We're back! Visits 1 & 2 (2/15-2/16)
This week, we returned to our first grade classroom. With the exception of fewer teeth in most of the kids' mouths and a new classroom desk setup, the class was as I remembered it. Due to the snow days and delayed opening over the last two weeks, the classroom is a little bit chaotic. It seems that the teachers are feeling the pressure to catch up.
Once again, I am observing in the morning, so I saw the morning meeting, math, and writing sections of the day. Centers were used in math, and I saw many of the activities we have done in our math class used in this classroom. The students were using domino cards, 10 frames, and dot addition cards. These activities were run similarly to the centers from last semester.
I noted a couple of the children signing a name to each other, and thought it was funny that they remembered their sign language from last semester and are using it to communicate with each other during quieter work times. I'm not sure this is what the teacher was going for, but it was good to see that they did remember it!
I noticed a new method being used for one child with Asperger's Syndrome, which we have talked about in some of our classes. The student now carries a clipboard with the daily schedule written on it. Next to each subject or time slot, a teacher works with him to determine how he behaved and participated that day. There is a space for notes, and there is a circle next to each section to draw a face, showing how well he had done that day. Today, there was a happy face next to morning meeting. :)
I also had a more emotional connection made this week. Yesterday, there was a delayed opening, so breakfast was not served in the cafeteria. The teacher recognized that a couple of the students were 'acting strangely' and asked if the class who had eaten breakfast. About a third of the class hadn't had anything to eat yet. We also heard about one of the students coming to school crying because he didn't have his backpack. To keep his family warm over the last week, a kerosene lamp was lit, which burned his backpack overnight. While I knew a little bit about the students prior to this week, I feel like I am learning much more about their backgrounds very quickly.
I have also been fortunate enough to follow a few of the children from class to their ESL pullout, for another field placement. It was interesting to note that the children seem to speak much more and much louder in the smaller groups for ESL. I am not sure whether this is due to a smaller group of people or the level of the students they are with, but I am curious to watch this as the semester goes on.
posted by Sara F @ 11:09 AM
5 comments
5 Comments:
Sara, it sounds like you learned more about the personal lives of the students in your placement this week than all of last semester. How can anyone expect a small child to do anything academic if they havn't had anything to eat all day? Your post was eye-opening. On a lighter note, I also noticed my class using the same kind of strategies in math that we are learning about with Dr. Berry. It was great to see kids actually using these strategies.
It is really neat that you get to see some of the strategies/exercises that we have been learning about in math being used. Do you think they really are helping the students to understand the concepts...meaning when we use them in class it seems like they are logical and useful but that is because we already know/understand the material. Did the students using them really seem to gain a more thurough understanding of the concepts because they were using the manipulatives?
Your comment about the number of students who hadn't had breakfast and the one whose backpack caught on fire also reminded me of the importance to not judge students actions until you know the whole story. The teacher could have easily snapped at the kids or punished the ones who were acting up/acting crazy. But rather than doing that she tried to understand why they were acting the way they were. By taking this approach she was able to not only help her students more effectively and avoid punishing them for something that is sort of out of their control.
It's great you can observe the ESL pullouts for some of your students. As a regular teacher, I would like to know more about how they perform and act when not in my classroom. Hopefully through your ESL studies, you can teach me things I can do in my future classroom to support these learners!
Sara,I think it is great that you are getting to see so many of the math strategies and activities used in your classroom. That will go a long way in aiding your own personal understanding.
Wow! You are truly getting to see how different student's backgrounds are and that things aren't always as they appear. I still tear up thinking of the little boy losing his backpack in the fire and being so upset by it. I admire the teacher for being so attuned to her students that she asked about breakfast (or let the little boy tell her about his backpack) rather than assuming they were just acting out. That is so important - thanks for sharing!
That is really interesting that you are learnign so much about your students. I am so glad your teacher thought to ask the students if they had had breakfast. Having breakfast is an important aspect of being able to focus.
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