Robyn+Stackhouse

Robyn Stackhouse "The important thing is not so muchthat every child should be taught, as that every child should be given the wish to learn"-John Lubbock  September

 First Week  My first day at Roosevelt Pre-K started off a little confusing. When I first arrived at the school, I was informed that all student teachers had been sent to a different school per the principal's request. Of course I had no previous knowledge of this information and was not quite sure how to handle it. After making several phone calls and sending several emails, the situation was taking care of. With the drama behind me, I was now prepared to take on the world (or so I thought.) My immediate reaction of the classroom and the teacher and the students was "this is not what I expected". Children were crying and the room appeared to be in a bit of disarray. In the class room, there are 19 students a lead teacher, and a teacher's aide. There were several adults in the room, watching and taking notes. (Whom I later discovered were the speech therapist and the OT) I didn't know what to do As I walked around with my "Student Teaching Manual" and notebook and pen, I felt like I was just observing some sort of experiment. As I began to walk around and interact with children, I began to feel more comfortable with the environment As I watched the children play and interact with one another, my thoughts immediately wondered to Howard Garners Multiple intelligences. There were some children who responded well to science and math activities and play area while others were more into art and painting. I feel as though at that moment I got a better understanding of children and how they learn and interact with one another. Yes, I've worked in a head start and day care center for over four years, but it was not until that moment where I had to think about making a child's learning experience more engaging did I come to a better realization of these multiple intelligences.

** 9/11/12 **  Moving Forward  This week, I am still getting into the swing of things in the class. Because the school has a strict "no visitors" policy, I sent home a letter to the parents introducing myself and explaining what I would be doing in the classroom. The children are becoming my familiar with the daily routine and there is less crying during arrival and transitions. We have a new student in our class. She is three years old and this is her first time every attending school. Our class size is now at 20. Some of the children are having a difficult time with the new child because she is not use to following rules such as staying in her seat, or resting during nap time. I have been given the chance to look at, review, and assist with classroom lesson plans. This week was my first time leading small group. The activity that I did was worked on a series of of patterns using body movements. After modeling a few examples, I allowed each child to lead and demonstrate one pattern for the class, after which the class replicated the pattern as a whole. The children enjoyed being able to create a pattern of their own. This lesson allowed me to see that the children were able to not only follow a series of instructions, but also create a series of instructions to be followed. Throughout the week, I repeated the same lesson, changing the speed or amount of repetition the activity was repeated.I am already beginning to see growth and development in the children. I feel like they are being more receptive to me as a teacher instead of just a visitor in the classroom.

 9/18/2012  What do you see?  This week I have been doing individual assessments on the children in my class. This is my first time ever observing or conducting any sort of assessment, I must say that I have learned a lot. During the assessment, I had the opportunity to work one on one with each child in the room, observing them doing number different tasks such as sorting, retelling a story, or simply placing a cap on a marker. During this time I was able to see what each was capable to do as well as what areas would be good for me to work on for improvement. Although these assessments may not give me a complete understanding of the child’s strengths and development, it will allow me to see the amount of growth that has occurred.  Also during this week, I have been reading stories to the children. One thing that I discovered was that the curriculum in the school district is very scripted. Even the stories have specific questions that must be followed. Although we have been reading the same story every day, the children seem to be very engaged in the readings. Each day, I ask them different questions (on top of the ones provided by the district) to see what they understand about the story. This week we are reading “ABC I Like Me” and “Peter’s chair”. I made the mistake of not tracking on one page and a student pointed out that I did not point to the words as I was reading it. This experience helped me to see that the children are very well set in their routine.  9/25/12It's All fun and games!

 This week I worked in small group with phonics and letter recognition. We played a game of alphabet bingo where the kids were asked to cover the board with a chip if they had that letter on their board. The objective of the game was for everyone to get their entire board covered. As I called each letter, I showed the children the card, as well as made the sound that that letter made. This lesson served as a refresher as well as an experience for me to work with a small group of kids. I was also able to track what student knew and could recognize which letters. If I were to redo this lesson, I would allow the children more options of how the game could be played. I would also like to see the child more involved in the set up and possible creation of the game. I believe that this is an important way for the children to be interested in their learning. I also believe that it gives me a better understanding of what the children want to learn.

October

10/2/12  I am beginning to take over more class lessons. My first time leading "circle time" or morning routine as we call it, I was very nervous and anxious at the same time. I didn’t know how the kids were going to accept me or even if they were paying attention. Right away, I noticed that the children seemed very restless and antsy. To get the children to come together, I started off by singing "Open Shut Them". This helped to bring the children together but I still was unsure as to how to keep them engaged. I moved through the lesson, trying to mimic everything that the teacher did, but I realized that that approach would not work for me. All I could do was think of some ways to teach the children what they needed to learn while using my own teaching style. When the lesson was over, I realized that I had forgotten to do the pledge. I was so upset about forgetting the pledge that I didn’t take out the time to think back and reflect on how effective the lesson may have been to the children.

 10/9/12  Time Flies <span style="color: #7030a0; display: block; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS'; font-size: 16px; text-align: left;"> It seems as if the time is moving by so quickly. I feel like I am just now starting to get use to the students and before I know it, it will be time for me to leave. When I first started at Roosevelt Pre-K, there were a couple of students who were very slow to warm. It had appeared that it was their first experience in a classroom and they had anxieties about leaving their parents. Now I've noticed that these same children have become very familiar with the classroom routine and actually look forward to coming to school. I first thought that some of the students would give me a hard time but I've noticed that those same students are the ones who look forward to me teaching them a lesson or reading them a story. I have noticed so much growth in not only the children but myself as well. <span style="color: #7030a0; display: block; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS'; font-size: 16px; text-align: left;"> Every day I just keep thinking how great the kids in my class are and how I am going to hate leaving them. I have watched these children grow so much in the last few weeks that it still amazes me. I am beginning to work more independently in the classroom. The only thing I have not yet had a chance to do in the class is lead an art lesson. I am okay with this though because art is not my strongest point (smile). As I look at the growth in the children, I also see the growth in myself as a teacher. I think back to my first week when I was walking around taking notes and being an observer. Now I am an active participant in the growth and development of these small children. I am capable of constructing lesson plans, reading stories, and tying shoes! although I still have a ways to go in this journey, I find myself learning new things everyday1 I feel that it is important to not only demonstrate growth as a teacher but to also understand that learning is a process which occurs every day!

10/21/12 Remembering back to my first days at Roosevelt, I was very nervous as to what to expect. I didn't know rather I had made a mistake by choosing to be a teacher or if I would find comfort in the classroom. My immediate reaction was that I wasted years of schooling and that I may not be cut out for this teaching thing. After I became settled in the class and began to know the kids and what the teacher expected from them, I began to realize that teaching is what I want to do. Not only is it what I want to do but it's what I am passionate about. I never really paid attention to how important learning is for small children until I became the one who was responsible for what it was that they learned. One thing that I've been doing in my classroom is assessments as well as working on individual goals for my students.Not only has this process allowed me to see what the children know and what they need to know, but it also shows me how much they have learned already. There is one child who I've been working with specifically who has a difficult time with counting. Each week I would do different activities with him to help him improve his skills. As I was working with him I had told him that I needed him to help me find some special bears (counting bears). I wanted him to practice picking five objects from out of a group. He successfully found five counting bears which made me really excited. Afterwards I took two bears away, before I could even say anything, he screamed "Now there are only 3 bears! There were five but you took two away which makes 3!" I was so excited that he was able to move onto the next step without me prompting him to do so. When working with this child, I've noticed that the first thing I needed to do was get something that would keep his attention. I told him that I needed him to help me, instead of just saying do this task or that task. Also, I found that it was better for me to allow the child to explore and to find or recognize things for him.This moment for me was very special because it made me feel like I was actually doing my job as a teacher. I was able to see what the child had learned and also found ways to help him with future lessons.

10/28/12 My time at Roosevelt Pre-k seemed to be a very short yet enriching experience, I was not quite sure of the impact that I had on the children until I received a thank you card from one of the parents on my last day at the school. Because the school had a very strict policy about visitors in the building, no parents ever entered the building, unless they were dropping off their child late. I had no contact with the parent sand didn’t even know if the parents were aware of the fact that I was in their child’s room. But on my last day, I received a card that the parent had sent in her child’s folder. The card said how much the child talked about me each day and how she appreciates me for making the child’s time at school fun and memorable. It really touched my heart to know that children were actually remembering what I was teaching them and the fact that they went home and shared my lesson with their families, it helped me to realize how important teachers really are and how they can impact a child’s life even in the smallest way.

After finally finding a placement, I am ready to experience Concord Elementary School. Right away, I get the feel that this is going to be a different experience from my Pre-K placement. There are 26 children in the room and the school day is from 8:00 AM-2:50 PM. The teacher arrives at the school at 6:50 AM to do planning and setting up for the day. Another thing that is different is that the children actually leave the room for a special subject every day. Doing this time the teacher checks homework or grades tests. The day is busy and packed with lessons. There is not a minute that is not structured. The children seem to be very in tune with the schedule of the day and do not have a problem with transitioning from one subject to another. I am looking forward to working with the students as well as the teacher throughout my time here in first grade.
 * November **
 * 11/7/12 **

In my classroom there are a few children who are from Nepal. The teacher informed that they have only been speaking English for about a year or so. Although English is not their native tongue, they seem to be doing pretty well with following along with the lessons and activities. When preparing my lesson plans, I have to think of ways to include the children’s various cultures, nationalities, or family structure which may be present. It is important for me to not only accept and appreciate the differences which are present but to also encourage the other children in the classroom to accept and celebrate the differences as well.

11/14/12

I have been working a lot on poetry with the children. They seem to enjoy reading and listening to poems. Not only is poetry fun for them, but it also helps them with their reading skills. Children are able to look at the poetry and pick out things such as rhyming words and notice patterns that me be in place. It is a fun way to get the children involved in reading aloud as well as get them use to sitting while they listen to others perform so to speak. Looking into future lesson plans, I am thinking of ways to incorporate poetry into more lesson plans. Although I will not be able to do a special class or lesson dedicated just to poetry, I am going to think a ways to add it to a lesson which is part of the standard curriculum.

11/20/12 This was my first time ever doing a social studies lesson. I was quite nervous and did not know what to expect. As I was preparing my lesson, I wanted something that would not only be educational but would also be an attention grabber and fun for the children. Looking over the PA standards, I could not find a specific standard that would fit my lesson so I had to make a few changes. As I prepared my lesson, I had to think of what was important and what I wanted my children to take away from the lesson. After thinking of several different ways to present the information, I decided on doing a KWL chart, keeping in mind the students and what I knew about them thus far. To dig deep and farther engage my audience, I decided to do research on Nepal and to also incorporate the country in my activity. This way the students from Nepal would see a portion of their home country and their history. It would also allow for other children (and myself) to learn something new. When I first chose to do this activity, I was only going to incorporate US flags, however at the last minute I decided to change up the lesson plan and allow the students to have a choice in what they wanted to create. By allowing the children to choose, it gave them the opportunity to have a decision in what they did. The level of excitement and participation from the students really came as a surprise. If I were to redo this lesson, I would include a few extra prompts that would be relevant such as a globe. I would even consider having individual KWL charts for the students to record his or her own notes.

11/28/12 This week my main focus has been math routines. Being that math is such an important part of the day, there are a lot of concepts that need to be covered. One tool that I have the students use during routines is the white board and dry erase marker, Using such tools allows the child to be able to work with me, which I believe gives them a better understanding of the process. Their are a few children who I've noticed that are having difficult with certain concepts such as time and money. I have been exploring various activities, while allowing one and one time with these children who are having a difficult time.