16, April 2013
Weekly Field Experience
Highlights:
What I love most about observing is the relationships I form with the kids. This quarter I observe at Shaw Middle school for 2 full school days so I really get to know every child that goes to 8^th grade English. Last quarter I only sat in on the last two classes of the day. Being there for the full day has allowed me feel more comfortable with the students and the routines of the classroom. Today my coordinating teacher had to be at a meeting all day and there was a substitute teacher. It was a confidence booster to have the students raise their hands and ask for me (Ms. Leavitt!) I also enjoy the students coming into class and sharing with me their day or something funny that happened to them. I really feel I belong in the classroom. I can’t wait to continue building relationships with my students.
Different Views:
Last week, I walked into my coordinating teachers room during prep period, expecting to have a nice chat about school and future lessons I will be teaching. Instead, I walked into a classroom with a upset student confiding in my coordinating teacher. Due to conflicts at home, this student had to be at court by ten o’clock and she could not get in contact with her mother. The students mom also happened to be the reason for the court hearing. I was taken back by all the drama this student had been through and the worries she was dealing with outside of school. That same day, another student told me about a problem her mother was dealing with. It shocked me that the student told me about the problem as if it were common. Since then, I have tried to be more understanding of students. I have more of an idea why homework does not get done, or students struggle. I can’t imagine how rough some of my student’s home lives are.
One practice I will adopt:
I have noticed that when my coordinating teacher or I handout an in-class assignment, most students will not get much accomplished unless you say, “your ticket out the door is to have…… done on this assignment.” By giving the students a goal to shoot for, I have found that they will work on their assignment until they have reached the quota. I learned this the hard way!
Conflicting situations:
A reoccurring problem I have found in some students are their lack of confidence. Today I was helping a student with an in-class research assignment. The whole time, the student kept saying that she would not be able to finish the assignment, or did not know enough about computers or have the right questions to ask, when really she was perfectly knowledgeable in all areas. I have noticed this lack of confidence in many other students. I do the best I can to help them and always offer words of encouragement and compliments when earned.