet to experience. In regards to being nervous about keeping the students focused-I think you may always have a few students who are just not into the lesson. But as your cooperating teacher said, some of the topics students are not going to get or not be interested in. Don't doubt yourself! You love math so the students will pick up on that. When students see the teacher is excited about the topic, it helps get them get excited too. Good luck with everything! It sounds like you are going to have a great experience.
DeleteGlad to hear you are enjoying your time at Weiser! I will also be sitting in on parent teacher conferences next week. I am excited for the experience and hoping to get some real insight as to what exactly the daunting "parent-teacher conference" entails.
DeleteI think that it is awesome that you can sit in on the parent teacher conferences. I was only able to sit in on one last semester, and it was a parent that my co-op was good friends with, so it did not operate like a normal parent-teacher conference. I was wondering if maybe you could tell me more about your experiences with them so I can get a more accurate feel of what the normal ones are like?
DeleteHey Jess
DeleteI got to sit-in on parent teacher conferences too and also enjoyed seeing how much some of the kids look like their parents. I liked observing how my teacher interacted with the parents and how the parents interacted with my teacher. I also really enjoy being in the Conrad Weiser district at East elementary. Not going to lie, I am a little nervous about taking over the math lessons because my teacher co-teaches with the Learning Support teacher and all the fourth grade LS kids come in so there are about 30 kids in the room. I haven't taken that over yet, but when I do I hope it goes well.
Hello all! Since the blog decided it was going to delete my nice long first post, I am going to make this one short and sweet. I am in Emotional Support at Boyertown Elem. and it has been a major adjustment. The students are starting to warm up to me and I have been able to handle a few minor behavior issues on my own, however, some of the major behavior problems will take some time and practice for me to get under control. The classroom is mostly self-contained and is grades K-6 which is a huge gap. Currently, I am teaching all the reading groups (4 per day) and I will also be starting math this week. Planning for the reading groups haven't been too difficult as we use SOAR which is semi-scripted. I try to add my own twist on the lessons and make it interesting for the students. I am nervous about teaching math and trying to meet all the levels of the ages and abilities. My co-op has them split into two groups right now but I want to make sure that I am meeting all of their needs. I hope the snow does not mess with our seminar again tomorrow as I am really looking forward to seeing everyone and sharing stories!
ReplyDeleteI like how you are adding your own twist to the lessons! From my experiences in the field, I have seen so many teachers who do what they have to do and don't try and make things interesting for the students. I'm sure the kids appreciate your added efforts. I also struggle with knowing how to meet the needs of all learners, I think this is natural for beginning teachers. Along those lines, I also have a hard time with knowing when to offer help to students, or when they are just being too lazy to do the work on their own. Like you said in regards to managing behaviors- it will all come in time and with practice, even meeting the needs of our students!
DeleteI am in a similar placement being in an emotional support school. The behaviors here are very intense and I am not allowed to deal with them on my own. I think its great that you are able to teach all the reading groups so far. It must be difficult with students at different levels. My student is in ninth grade but I am getting another student next week and he will be in eighth grade. I know it is going to be difficult because each student will be at a different level. I'm glad you are enjoying your experience so far!
DeleteAnna,
DeleteEmotional support can definitely be very hard! I worked as an Aide in a room like that last year, and every day was different. You definitely need to be ready for everything that comes your way! Those students can really learn to love you if you give them respect, show them you care, and just open up your heart! I still have some of them come up to me when I am around their school to talk to me, give me a hug, and want to have me back!
I am in first grade at Boyertown Elementary. My first two weeks of student teaching have been a whirlwind of learning and teaching. It is such a different experience to be immersed in the classroom all day every day, and I am seeing many of the topics we have learned about, being implemented in my classroom. One aspect that has prompted my thinking is the idea of grading students with IEP’s. My cooperating teacher is in the middle of doing report cards, and she is having difficulty giving a student in the class a grade for writing, because he does not have a writing goal in his IEP, so technically she is not allowed to give him a modified grade on his report card. This is very interesting to me, and I am interested in seeing if this is a common issue, or if any other cooperating teachers have had this issue during report card time in the classroom. I am enjoying my placement so far, and I am excited to spend the next four weeks with this group of students.
ReplyDeleteThat is interesting that there is no way to grade the students that do not have writing goals in their IEPs. Most of the students that I have seen at my school do not have academic goals in their IEPs. They all have behavior goals so the report cards that my teacher has the behavior "grades." I agree that it is completely different being in a placement all day every day and I know I am learning a lot more.
DeleteHi Candace, glad to hear you are actually seeing topics we have discussed in our classes. From my experience so far, I have seen many teachers struggle with report cards in general. What did your teacher end up pointing on the student's report card? Good luck with the rest of your placement! It sounds like everything is going well so far!
DeleteThat is something that I have even seen in the middle school. When it comes time to give final grades, at this age, a lot of the trouble comes from presenting a fair grade, and data to support that, to the parents. From what I have seen, parents of some of the students with IEPs are either completely great in the way they look after and support their child, or are unfairly overbearing on the teachers. The parents in the latter category are always the ones that demand the data and proof of their child's grade if they are unhappy. The teachers all struggle to make sure everything is in line, so there are no problems.
DeleteCandace, I am in the same school district as you and my cooperating teacher was also having difficulty with grades for the same reasons. Some of my students are so far below grade level and are in the process of becoming identified but have not yet had an IEP meeting. My cooperating teacher says she gives the grades, and if parents want conferences she'll plans them after the report cards have been sent home.
DeleteI am having some issues posting, so let's hope this one works. Haha. Okay. I am at the Opportunities School in grades 6-8. It is a special education placement. I am loving it there. My co-op is very helpful and I love my students. One of them actually just had his last day with us on Friday and will be starting back in a regular education classroom in his home district on Monday. I was able to sit in on the IEP meeting. It was very exciting. I am very proud. It was by-far my favorite thing that has happened in the last two weeks. My area of concern however is how to react if a student has a melt-down while I am present. It is primarily a school for students with behavior issues. On Friday, one of the students had a break-down and ripped papers and began throwing books in the middle of my reading lesson. Luckily, the behavior specialist happened to be walking past as it happened and was able to calm him down enough to convince him to go with her. I am told this was very mild for the student. My question is: What do I do if the student has a full-on behavior issue while I am there? I know I cannot lay a hand on him, as I am not trained to do so. Other than that, my students are wonderful and I am learning a lot.
ReplyDeleteYour placement sounds a lot like my last two placements. Both the New Story in Wyomissing and the New Story in Kenhorst have students with major behavioral issues. When kids do things like throw books or scream or punch someone else you can't really step in. All we can do is step back and let the people that are trained to restrain the kids do their job. If it is possible to ignore the behavior and keep the other kids in the class engaged, that is the best option. Just make sure you do not get hurt in the process. I am glad that you are enjoying your experience and I know you will have some good stories after this placement.
DeleteThank you very much, Emily. I just hate feeling so useless. Just today one of my students had to be restrained during my science lesson, and all I could do was stand and watch.
DeleteBecky i had a lot of experience with this last year in my placement at New Story with my 2nd and 4th graders. Whenever a student was in a behavior we tried our best to ignore the student. If it got too bad and staff or other students were in danger we picked everything up and relocated to another room and continued with the lesson. The biggest thing i learned is the planned ignoring. A lot of these behaviors are attention seeking so if they are ignored the students will on occasion stop and rejoin the group. Its hard to see a child act like that and still teach but you will get better at it the more time you spend there! I can't wait to experience this all in my next 7 week placement.
DeleteHmm. I wouldn't have thought of ignoring. Thank you very much! For the most part, they're a good group of kids though, I promise!
DeleteHmm. I wouldn't have thought of ignoring. Thank you very much! For the most part, they're a good group of kids though, I promise!
DeleteMy placement is at the BCIU in a preschool classroom, we have one teacher and one classroom aide/teacher’s assistant. So far, the most exciting event that has happened was this past week when my co-op was out for 2 days. The first day with a substitute, the classroom aide did not seem too confident in my willingness to teach. The second day we had a sub though, I gained her trust, and she even stepped back and asked me to teach. It was nice to know I was looked at as an equal and not just a student. She asked for my help throughout the day and made me feel as though I really was a member of the classroom.
ReplyDeleteOne concern I have is the lack of lesson plans my teacher writes. She has a unit plan, and skeleton ideas of what she is teaching each day, but she does not write individual lesson plans. She has been teaching preschool for 20+ years, so I understand most things are second nature to her, and she does not need explicit plans. It is nice to know one day maybe I can get to that point too, but it has caused me hesitation in thinking about my observations this semester. Especially at the preschool level, it would take longer to write a lesson plan than to teach the actual lesson. Generally, lesson planning in preschool has been a concern of mine.
I hear your frustrations regarding lesson plans because it has been drilled into us at Alvernia that we always need to have a solid lesson plan. These lesson plans help drive instruction. I have yet to experience my cooperating teacher being out but i think that is great that the aide eventually saw you as an equal and accepted your offer to teach. I believe that the more you are there the more they will trust your ability to teach. The aide and substitute must have seen that you were very capable of handling the classroom in order to ask for your help.
DeleteI am in first grade at Amity Elementary Center. I was in this same placement last semester, and will be here for all 14 weeks! I am very excited to be back with the students in this classroom because I had such a wonderful experience during the Fall. The most exciting this that has happened in these past two weeks is the my teacher has let me take over math, and I have slowly completely taken over other subjects, and will be implementing my own behavior/classroom management system starting tomorrow (monday)! My teacher is very open to new ideas and letting me try new things out, which is exciting because it allows me to have the freedom to implement things that I would potentially use even if he may not stick with them after I am gone. In my classroom there are a few students who struggle with their behavior which is why I am trying to take a different approach on things to see if it will work better. As of right now I do not have any concerns regarding what is to come because my teacher and I plan lessons together and are always discussing upcoming events, lessons, or meetings. Although.. I am worried about the germs my first graders carry, I cam down with strep throat at the end of this last week, so that is one negative that I have had since I have started student teaching! All in all, I absolutely LOVE my placement, and look forward to all the wonderful experiences and opportunities that are coming my way!
ReplyDeleteChristine:
DeleteIt is exciting that you get to start a new classroom management plan with your students. I am eager to hear more.
Dr. Licata
Hola Christine! Great to hear it is going well for you. I would have to say that it does feel like quite a big deal when one takes over a subject. So liberating and so exciting! It makes it all feel so real. I have also taken over for much of the day. Its amazing how much information one has to pack in such a small amount of time. Beyond that idea my classroom tends to have many interruptions such as intervention times, phone calls, specialists and the normal student drink/bathroom/nurse requests. I am curious to know a bit more about your management plan and how it works for you.
DeleteHi everyone! I have enjoyed reading all of your posts. I am placed at Cumru Elementary in first grade, where I was also placed in the fall. The students in my class are diverse and wonderful. I have gotten to experience an early dismissal, a snow day and a 2 hour delay. Surprisingly, the students were more out of sorts after the 2 hour delay than they were before the early dismissal. I have definitely been gaining classroom management experience. This week the students worked on a descriptive writing piece, they struggled with this. They also struggled with exchanging money (for fewer coins) in math. Money is a really hard concept for the kids. I have taught several lessons so far. I was observed teaching a lesson on name collection boxes. It was a fun and interactive lesson. Next week I will be teaching a lesson that will introduce fact families. I am really excited about this lesson. I have been combining curriculum lessons with activities that I have created, it has worked well so far. The students really seem to enjoy having me in their class, they are loving the extra attention. Week two was one that included a lot of testing. Seven tests in four days! The students persevered and were fantastic. They were rewarded on Friday with an everyone's birthday party. It was interesting to observe the students this week. One student was very anxiety ridden this week, and it was difficult to watch a first grader suffer from such text anxiety. It was also helpful to witness all of the testing and learn how much you can help students while they are taking the tests. Overall it was a great week. I have gotten to witness the process of referring a student for "services" and the early stages of evaluation. I am delighted that this student will be receiving the services that he needs. This might seem ridiculous but I am a little confused surrounding nurse visits. A lot of my students ask to go to the nurse when there does not appear to me a need to go. When is it ok to say no? It has been a wonderful opportunity to return to my previous placement, I have already witnessed tremendous growth in the students. I am really enjoying my time in first grade. I hope to see everyone tomorrow and if not, enjoy the snow!
ReplyDeleteMy experiences with visiting the nurse have been typically emergency visits only. However, there are times that ice and bandaids (two staples for nurses) cure just about anything. That is a good question to ask your cooperating teacher. I'm sure everyone would have a different opinion. Remember, first graders in their development. They are trying to keep up with one another, so the "copycat" syndrome sometimes appears, especially when it's fun, i.e. going out of the classroom to the nurse. Questions to consider are: How much instructional time is lost? Is it at the same time each time the child asks? Have the parents been contacted when it occurs? Sometimes if engagement in the classroom is not optimal, students, for behavior reasons, want to try out a new environment. Analyze the details surrounding the ask (especially if its multiple times).
DeleteHope this helps.
Dr. Licata
Hi everyone! I am really enjoying my time at Governor Mifflin Middle School. Right now, I am teaching both pre-algebra, and 8th grade US History. Since I was in my history class last semester as well, I am in full swing teaching that subject. In my math placement, I am still getting used to the routines and the students, and have not started teaching yet. I am having a great time in my history placement because we are focusing on the Civil War, and the students are really interested. I did have a behavioral problem with one of my class periods, so I gave them a new seating arrangement, and things seem to be better for now. In pre-algebra, I have a class of 7th graders and a class of 8th graders. Even though they are both pre-algebra classes, they are going to be doing different things to correspond with their PSSAs. I am slightly worried about having to plan for both math classes, as well as history, but my co-ops have promised to help with my work load. Something that I have found myself struggling with is transitioning between activities in a lesson. However, I am trying very hard to work on that. I love being in my placement every day, and I hope you all feel the same!
ReplyDeleteHappy to hear both your social studies and math placements are going well. Also glad to hear your new seating arrangements seem to be working. Since you see both grades each day, do you see a noticeable difference in how the seventh and eighth graders act and treat one another? Happy to hear your placement in math is going smoothly so far.
DeleteI was wondering the same thing! How different are the personalities you see in seventh grade compared to eighth grade? The sixth grade students I have are all still very immature; it makes for a long, difficult day sometimes.
DeleteKaila, the maturity level between the 7th and 8th graders is obvious right away. I didn't think that would be the case considering the 8th graders are still pretty immature, but you can tell as soon as you walk into a classroom. I have to almost be able to switch gears when I am going from teaching 8th grade to teaching 7th grade.
DeleteHello everyone! I hope everyone is enjoying their time student teaching. I am at Daniel Boone Amity Elementary Center in a 4th grade classroom. I was fortunate enough to roll over into this placement and I will be here for the first seven weeks of my student teaching experience. I was so excited to get back in the classroom after break because I miss all of my students so much. It was great walking back into the classroom and be greeted with warm hugs from all of my students and my cooperating teacher. I have a really great relationship with my cooperating teacher as well as the whole 4th grade team and I really feel apart of the team. My cooperating teacher and I collaborate together to form the plans for the week and she has made it clear she wants me to put my own spin on all of the lessons. I was thrown a curve ball when I went into my placement last week to find no cooperating teacher in the classroom. I later found out her daughter was very ill and that I would be having a sub. The sub was pulled last minute and she was one of our aids in the school. She walked in my classroom distraught as ever because she does not teach on a daily basis, so she simply asked me if I was ready to teach. I taught the whole day and prepped for maybe 15 minutes and I must say it went amazing. My co-op called out the next day, and I found myself teaching again all day. I can honestly sit here and tell all of you that I love what I am doing!
ReplyDeleteIt's so exciting that you got the opportunity to take over the classroom while you had a sub! I too had this opportunity and I felt like it really helped my confidence in front of the class.
DeleteIt's also super nice that your co-op includes you in the lesson planning process. My co-op is the same, and it's great to have someone to go to with any question or concern that you have. Helping to plan out lessons also makes us, as student teachers, feel more ownership of what is going on in the classroom.
I'm so happy for you and your success so far! :)
Yes! I too had an opportunity to teach all day while with a sub. I would also have to agree that it is very exciting and gives one a boost of confidence. I also found that the on the spot planning challenged my ability to perform and I came out a trooper. Actually, it sort of put into perspective the importance of planning and and highlighted the relevant components one needs to execute a good lesson. On the other hand, I also had the experience of having the class split because there was no available sub. It was a bit of a curveball for me but also confirmed that our attendance as teachers is not to be taken lightly. The children rely on us and it is great to know we make a difference!
DeleteHey Taylor,
DeleteGlad you were able to rollover from last semester. I am also in fourth grade and am enjoying it. Just the other day, my teacher and I sat down and planned out this week's lessons which was good because it made me feel more involved in the planning. I also had to make a call on the reading groups as to whether or not they would still be reading the book this week since that is something that I have taken over. When I was in the room with a sub for 2 days, I essentially taught all afternoon both days which was a lot of fun for me. Glad you enjoyed your experience too!
Hey everyone! I am enjoying my time at Conrad Weiser East Elementary where I am in fourth grade. I started at an interesting time because all the teachers had come off a crazy few weeks of doing Fountas and Penell and 4Sight testing on their students in preparation for data meetings and parent-teacher conferences. Add the snow and 2 days with a sub on top of that, and it has been an interesting first 2 weeks for sure! I really enjoyed the privilege of being able to sit in on several of the conferences because I had never done that before and I got to see the dynamic between my co-op and each parent that came in. In the last several days, I have been given the chance to lead the leveled reading groups as we work through the book, "Hate That Cat" by Sharon Creech. It has allowed me to get to know the students a little more each day. This past Thursday and Friday, there was a sub as my co-op was out at a training workshop for their new FOSS science kits where they will be making aquariums and terrariums. When the sub was in the room, I kind of felt a little more in charge and the sub seemed, from my perspective, almost like an aide because she wasn't quite sure how things were done and I was more familiar with how things go. Hope you are all enjoying your placements and looking forward to seeing you all soon to catch up!
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DeleteHey Colleen! Small groups are a great way to get to know the students; I have experienced the same! As we've learned in our classes, this is one of the most valuable assets to have as a teacher!
DeleteSince your co-op went to training on the FOSS kits, was she able to relay this information to you? It's really nice that your school has a science curriculum for you to follow. Given the fact that we got little information in this subject, I'm sure that this is a great experience for you!
Colleen- like I told Jen- I am thrilled that CW is using more science in the younger classrooms! I hope it will be a good experience for you and the students. Glad to hear the placement is going well and I want to hear more about your science kits!
DeleteHi Colleen! That's so great that you were able to sit in on some of the conferences. I still have not had the chance to do that, and I would really like to.
DeleteThat is awesome that they are doing more science in 4th grade but now I'm wondering if you have seen them doing more social studies in those grades as well? Science and social studies seem to get lumped together a lot in those grades and, often times, they get forgotten or kicked to the side.
Hi Everyone! I am a Conrad Weiser West Elementary school in Mrs.Schoemaker's 3rd grade class. This is my third time in 3rd grade, so I am very comfortable with the curriculum. I still smile every morning when the first student comes into the classroom and calls me Ms. Toledo. I started my first day during conference week, so it was interesting starting with that. All the closings and delays have been interesting as well. I was scared because I didn't think I was going to know everyone's name before I started teaching them. The students were very welcoming and were excited for me to teach so that made it easier. I am in a class where all the emotional support 3rd grade students are. There are two gifted students and 3 learning support students. There is an aid in the classroom, Mrs. Reber. She is there all day and has a checklist for all the support students. She does go around and help all the students which I liked a lot. I started off my second week teaching math and doing the read a louds. I started with 4 as a factor and reading Vacation under the Volcano. They are now reading mystery books and learning about disasters, so two in one deal. They do not have science and social studies blocks out throughout the day, but they do incorporate it through the readings. There is one student who has family issues and has come to school with no socks and no coat, which is very heart breaking. He misbehaves in class and the other students are not a fan of him because of some of the things he says. We had a sub for half the day and Friday and he was very bad. He had to leave the classroom because of some concerning things he was doing to the others. After he left, the class was the best behaved. I was torn with this issue, I feel bad but at the same time the other students were at one point danger and two, missing on my the lesson because of this students behavior. I did finish during the read a loud and asked my co-op if we could do a science experiment with volcanoes and she said yes. They don't get to do experiments so I'm looking forward to doing that. It's crazy that we are already on week 3.
ReplyDeleteHi Jen, glad that you are enjoying your placement. I can imagine that your heart is breaking for the student that is having family problems. These situations can be tricky; not sure what you are to do. It is unfortunate that a child that is having problems at home is also experiencing problems at school. Just know that you are a positive in that child's life. On Tuesday, I attended a faculty meeting regarding changes in child abuse reporting. The teacher is now responsible for the reporting. We also discussed the definition of neglect, not providing supervision or supplies necessary to meet the basic needs of a child.
DeleteHi Jen- I am so thrilled to see you doing a science experiment with the students! So many of my seventh graders tell me they had little to no exposure to science in elementary school! Glad to see your co-op is allowing you do relate an ELA reading to science! Yippee! I have to agree with Mandi- there is a way to get the student services, ask your co-op. Keep us posted and I hope the student's behavior and situation improves.
DeleteIt must be difficult dealing with a diverse classroom like that. I can only imagine how students with behavior issues can hinder the learning of gifted (and others) who need to be pushed academically. Sometimes removing the student is the best solution until the behaviors can get under control. I don't get to do science experiments in my class so make the best of it and I hope you have fun!
DeleteHey everyone! I am placed at Mount Penn Elementary School , in a third grade classroom. I am having a great experience thus far! My cooperating teacher is very organized and puts a lot of effort into her work. She appears to know the curriculum better in comparison to my last cooperating teacher. The teachers in this school are all very friendly and welcoming of new people in the building. There does not seem to be many problems with teacher grouping. In the classroom I am placed in, I have already starting taking over teaching many of the subjects. I teach the morning Daily Oral Language, Rocket Math, Math, and Science. Later in the week I will begin teaching writing and reading. From my experience teaching so far, I have noticed a few behavior issues. The school has a system in place where students have 5 letters each day (PRIDE) and have to pull a letter if doing something they are not supposed to be doing (similar to pulling clip/colors). The students will also get a ticket for doing what is expected of them and following the directions. This system appears to work, kind of. My cooperating teacher and I just started a new system in the classroom. The students are having an issue with doing their homework, which is causing them to pull two letters a day. The system we have will allow the student to get a tally mark at the end of the day if they had no letters to pull. Once a student reaches five tally marks, they will get that week’s prize or a ticket. Each student works at their own pace, but the list is up with everyone’s name, so anyone in the class can see it. We just started it this week, so it will be interesting to see if any changes happen because of it. Overall, I am very happy with my placement and cannot believe so much time has passed so far!
ReplyDeleteHi Chelsea! Snow days are definitely disruptive! I am sure it was interesting to observe conferences and the parent teacher dynamic. Quick question, what do you mean when you mention that the students pulled a letter?
DeleteHey Mandi! Each school has a different reward/punishment system implemented. The district I am in has a system where the schools rules spell out the word "PRIDE." Prepare yourself for leaning; Remain calm and quiet when moving from place to place; Individuals keep hands, feet and objects to self; Directions will be followed first time given; Encourage kindness with words and actions. Each classroom can create their own system, as long as it goes along with the school rules. My cooperating teacher has a pocket folder on the wall for each student. Each student has 5 cards in his or her pocket. The "E" card will show if they did not lose any letters. If they did not hand in homework or was disruptive, a letter is pulled and the "D" or "I" (and so on) card will show. The students want to try and keep all their letters that day. It is similar to other classrooms where teachers may have used color cards or clips. The letters just represent another form of that. I hope that helped!
DeleteHey Chelsea! I am so happy you and your cooperating teaching figured out a system for your students' behaviors. I am currently having this problem as well in my classroom and my cooperating teacher and I are trying to think of a behavior plan that will actually work. I am so glad to see that it is working.
DeleteSorry for the late reply, everyone. I am at the Opportunity School for children with extreme emotional/behavioral needs. So far, I cannot believe what I have experienced. I have the utmost respect for Amanda (teachers at this school go by Mr./Ms. First Name) for choosing to remain with this population in less-than ideal conditions for seven years. My most exciting moment and desire for more knowledge stem from the same child. I was so thrilled when this boy, a notorious tantrum thrower, came to the board with me to do a math problem hands-on. However, since then this same boy has engaged in countless behaviors that prevented his own learning and jeopardized his own safety as well as those around him. I have tried many different strategies not just to get him to work, but just to approach him, that will not trigger a meltdown, but this is proving a challenge. It is for this reason that I pose the following question for our next seminar: how do you reach a child who literally lacks the brain function to comprehend certain aspects of reason, such as cause and effect? I've seen that this child is capable of academic success first hand, but how to get him to harness his mind is seriously puzzling me.
ReplyDeleteI can relate to what you are going through. It's a really nice feeling to have students who do not initially respond well to you to actually comply and take control of their learning. My students also jeopardize the safety of others in many ways but it does not sound as serious. These students don't understand the effect of their actions no matter how many times you try to show them.
DeleteHi everyone! My experience has been interesting so far. I am placed at New Story in Kenhorst. I am in a classroom with currently one student. New Story is a transition school, so students go there when they get kicked out of public schools. At the same time, once their behavior gets to a certain point they get sent to a different place, usually a residential home. My one student just arrived last week so there has been a lot of testing and figuring out what level she is at. She is very motivated so she is moving through chapters very quickly. One challenge that I am facing is trying to learn the material myself before teaching it to the student. She is doing ninth grade algebra and I have not done this since I was taught in high school. Because I only have one student we figured out a system where I would go up to the younger grade classrooms on days when my student is absent. This is exciting for me because I get to work with the grade levels that I have studied for three years now. The students in this building are not academically behind at all. They are all on grade level or above. Altogether, this experience has shown me a lot so far and I am learning a lot.
ReplyDeleteOh wow Emily, that must be a tough situation with only one student! I can't even imagine how that must operate. At least you get to work with the younger students at times, so you also get comfortable with these types of disabilities at the elementary level. I agree with you about not always knowing the material well enough before teaching it. This is something I even had to face last semester with my higher level 4th graders! They taught me just as much as I taught them I think. I also learned that its okay to be human and admit that I do not know the answer to something. You definitely bring up a good point, but I think this is something that will come in time, especially after teaching the lessons multiple times.
DeleteEmily! This past semester i had the opportunity to spend 150 hours in New Story in the primary room. I learned so much from these kids. It was one of my favorite placements. One thing that i took away from that placement is that as a teacher you must separate the unacceptable behaviors from the child. In the beginning this was difficult to do. Listening to a fourth grader curse me out and throw desks, chairs, smart boards, etc. was frightening. However once i did separate the behaviors from the child i was able to get to know all of the students on a much more personal level. I hope you enjoy this placement as much as i did!!
DeleteEmily I am currently struggling with learning the material before I teach it as well. I never knew science could be so intense. I am struggling with understanding the material just because I was never taught about circuits and that is what my students are currently learning.
DeleteEmily, I understand where you are coming from when you say that you haven't learned some of the materials your expected to teach since high school. I am currently trying to teach first graders how to write poetry. I didn't fully understand poetry when I learned it which makes it harder to teach the students. I hope you receive more students because only having one student must be tough.
DeleteEmily, although all the students the students that I had in that class are gone, it is still similar. I remember having to reteach myself the material because they worked on or above grade level (except for one student in math, he was below). They asked really wonderful and meaningful questions and I had to be prepared but even then they would ask a question that I wouldn't know the answer to. I loved my New Story placement and I hope you do too!
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ReplyDeleteHello all. I am in a first grade classroom at Colebrookedale Elementary in the Boyertown School District. My school has been very welcoming and helpful. My cooperating teacher and I get along well, and she has so much knowledge and experience to share with me. She is very devoted to her students and can explain almost anything I ask in full detail. My classroom consists of 25 kiddos 9 of which have IEPs, and five who are in the process of being tested. I love this placement because even though it is regular education, I can still take what I learned in my previous special education placements and apply it here. It has been an interesting transition since I haven't been in regular education since sophomore year. Also, I haven't worked with students this young yet. The biggest thing I have had to grown accustomed to at my placement is our schedule, because it is constantly changing almost every 15-20 minutes. There is always something new going on in the classroom to help keep the kiddos focused. One thing I love that my cooperating teacher does when the students are losing focus is "dance it out" and depending on the day some of the dances are slow and relaxing and some are fast and energizing.
ReplyDeleteI love that your teacher uses the "dance it out" philosophy in her classroom. My cooperating teacher uses a similar tactic! To relax the kids after recess and get them focused again she does yoga with them. They love it, and it really does allow them time to calm down and focus while being back in the classroom. My teacher also uses gonoodle.com when they are just antsy and need to get some energy out and move around. This works so well for them, because once they are given the opportunity to get up and move around, I can definitely see that they will do it less while sitting in their seats at their desks.
DeleteHi All! I just remembered that I didn’t comment on this part of the blog yet. My experience is at Mount Penn Elementary Center and I am in a 2nd grade room. It is very different than my 9th and 10th graders with ES from last semester! I have experienced having a substitute and how the class behavior changes . I have seen melt downs and children running at me, screaming, and whipping their backpack around their heads like lassos. On second thought… maybe it isn’t as different as I originally thought. I am struggling with classroom management. I have the kids one moment and then the next… gone. I am no longer worried about knowing the subject areas. I am still trying to figure out how I would organize my day and how I would fit everything in.
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