Week 5 - Part - Time Teaching

I love that I am experiencing all that teaching has to offer. My cooperating teacher is giving me increased responsibility. This week continued with normal schedules and instructions. The students are becoming a bit challenging with the non-stop talking but I am embracing the days, learning as much from each day as possible.

As I continue to take on more responsibility I am continuously aware of my classroom management and work to improve it with simple/direct language. I am also learning to priortize more and be aware of the many ways students try to get out of class with bathroom and water breaks.

My focus continues with the observation of Standard 4 - Learning Environment and Standard 5 – Instructional Delivery as both teachers model their own effective method of teaching. Standard 6 (Reading, Writing, and Oral Communication) continues to be addressed in all lessons as reading, writing, and oral communication are integrated into every lesson. I continued to observe Standard 8 (Collaborative Relationships) and Standard 9 (Professionalism, Leadership, and Advocacy) this week through the daily professional behavior of both teachers. Throughout each day Standard 1 (Teaching Diverse Students, Standard), Standard 2 (Content Area and Pedagogical Knowledge), Standard 3 (Planning for Differentiated Instruction), and Standard 7 (Assessment) are addressed as there is constant discussion about lesson planning and assessments to ensure the learning needs of all students are met and students are progressing as needed. My beliefs about teaching or learning continued to remain the same. Next week I look forward to becoming more comfortable with my lesson delivery.

Week 4 - Part - Time Teaching

Week four had ended. The weeks are flying by! This week was a full week of regular schedules and instruction. I am continuing to enjoy my time in the classroom as I learn new things every day. I am getting to know the students better and enjoy when they come up to me to tell me random stuff about themselves or the day.

This week I continued to take on more responsibility with the students as the teachers are working diligently to complete the F& P reading testing. Throughout the week I also assisted with small group instruction, proximity control during assignments, grading, 1:1 evaluation with Lexia and general task instruction. I am enjoying taking on more instruction responsibility with instruction. I am getting better with classroom management utilizing simple/direct language.

The school is big on communication with both staff and parents. Monday, I attended a 5th-grade meeting where the Principal checked in with the teachers regarding planning and pace to ensure all necessary elements of the curriculum were being addressed. Tuesday, I participated in an open house where the parents were able to come into the classroom and find out more about 5^th grade. Meeting some of the parents proved invaluable as it gave insight into their child’s progress or lack thereof. The students, as expected, seemed proud to bring their parents to school and enjoyed the evening. Thursday, per usual is the Morning staff meeting to keep everyone on the same page and address any thoughts or concerns that week. 

My focus continues with the observation of Standard 4 - Learning Environment and Standard 5 – Instructional Delivery as both teachers model their own effective method of teaching. Standard 6 (Reading, Writing, and Oral Communication) continues to be addressed in all lessons as reading, writing and oral communication are integrated into every lesson. I continued to observe Standard 8 (Collaborative Relationships) and Standard 9 (Professionalism, Leadership, and Advocacy) this week through the daily professional behavior of both teachers. Throughout each day Standard 1 (Teaching Diverse Students, Standard), Standard 2 (Content Area and Pedagogical Knowledge), Standard 3 (Planning for Differentiated Instruction), and Standard 7 (Assessment) are addressed as there are constant discussion about lesson planning and assessments to ensure the learning needs of all students are met and students are progressing as needed. My beliefs about teaching or learning continued to remain the same. Next week I look forward to integrating more technology into each lesson, working on increasing eye contact with the students during lesson delivery and increasing student : student participation during lessons.

Week 3 - Introduction to Teaching

Wow! Three weeks of student teaching has flown by! I am learning a lot and getting to know the kids better. This is Map testing week. The week started with a regular day of instruction on Monday. Tuesday through Thursday the students tested with a normal day of instruction again on Friday. In addition to Map testing this week I also experienced my first observation by my supervisor, Professor Griffith.

This week I continued to take on more responsibility with the students and assisted with what I could during MAP testing. Throughout the week I also assisted with small group instruction, proximity control during assignments, grading, 1:1 evaluation with Lexia and general task instruction.

I am enjoying the time in the classroom. Thankfully our classroom does not have extreme behavior issues, only constant talking and the non-completion of homework.  Classroom Dojo is used to communicate behaviors with parents during school which has proven to be effective. Students are aware of the teacher/parent communication and respond to well they know they might receive or lose Dojo points. Currently, I believe 85% - 90% of parents are signed up and receive communication.

My observation went well as I learned more about my own teaching methods and expectations. I received positive feedback that I can immediately put into practice in my lessons.

My focus continues with the observation of Standard 4 - Learning Environment and Standard 5 – Instructional Delivery as both teachers model their own effective method of teaching. My cooperating teacher has been invaluable as she has given me an explanation of assessments (Standard 7 - Assessment) and how she plans for instruction /assessment with diverse learners (Standard 1 -Teaching Diverse Students, Standard 2 – Content Area and Pedagogical Knowledge, Standard 3 – Planning for Differentiated Instruction). Standard 6 (Reading, Writing, and Oral Communication) continues to be addressed in all lessons as reading, writing and oral communication are integrated into every lesson. I continued to observe Standard 8 (Collaborative Relationships) and Standard 9 (Professionalism, Leadership, and Advocacy) this week through the daily professional behavior of both teachers. My beliefs about teaching or learning continued to remain the same. Next week my cooperating teacher will give me the full responsibility of the writing block.

Week 2 - Introduction to Teaching

My second week of student teaching was a positive experience. The 4-day week started off with a daylong Teacher Institute Day where both district and school level expectations were reviewed followed by 3 days of classroom instruction.
This week I planned and implement the morning meetings for the week. I began to monitor the bathroom breaks utilizing the timer and Class Dojo. I assisted with small group instruction, proximity control during assignments, grading, and general task instruction.  Additional information was shared with me regarding the ELL student’s English language proficiency level in listening, speaking, reading and writing which helped me further understand the setbacks a language barrier can cause.
My focus continued with an observation of Standard 4 - Learning Environment and Standard 5 – Instructional Delivery. Throughout the week my Cooperating teacher reviewed how she plans and implements instruction with diverse students (Standard 1 – Teaching Diverse Students and Standard 3 – Planning for Differentiated Instruction) Standard 6 – Reading, Writing, and Oral communication was addressed daily in all subjects as a goal in the classroom is to foster a love for reading through various assignments, silent reading and a class-wide audiobook reading of Harry Potter. Standard 7 – Assessment was addressed by both teachers as they demonstrated how they would utilize various classroom work to monitor progress, measure growth and evaluate student outcomes. I observed Standard 9 – Professionalism, through the daily professional behavior of both teachers.
My beliefs about teaching or learning continued to remain the same. Next week my cooperating teacher will give me the responsibility of the writing block.

Week 1 - Introduction

My first week of student teaching was refreshing. I was unsure about starting student teaching late due to health issues but my cooperating teacher and co-teacher did their best to make me feel welcome and comfortable. The school administration provided me with a school computer, email, parking pass, and keycard. 
The morning of my first day I was given a tour of the school by my cooperating teacher and was introduced to staff accordingly. Both the cooperating teacher and co-teacher shared access to all digital documents and resources, including copies of the IEP’s and 504’s for the students in the classroom.  I was introduced to the students as an additional teacher in the classroom as it being 5th grade, they did not want the students to view my presence as a student teacher any less than a regular teacher.
My focus this week in observation was on the implementation of Standard 4 - Learning Environment and Standard 5 – Instructional Delivery.  I was impressed not only with the implementation of both standards but the seamless transition between instruction with both teachers. They both encourage the other teacher to interject whenever they felt appropriate. It demonstrated an environment of mutual respect and trust. Their love for teaching and creating the best possible environment for their students was apparent.
Although the ideas, concepts, techniques, strategies used during this first observation are familiar to me it was refreshing to see two different effective ways of implementation, often during the same lesson. My beliefs about teaching or learning remained the same during this week. However, I have had the importance of being organized and prepared reinforced as both of teachers worked diligently to ensure that they as well as the other 5th grade class in the school are on the same page in terms of documentation and resources.
In the week ahead, I hope to review possible goals for the ED TPA lesson plan/video as well as begin instruction of the morning meeting.