For my very first in-school experience, I was placed at Regina Huda School. I went to the school every Wednesday for eight weeks. I had such an incredible experience at this school and learned so much from these students and my cooperating teacher. Not only did I learn a lot about teaching, but I also had the opportunity to learn about another culture as well. I am very grateful for this placement.
Feedback – ELA Lesson
| Strengths: -Checked in for retention -Made sure class was quiet before continuing -Quick solution to some students missing sheets -Check for understanding -Did not dismiss questions: engaged with them -Reviewed assignment -Walked through a possible letter (be careful so they don’t just copy you). -Provided class time to start and ensure understanding before they work on their own. -Clarified part of assignment once you realized they did not have prior knowledge. -Circulated -Knelt beside students when possible -When you had questions that were relevant to the class you broadcast them to everyone else. -Provide contact info (you kept within professional boundaries) -Realized some students were checked out and provided an achievable goal. | Growth: -Possible options: explain the sheet before handing them out, otherwise, ask them to keep them on their desk until you are ready for them (one student made a cone and was playing with it). Some students focus on the sheets and not what you were saying. -Could offer alternatives to changing- create new statues, change naming policy, etc. (You got to this with memorials at gravesites). This would also allow students to write something without much research .-Make use of technology- could project worksheet as you go over it, sign out computers (I need to improve on this) -Try not to turn your back on the class when possible when working with individual students -Some loss of focus after they were working independently (this is not always enough to warrant an intervention, but it is good to keep tabs on it. |
I felt as though this was a fairly successful lesson. We began with reviewing the material from the previous week, discussing the assignment, and then finished the class with some work time. When I was marking this assignment, I did find that quite a few students used the example I gave – I have now learned to give examples that cannot be used for the assignment at hand. As a student, I always liked following along with the assignment and highlighting it as my teacher reviewed it. As per the first growth comment, in the future, I would better explain to students that they should follow along and what their job is instead of waiting to hand them out.
Feedback – Math Lesson
| Strengths: -Used a video as a hook -Use of pictures to scaffold textbook -Redirected off-topic questions -Handled repeated questions well -Used memory strategies (think of > as a crocodile eating the larger number) -Visual explanation (human number line) -Checked for understanding -Pre handout instructions so students knew what their job was -Good movement-based activity -Praised students -Did a textbook question first to check for understanding -Cross-curricular lesson (elevation) -Circulated the classroom -Better body positioning -Caught verbal mistakes | Growth: -Could use a picture to better explain sea level-Started to get a bit chatty near the end of the slideshow of elevations around the world. Try to focus the entire class using strategies (clapping, verbal redirection, etc.) -Get helpers to handout paper, this will increase your speed and allow you to supervise while it is being handed out -Make sure to focus everyone before you start -Suggest they skim through the textbook questions to make sure they understand before going home |
I thoroughly enjoyed this math lesson, although I was nervous as Math is not my “thing”. I definitely found it tricky when the students started asking more questions about the examples in the video regarding things such as sea level, and I was not prepared to answer them. Next time, I will be prepared with any information that is used for examples. I also have found that I need to come up with my own attention-grabbing strategies and explain them to the class on the first day so that everyone is on the same page. I love the suggestion to get kids to skim the questions before they go home as this is something I never would have thought of before.
Photos From My Placement
