Megan+Malz

Welcome Megan!

I will be visiting you the week of September 12th. Enjoy observing the children, if you have any concerns please feel free to contact me at (724) 678-4491. I look forward to working with you.

Sincerely,

Peggy Sollon


 * 1st Placement: Liberty K-5: 1st Grade**

1st-2nd I‍‍ started my second week of student teaching and so far, LOVE it! ‍‍My cooperating teacher is wonderful and has great classroom management skills. She has been a 3rd grade teacher for years and has been placed this year into 1st. It has been a learning experience for both of us. Liberty Elementary is a very friendly welcoming school, especially for ‍student teachers ‍! (there is like 10 of us) I have been able to make friends with other student teachers whenever I need assistance and guidance I am able to go to them as well. I wish I could stay at Liberty for my entire 16 weeks! The first week was crazy (why I didn't blog) due to my cooperating teacher being out due to doctors appointments as well as having substitutes for our Dibels testing. Routines are finally in place and I believe the children are also feeling more comfortable with what is going on. At Liberty, the first grade has teams where three teachers teach different subjects and rotate 3 out of their 6 day schedule. My co-op teachs Social Studies, another Science and the other Spanish. Also, all three classrooms have a student teachers! I have already begun to plan my project-based learning experience in Social Studies based on the children's interests in accordance to their curriculum. (Its actually working out quite well). I will begin instruction in Social Studies next week teaching all three classrooms once we begin rotating. Currently I have taken over morning routines and morning centers. I feel very comfortable with both. The morning centers usually involve 4 centers, 2 math, 2 reading where children can practice skills they already know, such as tally marks, sequencing, greater than/less than as well as build onto areas that they may be struggling with such as time, money, and fluency. I really enjoy seeing them working with partners and then as a group to show what they have accomplished. Next week, my cooperating teacher and I have agreed that I will begin with math and then the following week work myself into reading. I am very excited because the children really enjoy math and I enjoy teaching it!

3rd During the third week of student teaching we, my co-op and I, decided to change my plans to take over math and try something new with reading. Through the Dibels testing, morning centers and everyday instruction we began to see a dividing line through the classroom. Some children, almost half, are still struggling with their letters and sounds. Their need for phonics is much higher than the rest of the class and need much longer phonics instruction than those we are seeing either are reading or beginning to read. We decided, instead of starting math, I would begin taking the on-level/beyond group for enrichment activities. These activities are in alliance to their reading curriculum and are taught through direct instruction however, I may shorten phonics and lengthen skills in fluency or comprehension. As of now, things have been working out quite well. My cooperating teacher plans to keep the students in groups when I am done with my eight weeks. She plans to teach one group while having the other group working on something else, and vice versa. We have no way of telling if this will work or not until it is tried but having the students together as a whole group is causing both frustration in the approaching students as well as in the beyond students. The children that are approaching the pace is too fast as a whole group and lose concentration and thus fall behind. Some of the beyond students, which many are boys, I hear them shouting out answers in frustration of waiting for those who are unsure as well as phrases such as, "Boring" "Oh my gosh, come one!" Or my absolute favorite, "Easy Peazy!" I hiope my cooperating teacher finds a solution to separating these groups after my eight weeks is up however, I know this will be no easy task.

3rd At the end of my third week on Friday, my cooperating teacher and I had a meeting with one child's mother, his TSS' supervisor, the gifted support teacher and the principal. For explanation purposes I'm going to use the name "John" for the child. John is one of our brightest students. He is often the first to complete his work with zero errors and the first to offer help to other students who need it. through observation, Dibels testing and the math assessments, he is beyond in both areas. He is even on-level with the other child in our room who has been tested for gifted. However, John's behavior is a different story. On any single day he might hit, kick, and push other children, scream at my co-op teacher and I, take off his shoes and throw them at others, steal things off of our desks and then lie about it. Also, during whole class work John is often unable to focus and do his work. He spends the majority of his time playing with his pencil (or whatever else he might find) on another child's' desk. When asked to turn around he often shouts out "Oh my God!" and makes a large production by slamming his fists on the desk. When his card changes (our classroom management chart..a child can go from blue meaning they're cool to green, yellow, orange, then finally red and lose recess) he screams, kicks, and cries until everyone must stop what they are doing and send him out into the hall to calm down. During Kindergarten, John had a TSS due to his behavior, and up until last Friday he was being observed (by his TSS' supervisor) if there was a need for one in first grade. So, during our meeting on Friday morning, before school, we discussed the need for a TSS. Everyone there was in agreement that it was a necessity. My cooperating teacher brought up the point that when I am gone she will be by herself and the one on one time he needs is quite impossible without another adult in the room. John's TSS' supervisor said that while he was in the psychologists' office for evaluation John was able to play with blocks for an extended period of time, however without distractions from other children, adults, or behavior restrictions. From this short observation, this psychologist came to the conclusion that John, who has already been diagnosed, does not have ADHD and should not be on medication. (He was on his medication at the time of the observation). She said, that the problem with his behavior is not ADHD, it is his environment (school, home, football practice, etc.) The gifted support teacher brought up a valid point, in which every other "normally developing" child has the same environments, why aren't they acting like John? John's mother is very supportive of having a TSS and believes this is the only way for him to be able to develop to his full potential. She told us that at home, one on one with her he is wonderful, however, at football practice she sees him turn as soon as he is around others. She said, "I'll see him hit another child for no reason, and then I'll ask him why he did it and he says, 'I dunno', it's frustrating." During the meeting the TSS supervisor put in a request for 20 hours a week however she said we'd be lucky to get 10. My cooperating teacher, John's mother and the gifted support teacher discussed getting him evaluated for gifted however, all agree this would not be possible unless his behavior was much more manageable. As of now, my cooperating teacher sends a detailed letter home each day to John's mother discussing his behavior each and every period. John continues to show his brilliance and frustration by yelling out the correct answer then throwing his shoe across the room when he is ignored for not raising his hand. The rest of us are patiently waiting for the TSS to provide services and see where to go from there.

4th I am currently halfway through my fourth week. I have taken over morning routine, reading enrichment, centers (we changed them from morning to afternoon), social studies and I will begin writing at the end of this week. My cooperating teacher is still teaching reading/phonics (while I do enrichment), spelling/ grammar the days I do not have writing, and math. I began Social Studies this week and it's very exciting. The first two classes were not mine so I did an ice breaker game with them so that they could introduce themselves and a little about what they like. I then had them work with partners telling each other about their families (our theme). Next, they had to stand up with their partner and tell the class about their **partners** family. It was very fun. I began my actual first planned lesson in social studies with my class on Tuesday (since there was no need for an introduction of names) and they really seemed to enjoy it. I asked for my cooperating teachers' constructive criticism and she said she thought it went great. She did suggest that next time I implement it (with the other classes) allow for them to get up from the circle rug and go back to desks instead of sitting for an extended period for discussion, and I agree. Children were beginning to get antsy so it would be nice to split the lesson in half and have a form of assessment for both parts. Next week, I will try this!

5th During my fifth week of student teaching, the first week of October, the behavior in the class seemed to take a turn for the worse and has been testing my patience ever since. One child who has been consistently unable to control himself in such a way that he and others are able to learn has done a complete turn around. He is the child I spoke of during week 3. He now has a TSS for 15 hours a week (It goes back down to 10 in November when I leave) and it has made all the difference. He has been having less tantrums and outbursts during class and specials. His color card changes only but once or twice throughout the day and is usually for talking out of turn or playing in the bathroom as opposed to hitting, stealing, lying, and throwing shoes. My cooperating teacher and I are very pleased with this and have also put in place a "Feelings paper" that he really enjoys filling out when he begins to get out of control. However, with the improvement in his behavior there has been a dramatic change in behavior with two other children. Both students are boys who seem to be testing their limits with how much we will put up with. My cooperating teacher and I have been strict, however, it seems, not enough because the behavior continues despite change of seats, separation from the group, and lunch detention. I find myself spending much time reflecting on what I could have done differently, how I could of improved or defused the situation, and how I can encourage their participation instead of pushing them away further.

On one particular situation which was more extreme then the others, both students got into a fight in the gym. Our class entered the gym with several other classes for pictures. Our students were lined up against a wall in the gym in alphabetical order. "N" is in the middle of the line and "M" is at the end. "N' was pushing children in front of him in line so my co-op had him stand in the back of the line to wait for pictures. One of the girls had asked me to fix her hair before pictures while my co-op checked us in with the picture people. I heard arguing so I turned around to find "N" kicking "M" so I yell at "N" to stop and sure enough "M" begins kicking "N" back. So now I am between both students trying to separate them while getting kicked myself. I call to my co-op to take on of them (she hadn't seen yet what was going on) and takes "M" to the office because he was still continuing to kick at "N". When "M" was removed I tried talking to "N" about the situation but got no where besides "I don't care!" "He kicked me first!" "I hate 'M'!" Eventually my co-op brought back "M" who seemed to be calmer and we kept them separated the rest of the day. However, the problem with this (I feel) is that nothing was resolved. Regardless that there was no punishment, both boys go on thinking that it is okay to solve your problems through violence. Neither child was asked to apologize, come to a mutual agreement or taught a lesson in respect. My co-op teacher felt that it was better to just move on and that both children were just having a bad day and their actions reflected that. I did not disagree, however, I still felt that an element of resolution needed to be present and that the children need to grow from one another, not in-spite of one another.

Assignment #1: After reading chapter 1 in //A Curriculum Framework For Reflective Teaching// this situation makes me think back to the question: How are the environment and materials impacting what's unfolding and what changes could be made? As well as, What values, philosophy, and goals do I want to influence my response? First, the environment was not set up correctly for two students having a bad day and placing them next to each other in line. The child who was pushing other students should not have been placed near more students. He should have been asked to step out of line and stand with a teacher until his picture was taken and we were back in the classroom seated. Both students are very bright and I feel become bored easily in class. They are able to act out, lay on the floor, distract others, walk around the room and still get their work completed correctly while hurting others academically. In this sense, their environment and materials do not encourage further learning but rather hinder them. These children see that they are able to act in such a way and still complete work so that they are not missing out (they are still getting the A's their parents and teachers expect). I feel these children need stricter and more consistent discipline while given challenging activities that will peak their interests. Both students enjoy "First in Math" an online computer game in which they play in school and at home. My proposal is rewarding good behavior with praise and allowing them the opportunity to use the computers after their work is complete and correct so that they no longer feel they have time to act out and now have a goal to work towards. The second question helps me to understand why I am bothered by the lack of resolution of students fighting. I am a firm believer of treating others the way you would like to be treated and respect for all. I value differences and encourage uniqueness in the classroom. I work hard to engage children in the curriculum while playing off the children's interests. Currently, our Social Studies theme is Respect and we will be spending about a months time on it. It is my goal that the students begin to see the importance of this. I try very hard to model respect in all that I do and reward it with praise and coins when I see or hear it. Our project-based learning experience is also "How can we respect our school?" It is my hope that through the completion of these and through modeling by myself and my co-op the students will begin to value each other as much as we value them.

Assignment # 2: After reading Chapter 2 in //A Curriculum Framework for Reflective Teaching// about nourishing classroom cultures, I found myself spending a lot of time thinking about two I feel are extremely important. Keeping children connected to their families as well as honoring each child's uniqueness has become a goal of mine throughout my education experience, meaning college courses, field work placements, and as a childcare provider. In our hurried first grade Pittsburgh Public classroom I found that there is not a lot of time to be spent on experiences that do not come from our teaching manual or Pathways. I have been finding it exceptionally difficult to include families in a way I feel they should be involved. I sent out emails, I participated in parent-teacher conferences, meetings with a child's family and TSS, open house and many more, however, I still find that I have not met many families and still do not know anything about the children's families besides they want their child to succeed. In one particular lesson my supervisor was observing (Thank goodness!) I had lost a sense of connection with the children. I was reading a poem from a Read Aloud Anthology about a Caucasian grandmother. The children's job were to try to visualize this older woman and tell what they see. No child could do it. I reworded my directions, I then explained in detail about some of the descriptive words being used but it was no use. The children were beginning to get antsy on the carpet and I knew that there was no connection because 1. It did not pertain to them. The entire class is African-American and I was asking them to visualize a Caucasian older woman and they couldn't. 2. I had lost their interest. I could tell by the looks on their faces they were either bored or confused. I began to feel frustrated and mad that the STUPID Read Anthology was letting me down (like it has so many times before) but then something amazing happened! My WONDERFUL supervisor very excitedly asked the class if they had a grandma. We were both surprised to find that every child in the class had a grandma (many had several). Then my supervisor had then close their eyes as tight as they could and picture their grandma. Why didn't I think of this!? I am constantly thinking about how I can involve the families into the classroom and this perfect opportunity pops up and I (almost) miss it! So now that the children are excited and discussing what their grandma looks like, using descriptive words from the poem I am more than ecstatic. That is how that lesson is to be taught! The overwhelming joy of the children during that lesson made me reflect back to almost everything I have ever learned. When children are engaged, active, and there is a connection to previous knowledge and to their families, they will learn. I have never been more thankful to be interrupted in my whole life! My supervisor apologized but there was no need, I learn best through demonstration and the children gained so much out of it!I have never seen them so excited to write about something other than their grandmothers. Before leaving, my supervisor asked the class to call their grandparents tonight (if they didn't live with them) and give them a hug and kiss over the phone. They children were even more excited, and for the remainder of the day we talked about our families and how they are alike and different and the things they like to do with their families.

Here are some of the pictures from my project-based learning experience I did with the children the last few weeks of school. (Weeks 6-8) The project was "How Can We Respect Our School?"



Week 6 -8: During week six I began teaching each subject with the children including all reading language arts (phonics, reading, spelling, writing, and grammar), math, and social studies and continued to do so until my last week at Liberty. We also began our project on Respecting Our School. I began by asking the driving question: How Can We Respect Our School? and let the children take the project from there. They came up with ideas such as: Respect everyone, Respect their materials, Do not litter, Pick up own trash, Recycle, and Follow the rules. The children took these ideas and created posters then hung them on the walls throughout the school in hopes to involve the entire student body. The students and I created a KWL chart throughout the project about different ideas such as: Why do we recycle? How can we keep our school clean? What is wrong with littering? Some answers we looked for in books and through media, others were answered by our guest speaker Mr. Jeff the school custodian ( we also created a thank you letter for him!) In addition, during those three weeks we took time to create jobs and charts to document the areas that were cleaned and/or need more cleaning. We cleaned inside and outside their school. The students really enjoyed cleaning their school and took pride in their accomplishments. They would even push each other to do more work if some bag weren't full! One little boy even asked me if I was the one placing the garbage around the school! I thought what a wonderful teachable moment! We discussed littering in more detail and many children were actually upset that other students, teachers, parents, and members of their community were the ones responsible for the mess. I encouraged the students to continue with their fantastic work however, I knew I needed to bring their project to a close. The children all took their time to create a page for a class book. They each wrote a sentence or two about their favorite part of the project and if they learned anything new. I took the children's work and placed them in page protectors and created a class book for them. On my last day I brought them all to the carpet and pulled out the book. I asked who the author and illustrator was and they were not sure. When I told them that they were, they were very excited. I allowed each child to come to the front (if they wanted to) and read their page to the class. I could not believe how proud they were of their work and of each others'. They were respectful and listend to each other speak, complimented others on their work, and were enthusiastic about having accomplished something that they will be able to look at each day (its now in their library). I also introduced a new chart to the class were their "teams" would be assigned different areas of the school to keep clean (playground, lunchroom, bathrooms, classroom, hallway, and desks). This would be an on-going project where each Friday the children would tally the weeks worth of work. Mrs. Mears decided that the winning team would then win an award.


 * 2nd Placement: Sci-Tech Pre-K**

Week 1: My first week at my new preschool classroom was very exciting! I was feeling pretty sad to leave the first graders I'd grown so attached to but was relieved that I was going to a preschool where I feel more accustomed. After spending about twenty minutes on where to park I made my way to the door where you must be buzzed to get in. The door sticks and there is a trick to open it. Surprise! Another 5 minutes. Finally, after looking like a fool I was in the classroom! The placement of the classroom, which is in a high school, is quite strange without windows and a bit secluded from the outside world it seems but well arranged and age appropriate. The cooperating teacher Ms. Wasko and her assistant teacher Mrs. Grimm were very welcoming and made me feel at ease. Mrs. Wasko allowed me to observes my first week and interact when I felt comfortable to do so (which was like the first lesson because the children are all so friendly and used to visitors). I concentrated mostly on the centers, routines, and ways in which my cooperating teacher introduced new concepts such as their letter of the week, stories and vocabulary, and math and science.

Daily Schedule: 8:15-8:20 Arrival/ Books on the Carpet 8:20-8:30 Greeting (Morning Routines: # of girls present, # of boys present, all friends. Calender, home/school day, weather. # of days of school. pledge of allegiance) 8:30-9:00 Breakfast (Sci-Tech PreK is a part of Head Start and they provide hot breakfast and lunch each day for every child) 9:00-9:20 Circle (Introduce new letter each week, sound, words that start with letter, songs, finger plays, math, and science lessons) 9:20-10:05 Gross Motor (Children either use outside field, go for a walk, or use the mufti-purpose room in the high school as a gym) 10:05-11:15 Centers/Small Group (Children choose which centers to play at, children are called over for small group activities) 11:15-11:30 Recall/Music/Wash hands (Children discuss what they did that day and then dance/sing to music of their choice) 11:30-12:00 Lunch 12:00-12:20 Story Time 12:30-2:00 Brush teeth/Lights out/Rest time 2:00-2:15 Dismissal/Books on Carpet

Centers include: Library, Art, Math and Science, Writing, Table Toys, Blocks, and Housekeeping. I spent a lot of time my first week observing which centers the children preferred and which centers the children did not visit often. I was surprised to find that all centers were used routinely. It seems that no center is disliked by the children and the least visited is Library because (I believe) the children are allowed many opportunities throughout the day to look at the books outside of center time. I asked if the teachers preferred I change a specific center and they did not. My cooperating teacher suggested Math and Science due to the many extra materials and games for that center that have never been used. I took pictures of all centers and notes on the materials in each. Here are some of the pictures: Block Center: Cardboard, foam, and wooden blocks of all shapes. Train set, trucks, people, and animals. Books about construction and trucks.

Table Toys: Alphabet puzzles, legos, pegs, small wooden blocks, people, kiddie connects, doll house, families, furniture, lego housekeeping set, connecting cubes, talking world map, gears, table and chairs for four children. Housekeeping: stove, sink, fridge, cupboard, food, plates, silverware, mixer, blender, coffee maker, broom, mop, dress-up clothes, doctor set, cash register and money, tool set, ironing board, laundry detergent, shopping cart, stroller, baby dolls, doll bed, doll clothes, mirror, phones, puppets. Art: Two-sided easel, paper, paint, glue, scissors, tissue paper, sequins, eye, buttons, pom-poms, feathers, yarn, stampers, ink pad, pipe cleaners, popscicle sticks, playdough, stencils, crayones, markers, colored pencils, scrap paper, coloring books/pages, colored construction paper, multicolor paper, smocks, drying rack, child-sized table and chairs for five. Writing Center: washable markers, dry-erase markers, marker boards, mail cart, mail box, letter sheets in vinyl protectors, mini felt erasers, crayons, pencils, daily planners, school days, desks, chairs. Math and Science: Discovery table, magnifiers, rainbow sorting colors, books, link-n-learn, balance bears, gems/treasure chest, shape puzzles, shape cupcakes, counting frogs, geometric stacks, mirror blocks, colored science viewers.

Week 2: During my first and second week at Sci-Tech I really got to know the children well through observation, communication, and participating in small group activities, centers, and gross motor play. The children in the class are very creative, personable and diverse. Of the seventeen children in the class, only five are non ESL learners. The rest of the children and their families are from many different countries and areas from around the world including: Mexico, Chile, Libya, China, Korea, Indonesia, India, and Spain. Also, many families are friends with one another outside the classroom, such as two Chinese families and several of the families from Mexico. Over half the children in the class are spending their second (age 4/5) year in the classroom and are improving (comments my cooperating teacher) in their English speaking skills. Mrs. Wasko said that many came to her last year speaking very little to no English. Currently all the children speak their home language only within their homes. She said she has seen a lot of improvement over the past year for many of the older children who now, I ob severed, speak quite well in English. The other half of the children it is their first year in preschool and for many, they are being exposed to a new language for the first time.

During this second week I took over the morning greeting doing routines such as calender, weather and attendance. I then spent the remainder of the day engaging students during play and centers as well as observing my cooperating teachers' varying ways of interacting with the ESL students. I asked if there was anything specific in place to address these students and she said no. That due to having so many students from varying backgrounds and cultures she just tries to keep a strict routine, label and use pictures and examples when introducing new words/concepts, and making sure their curriculum aligns with everyday life experiences of theirs. For example, one day when discussing plants, its parts, and what it needs to survive, she asked if I could bring in a plant so that they could see and feel what we were discussing. It's very common that during circle time Mrs. Wasko will say common words that some children may not know (or at least in English). We encourage friends to say the word in their language (if we don't know it) and try to provide a picture or the actual object. Once, during Story time, Mrs. Wasko was reading Flora's Blanket and showing pictures or common items found throughout the home such as lamp, sofa, towel, etc. It wasn't until the end of the story that we realized that one child did not know what the word towel meant. I asked his friend to tell him in Spanish the word for towel however, he still seemed confused. I then went into housekeeping and got a towel to show him. It wasn't until I wrapped it around me like I just got out of the shower that it seemed to click. You could actually see his face light up and he smiled and nodded his head. I couldn't believe it took ten minutes to explain to one child what the word towel meant but this was not the only time. It seems to happen more often than not.

For some of the children, its very difficult to tell what they are understanding and what they do not know due to their lack of English speaking skills. A couple of the children seem to struggle more than the others and one actually has a meeting between his father, OT, the speech pathologist, my cooperating teacher, his E.I. teacher, and a translator next week to discuss his progress and what they may be able to help him with. Many times I find myself asking them questions and they either just say yes, si, oh, okay, or just smile. For example, during lunch, we try to encourage children to eat their food. This child, E., does not eat unless reminded. I took his fork and placed lettuce with ranch dressing on it and had him take a bite. He had the most terrible look of disgust on his face and was trying to swallow it without gagging. I said, "E, did you like that?" He responded by smiling, nodding his head and saying si, yes. The most reliable resource when finding out about these children, their likes/dislikes and ways we can help them academically is through communication with their families. Its' absolutely wonderful that we see them in the morning at drop off and in the afternoon at pick up. The families seem to work with my cooperating teacher in sending family members who speaks the most English, including an older college aged sister to pick up her brother. All families seem to be very understanding and patient when trying to discuss their child's day. Some prefer to take home written notes and letters about their child because the can read/write better than speaking so my cooperating teacher makes those necessary accommodations.

Week 3: I started my third week feeling very comfortable with the students and my teachers. I was now doing the Morning Greeting and Story time. My story was Bee-Bim Bop add the way my cooperating teacher introduces books is the same for each week. On the first day, you introduce the book and vocabulary words that the children may not know such as chop, slice, rush, etc. using pictures and examples such as me rushing over to my chair (the kids really got a kick out of that) and then reading the book. One the second day, you reread the book and focus on concepts such as author, illustrator, left to right, top to bottom, title, and so on. On the third day, before story time during small groups, the children will write a journal page about their story such as "At the grocery store, the family bought __. The children will look back through the book and write the food they want (carrot, meat, etc.) Some of the older children are able to completely sound out words with the help of a teacher. Others, most of the three-year-colds, will tell what they want to write and then trace the word after a teacher writes it in dot letters. During story time on the third day, as a class, we do a shared writing. The shared writing I chose for this story was "Pretend you are the little girl in Bee-Bim Bop; Write a Thank-you letter to your mama." The children helped come up with words such as thank you, mama, it was yummy, and love.

The rest of the week is your choice of book and because it was a shortened week, I played Runaway Bunny on the cassette and the children listened while I turned the pages. Before reading the story I asked if any of the children have ever read this book before and only two of them had. I was very excited to share it with them because it is one of my favorite books. I also shared that information with them and they seemed much more interested in it because they knew I really liked it. Being able to watch children's faces light up with excitement when I turn the page as they listen with smiles on their faces because you know its enjoyable, and you know that for that one moment they have not a care in the world. This week has definitely made me realize my favorite activity to do with children is read. I believe many children do not read enough at home and lack in creativity because of this. I also think its so important to foster that love of reading and stories in children at a young age so they take that with them when much of the focus in school these days are on reading. I feel that if children don't already love being read to or have a strong interest to read these stories themselves they may become burned out by first grade which is really sad because the push to read is so severe. Unfortunately I witnessed some of this going on during my first placement and I find it really concerning that instead of giving children interesting stories to read we give these "Dick can run. Jane can jump" books and children are either bored and uninterested or will become so soon enough. Also, very little to no time was spent simply reading stories to children. I can remember in elementary school being read both picture and parts of chapter books each and every day. I remember it because it was my favorite part of the day to hear my teacher's voice come alive with the words. I feel as teachers, we become too routine in teaching what is tested and not enough on the long term goal. I'm positive that if you were to ask any teacher if they want their students to be successful in life and not just school they would say both. We want them to be life long learners, who are creative and have developed their personality to the person they want to be, but for many of us, we do not practice what we preach and we do not spend enough time on what is valuable in ten years down the road versus what will be on the unit test this week.

Week 4: Ah! Week four, short but eventful. Due to Thanksgiving break this week was only a three day week with visitors from UPMC, Gateway of the Arts, and the Carnegie Science Center. This week in addition to Morning Greeting, and story time I took over small group, however because of the shortened time due to visitors I only actually did a small group on Tuesday which was "Investigating a Pumpkin". During this activity the children sat around a table in groups of six to four and used their senses to describe the outside and inside of the pumpkin. Next, the children pulled out some pumpkin guts and seeds and explored it. I had made cards with numbers 1-10 and some challenging cards (11-15) for the children to count their seeds and match the number of seeds to the number card they had. After switching cards several times with all children getting correct answers and everything going well the next group came over and the other washed hands and returned to their centers. The younger group I provided dots on the card corresponding to the number so the children could place the seeds on the dots to see if they were correct.

During my second group, I had already placed all the guts and seeds back inside the pumpkin so that they could also remove it themselves. I moved the pumpkin around the table allowing each student to feel and smell it. Once the pumpkin got near "J" he instantly threw up! I quickly removed him from the table and took him to the bathroom. It was the third time in two days. On Monday, while eating lunch he threw up onto himself and we all thought he had placed too much food in this mouth (this wasn't the first time it had happened). Our speech pathologist was there that day so she put on gloves and felt his tongue while eating and his throat while he swallowed. She said everything felt fine that perhaps he was taking too big of bites or eating too fast. She suggested playing slow music during lunch or having someone sit with him and watch/ rub his back. My cooperating teacher also brought up the fact that he will not eat fruits or vegetables. Due to the facility being funded through Head Start as well as PPS we must place those foods in front of him each day. The speech pathologist asked him if he'd like to try one of his peaches and motioned to it. He instantly gagged. My cooperating teacher asked his mother about it over a month ago and she said he will not eat any fruits or vegetables, however, at school he is also throwing up some of his favorite foods such as chicken nuggets, tater tots, and spaghetti but she was also unsure why.. Another issue addressed with "J" was while brushing his teeth he is unable, it seems, to hold water inside his mouth without swallowing. He actually has special toothpaste because he swallows it everyday instead of spitting it out. My cooperating teacher and I are unsure if he just doesn't understand that he is supposed to spit or unable. We have both demonstrated it to him and his mother said shes been working with him at home on it (we're not convinced). Tuesday morning during breakfast he threw up his pancakes and then proceeded to wipe it all over himself after my cooperating teacher handed him a napkin to wipe it of the table before going to the bathroom to be changed. We are unsure why he threw up that time but think the smell of the pumpkin did it during small group. I took him in the bathroom to clean him up with the assistant teacher and I asked if he was feeling okay. I also asked if he knew why he threw up. The only answer I received while wiping the puke off his shirt was a smile and lots of thanks yous. While "J" knows all his colors, numbers, shapes, letters, and letter sounds, it is very difficult to communicate with him because he often mumbles and gives only zero to one word answers. He is an ESL student and it is his first year in preschool so his English speaking skills are not as great as many of the other students who are in their second year. We believe he could have an overactive gag reflex but are now going to take necessary precautions of sitting with him at every meal and planning activities that will cause this reaction.

SMALL GROUP ACTIVITY: 11-20-12

In this small group activity I had the children investigate a pumpkin. I first had them use their senses to explore the outside and inside of the pumpkin. Next, I had them pull out seeds and try to count them. I gave each child a card with a number on it 1-10 (larger, more challenging numbers for some) and encouraged the students to place that many seeds on their card. For example, if a child had the number 7 on their card they would pull out seeds from the pumpkin, count seven seeds, and place them on their card. Each student did this several times until they showed mastery of the skill.

In this photo, I am explaining that pumpkins have "guts" and the children are about to explore what these "guts" feel, look and smell like.



In this photo, a group of four and five year olds are counting seeds to match the numeral on their card.

In these photos, the group of students are comparing their pile of seeds to their friend's pile. Who looks like they have more? less? Can you guess how many "K" has?

In is photo, I am working with an ESL student who is counting how many seeds he has. First, he tried counting in Spanish and next, in English.

Week 5:

SMALL GROUP ACTIVITY: 11-27-12 In this small group activity, after reading "Inch by Inch" by Leo Lionni I had the students create "inchworms" out of playdough. Next, I had the students measure their inchworms using rulers I created.The rulers I created were larger than real inch rulers, in fact, one inch on the rulers in the picture are actually two inches on a real ruler. I did this so the children could more easily measure their inchworm playdough and begin to understand nonstandard and standard measurement. I allowed each child to take home the rulers and also placed several in the math and science center for further use.



SMALL GROUP ACTIVITY: 11-29-12 In this small group activity, the students and I created "Icky Oobleck". I was teaching letter " I i" this week and decided to create something "Icky" using two simple ingredients. First, I set the ingredients on the table and allowed students to touch the cornstrach and watch as I dropped dye into the water. Next, I encouraged students to make predictions on what would happen when these two ingredients are mixed. Then, I allowed the children to pour them in. Everyone took turns mixing the oobleck until it was no longer powdery. Finally, I poured some into dixie cups for each student and allowed them to discuss what had happened to the cornstarch and colored water. The students were very engaged in this activity and discussed the texture of the oobleck in the cup and how it was different than when in the large bowl. The discovered that when it dries on the hands it becomes powdery again. One ESL student was pretending it was snowing while rubbing his hands together to create snowflakes! Two students grabbed small toys from the math and science table to see if they would sink or float!