Entry 8

During my fieldwork I have learned two very important things. First, I have learned that a teacher is there for the kids. To protect them and help them learn. Providing a safe and fun learning environment is of the utmost importance. If students feel safe it is easier for them to express themselves and learn new things. If students have a learning disability you need to make adjustment in the classroom so that all your students can learn. I have seen this time and time again in Mrs. Cullimore's classroom. She has a few students with learning disabilities that need a quiet environment to learn. As a result her classroom is always very quiet and all of the students have responded positively to this type of environment. 

I believe the second most important thing I have learned is incorporating different learning modalities in the lessons. Mrs. Cullimore does this everyday. Even given instructions is done multiple ways so that each student is able to understand and complete the task needed. She will tell the students the instructions, show the kids how to do it and then answer any questions they still have about the activity. I think incorporating all the learning modalities makes lessons more fun for both the students and the teacher. It helps you be more creative with the activities you complete in the classroom. 

I have learned so much this year while doing the fieldwork. I have loved every minute of it and know that I will love being a teacher some day. I grown to love this class of second graders and have made arrangements with Mrs. Cullimore to continue my fieldwork until the end of the school year. I am so excited to continue getting experience in the classroom and learning more about what it takes to be a great teacher!

Entry 7

In the videos we watched this week there were ideas for morning activities to get the students involved and ready to learn. For example one teacher asked each of his students a question about what they had learned with a firm handshake. If they answered correctly they were allowed to enter the classroom. It seemed like the students enjoyed it and it motivated them to retain what they learned in class. In another video one teacher explained why she the organization and having a routine is the utmost importance when it comes to good classroom behavior.  All of the videos watched were very helpful and informative this week. 

Mrs. Cullimore incorporates her own morning routine for her students. First the kids complete their daily journal.. 

They can write about whatever they like and draw a picture. Then she has the morning meeting. All the kids will come sit on the alphabet rug. She gives the students the opportunity to share what they have written in their journal that morning. Then they discuss what will be happening that week, school events, holidays, class activities, etc. I think it is a great way to start the day because it helps the kids learn more about each other while practicing writing and sentence structure. Mrs. Cullimore is also very organized and keeps to a routine. I think this is a great way to run a classroom. The kids know what they will be doing and are prepared to complete the tasks. It is important to have an environment where the students feel safe. I believe that Mrs. Cullimore has accomplished this task. 

Entry 6

It is very important to actively engage the students. As a teacher my goal will be to engage the entire class during activities and lessons. I believe a great way to get the kids engaged is to first, start with a mind warm-up using a mix of collaboration and competition. The mundane warm-up that we are use to is question and answer where kids work silently and usually results in some students disengaging. Using a mind warm-up that is creative and fun will help engage the students and get their minds ready for the next task. Next, it's great to use movement to get the kids focused. For example having the kids stand behind their desks and doing a physical movement (like clapping their hands while chanting a song) will not only get the kids focused on the task but it is also an easy way to monitor full participation. Two other important concepts are incorporating different teaching styles.

Below is a list of techniques and activities that a teacher can incorporate to actively engage students.
1. The jigsaw technique: The class is divided into several teams, with each team preparing separate but related assignments. When all team members are prepared, the class is re-divided into mixed groups, with one member from each team in each group. Each person in the group teaches the rest of the group what he/she knows from the assignment completed previously. 
2. The gallery walk: post several questions around the room. Form the students into as many groups as there are questions. Each group moves from question to question. After completing all the questions together in the groups the students can then do their own reflection. 
3. Effective discussion: Rather than just having a discussion with teacher-student interaction, students can also discuss with their peers.
4. Concept Sketches: sketches or diagrams that are concisely annotated with short statements the describe the process, concepts, and interrelationships shown in the sketch.

Some effective strategies Mrs. Cullimore uses in her classroom are as follows. She uses random student selection to get the kids to answer questions. She has a cup of craft sticks with the names of the students. This helps the class pay attention because they could be called on at any moment. Individual dry erase boards are also used in Mrs. Cullimore's classroom. Students love writing on their own white board and solve math problems or give silent direct feedback to the teacher. Sometimes Mrs. Cullimore will separate the class into small groups and they will go to specific learning centers. Here they receive small group instructions and more one on one time with the teacher. Another fun activity Mrs. Cullimore incorporates is reading theater. She has the students dispersed into small groups and given a story/play. Each student is given a part in the play and then each groups performs a reading for the class.

I believe that having actively engaged students is very important. I plan to use most of the ideas previously discussed in this entry. I believe most of these ideas to be more effective than the usual mundane day to day activities that most students dread. 

Entry 5: The Roles of a Teacher

I am amazed at how many roles a teacher plays. From my experiences in the second grade classroom and the activities we have completed for class this week has really been an eye opener. I believe the most important role a teacher plays is to be a multitasker. The ability to multitask is a must when being in the professional field of a teacher. Besides completing your main task of teaching kids you are also communicating with parents and colleagues, helping kids socially,  being a disciplinary figure, and constantly be organized while juggling multiple tasks. As you can see it can get pretty overwhelming. While doing my fieldwork hours this week I noticed how Mrs. Cullimore handles all the roles needed to be filled. She teaches her students in many different ways. She has figured out group activities for the entire class to do while she can work with some students one on one. While disciplining a naughty child, she still shows kindness and helps the student get back on track. She resolves issues between students constantly. After school Mrs. Cullimore responds to emails or messages the parents have left for her, while getting ready for the next day of lessons. I am amazed at how much she can get done with the little time she has to prepare and organize. 

What I believe to be the most challenging role of a teacher would be communicator. In this field you are constantly communicating. While communicating with the students and teaching them during the day, you are also responsible for communicating with their parents as well. I think communicating with parents can be pretty intimidating, especially if you are the bearer of bad news. If a child is misbehaved or is having a hard time with a certain subject the parent should be informed so they can help the situation. No parent wants to hear their child is not the child they thought they were. Although Mrs. Cullimore has told me that most parents are very understanding and want to help there child, she has had a few difficult parents in the past. Besides communicating with the students and parents, teachers also communicate with colleagues, and the community. The role of communicator alone can be a full time job.

Although the many roles a teacher plays can be a little overwhelming, it has not swayed me from my goal in the least. I still am so excited to become a teacher one day. I am willing to accept the challenges as well as the rewards from being a teacher. I know that teachers play many roles, but I am ready to accept the challenge and be the best teacher I can be. 

Entry 4

This past week the kids had fall break. Their assignment was to decorate a little person cutout to resemble what they were going to be for Halloween. Turns out these kids are really creative! My job was to decorate the wall outside of the classroom with this cute project. This was just one clerical responsibility I had while working in Mrs. Cullimore's classroom. Some of my other responsibilities include grading papers and setting the classroom up for fun activities. Each Tuesday the class works on their spelling words. It is then my job to grade their work and make sure they have the correct spelling for each word on their test. On Tuesday's and Thursday's the class participates in a fun project. This week they painted a color wheel. It was aimed at helping them understand the primary colors and how other colors are made. I helped set up each station and then after the kids were done I helped clean up the classroom. It was a lot of fun and I really enjoyed it. 

Report cards will be coming out in a  week or two, as a result, Mrs. Cullimore has been assessing the kids on where they are at in the curriculum. She does this by taking one student back at a time and does an activity with them. Although they are taking a test, the pressures of test taking are not apparent. She just asks them to read words for her (which they do on a daily basis) and then write a sentence. I think this is a great way to manage assessment. As a teacher you are able to see exactly where each child is doing well and where they nee improvement. When report cards do come out Mrs. Cullimore will be able to relay that information to the parents. 

I have really been loving my fieldwork. I didn't think I would get to know the kids in the classroom or get attached to them. It has really been an amazing experience and increased my excitement to teach. I have learned more doing the fieldwork hours than I ever thought possible. 

Entry 3, Exceptional Students

I have noticed that there are multiple times when Mrs. Cullimore has adjusted her lesson to fit the needs of her students.  There are quite a few students in her class that require a little bit more attention. I have noticed that some students have ADHD, and there is one student who just learned English last year. Mrs. Cullimore has made her lessons according to the needs of the kids. In this entry I would like to focus specifically on what modifications have been made for learners who are exceptional. First I will discuss the learning environment Mrs. Cullimore creates, then I will iterate how she gives individual attention to those who need it. 

Since there are a large group of students who have ADHD in the classroom, Mrs. Cullimore has made specific modifications. There is a no talking policy in the classroom. Although it is a room full of twenty plus second graders it is hard to keep this policy in affect. Still, with this challenge Mrs. Cullimore can keep the class reasonably quiet so that others may focus on what's being taught. She tries to get rid of any distractions during the lessons so that each child can have an equal opportunity to learn. All her students have been a lot more successful in the classroom than they had in previous years. Mrs. Cullimore told me that most students were known for being a little more difficult to teach. She has said that all of her students have done a lot better this year and believes it is due to her authoritative teaching method. There are a set of rules that need to be followed, and the students abide by these rules.

There are some exceptional students that require individual attention to help them understand some assignments.  When this attention is needed then she will take the students that need help to the back table and help them get started and answer any questions they might have. In order to not separate these kids from the group she will take other students to the back table throughout the day and help those students with whatever subject they are struggling with. In this classroom there are also a large number of kids with lower reading levels. To help these students Mrs. Cullimore has separated her class into reading groups. She then will help each group as they read a book together. Each student  was also given their own book cubby where they will find books at their reading level that might interest them.

I believe Mrs. Cullimore has done a great job modifying her classroom to help the individual needs of her students. She has proven to me that you don't have to make a completely separate lesson plan to fit specific individuals. It is more than possible to help exceptional students succeed in the classroom environment.

Entry 2, History of Education

This was my first week helping out in Mrs. Cullimore's class. So far it has been great, and I have been learning so much. In this entry I would like to talk about the opportunity I had to work one on one with a student and then discuss the similarities and differences of Scera Park Elementary to schools from earlier periods of history in the United States.

I was given the opportunity this week to work one on one with a student. I helped him complete some of the words and phrases he was working on, as well as, read a few books with him. English is this student's second language, as a result he is a little behind on the average reading level. I would be too, if I had just learned the language last year. I was really impressed by this child and his passion for the subjects of the books he was reading. We first read an informational book about guinea pigs. I was amazed at how much information he retained and could relay back to me. It was fun to see how excited he was about the guinea pig book. The second book we went over was about Utah legends. It was a little bit more challenging, but the student had just as much enthusiasm as before. He loved reading about the mysterious creature that lurked in one of the lakes in Northern Utah. From what we have been going over this week in class I couldn't help but ponder how thing's would have been different for this child in the earlier time period of segregation. Although the student was not African American, he too would have been segregated from the white children. I am so thankful that our educational system has changed. This student is now able to receive the equal opportunity of education as every other child

The fact that segregation no longer exists in schools was a huge difference I saw this week. The children conversed, played, and grew together. Race did not seem to bother them one bit. Mrs. Cullimore gave equal opportunity to each of her students. She treated them with kindness and the utmost respect. It is amazing to see the difference this classroom had compared to the pictures of the "Little Rock Nine" and "The School Children Protesting...". In the classroom there is no longer the embedded hatred as before. Although there are many differences in the school's today there are some similarities as well. School is still five days a week, I'm assuming kids look forward to the weekend as much as they did before. Math, Science, English and other core subjects are still taught in the schools. Teachers are educated and still want their students to succeed. Our country has made huge strides since the days of segregation and has made an impact on countless lives. I am so thankful that the student I worked with this week is able to go to a school that has the tools to help him learn and grow.

Entry 1 Continued

  How does knowledge of the way people learn related to the experience of being a teacher?

I will be completing my fieldwork at Scera Park Elementary. I am super excited to get started and look forward to working with the kids in a second grade class. This week I met with my mentoring teacher to discuss what times I am available to help out. Unfortunately I was not able to get a lot of time with the kids I will be working with, however I was able to ask Mrs. Coleman how knowledge of the way people learn relate to her personal experience of teaching. 

Before I tell you Mrs. Cullimore's answer let's review how people learn. There are three different categories in which people learn best; visually, auditory, and kinesthetic/tactile. Although some individuals can learn through multiple learning modalities there is usually one that they prefer. Having your preferred modality be visual means that you learn by seeing. Mrs. Cullimore preferred learning modality is auditory. This means that she learns best through hearing information. This did not surprise me since most teachers are auditory learners. The final modality is kinesthetic/tactile. This means a person learns by doing. Through experiences they take in the information through the five senses. It is important that students learn this way as much as possible since it allows them to use all of their sensory processes. I believe this will help them embed the information into their memory much easier. 

Now that you know the three learning modalities, you are ready for Mrs. Cullimore response to my previous question. She explained that having the knowledge of how people learn is a huge part of being a successful teacher. In a class of second graders there is evidence of all three learning modalities. As a result, you must plan your lessons in a variety of ways throughout the week. It is important to incorporate all the modalities in your teaching so that you may reach each student in your class. I can tell that Mrs. Cullimore really cares about her students and wants them to succeed. She includes all the learning modalities in her teaching. I look forward to working with her and I know I will learn a lot during my time at Scera Park Elementary.

Entry 1

The purpose of this blog is to document the fieldwork I will be completing this semester.