Last Day!

I couldn't believe yesterday was my last day going to the elementary. I had missed about three weeks going there because of testing, so I was very excited to finally get to interact with my students once again. When I arrived, the class greeted me excitedly. My teacher said how i had ben missed the past few weeks. Since it was my last day, I got to teach the students a mini lesson. It consisted of reading them a story followed by a worksheet about vocabulary from the story. The students sat around me as I read to them. As I have learned from my teacher, I engaged the students with questions throughout the story to keep them thinking about certain topics. At the end, we did an activity from the back of the book that lead towards the worksheet. The kllast twenty minutes, I walked around the class helping the kids write and answer their questions. Finally, right before it was time for me to go, my teacher gathered the students on the reading carpet where they each wished me luck. A little girl told me that she hoped mall of my dreams came true. It was at this time that I felt my eyes were getting teary-eyed. My teacher told me that she loved having me in the class and that she knew I would be a great teacher in the future. I cannot explain what an amazing and exciting experience this has been. Before this class, I wasn't sure whether or not I truly wanted to teach. However, this class opened my eyes. I loved being able to work with students and guide them through dififculties. To see the excitement of learning in their eyes made me want to be a better teacher to them to help them learn as much as possible. I am also very grateful for the teacher I had. She gave me the opportunity to feel like I was part of the classroom and gave me many tips which I will for sure use in the future. This has been a great class, and I will miss my students. I know they will do great as they move onto third grade.

AP English Lit Exam

On Thursday, I took the AP English Lit Exam. It consisted of 55 questions in 60 minutes over passages and poems. The second part was 2 hours where we had to write an essay over a poem, an excerpt from a novel, and a topic given to us. These types of tests are helpful because they allow the students to show how much they have learned over the course of a college level class and gives college credit if passed. It is a good way to asses how well you would do given college level material. The work load in an AP class is more rigorous in order to prepare you for the test and get through the material. The AP tests are by far harder than TAKS, because it takes more analytical skills. You have to use prior knowledge in order to help answer college level questions. I believe this tests are effective beacuse they are not easy. They actuallydo test whether or not you know the material. If well prepared, it is possible to get credit and save money and time in college.

Last Thursday was a pretty relaxed day at the elementary. I got there and noticed there was a sub. The students were working on coloring an easter bunny. I was proud of how well behaved they were being. After a few minutes of coloring, my teacher had instructed for the sub to read them a story. We all headed to the reading rug and listened to the story. The sub, who had subsituted for that class before, made sure the students were interacting and asked them questions about the story to help them stay focus. Afterwards, there was a big math packet to work on. It seemed to be like a review, containing fractions, shapes, and adding and subtracting. I went around helping the students through the problems. Since I had to leave early, the day went by fast. When it was time to go, a little girl said that it would be hard to continue to do the packet without my help. This made me my day because I felt like I was actually helping the students in some way. I told her that they were able to do it and to have confidence. I can't believe we only have three days left to go to the elementary.

Tests are an effective way to evaluate a students knowledge. However, alternative assessments can also be effective and provide different means to get information across. Alternative assesments can have students think on a higher level of Bloom's Taxonomy. They can create different activities to prove that they have an understanding of the material. Also, alternative assessments allow for students to have a more hands on learning experience. Overall, alternative assessments provide a different route for a teacher to evaluate the level of knowlegde by the students.

As I've been noticing for the past few weeks, the students have been practicing their math and reading skills in order to prepare for the upcoming end of the year benchmarks and other exams. Yesterday, they took their Spanish Reading Benchmark. It consisted of two passages followed by a series of questions. I could tell some students were a bit nervous. Also, most of them were finishing up early so my teacher walked around telling them to recheck their work. I walked around as a way to make sure all the students were being concentrated on their test.

An assessment is an important aspect in school because it demonstrates how much the student has learned. It also allows the teacher to see what level of skill each student is at and try to help maximize all of their skills to a greater potential. An assessment can also measure a teacher's effectiveness in presenting information to the students and show the growth of each student. The most common type of assessment is a standarized test. Alternative assessments include having the students make posters, write a skit, portofolios, or presentattions. By having the students create somethign to show their level of comprehension, it allows them to think on a higher level on Bloom's Taxonomy.

At the elementary school, I noticed that my teacher incorporated different teaching styles as she moved from subject to subject. The day began by reviewing the homework from the previous night. My teacher got the class involved in understanding why the right answer was right or to answer any questions. When that was done, the students began to learn a new poem. First, my teacher read the poem out loud, and explained what the poem was about. She also asked the students to visualize some of the imagery given in the poem. Later, it was the students turn to recite the poem. They were all so excited to learn a new poem, and even had hand motions when they recited it. To incorporate writing, the students next had to write the poem on a sheet of paper. They also had to write out the five senses and give examples from the poem. During this time, I worked with a little girl who is behind from the rest of the class as far as her writing skills. However, I was so excited when I noticed her writing and reading skills had improved. It was really interesting to view her progress. Once this activity was done, my teacher went on to lecture the class in science using the AvtiveBoard. This part of the class was also interactive because she kept the students focused by asking them questions.

Something I noticed and was very impressed by was how my teacher handles any bullying situation. Two little boys had made fun of a little girl and when the teacher found out she immediately took them to the side and had a stern conversation with them. Afterwards, they apologized to the girl.

As the year gears up to end, preparing the students for test is the main priority. The teacher had the students rotate stations while she worked individually with each student on their reading. I love when the students work in these stations because I get to go around and help and interact with each of them. While some read, others used computers to read a book online, and others praxcticed their writing. Overall, it was a productive day.

Within an elementary classroom, each student is at a different skill level. This problem is more evident in elementary because the students are developing at different levels. I've seen differential teaching in my classroom. There is a student who's skill level lags significantly behind the other students. My teacher, and myself, have had to accommodate when the assignment involves reading and writing. While I don't think this student is classified as special education, this is a great example of how my teacher has to develop different ways of teaching to help all student achieve success. I believe that no matter what a student's disability may be, it is important to allow them to have the same opportunities for an education as the rest of students. A disability only shows that a student has to have accommodations, however it is not an excuse to label this student as incapable of learning. As a future teacher, I would try to incorporate as much as I could any special needs student in my class with the regular students. Not only would this help the student learn, but it will also promote awareness among the the other student to respect everyone no matter their disabilities.

Testing day for the students

On our last visit to the elementary, my class had to take a test that determined their level of skill in the English Language on the computer. Making a class of curious second graders take an online test  along with the mishaps technology brings  proved to have its challenges. First, the computers were being slow and not logging the students into the test. The computers also kept turning off. My teacher, the teacher in charge of administering the test, and I had to go around logging the students back in and hoping the second or third time around technology would work with us. I realized that when working with technology it is very important to maintain patience and clearly tell the students what is asked of them so they don't let their curious side take over. Since starting the test took so long, my teacher asked me to take the class on a restroom break. At first, I was a bit nervous since I did not know if the students saw me as an authoritative figure. However, I was amazed at how well behaved they were and proud that they listened to me and followed directions. I felt like I had control over my class. Once we were able to start the test, my teacher read some sample questions and finally the students were off on their own. I noticed that some students found it easier than others. Tests like these make it clear that at an elementary level there is a prominent gap between the skill level of students within one class. Knowing this allows my teacher to adapt  her teaching style for the better of the whole class. In class we learned about test taking and grades. I was able to see how standardized tests can help determine at what level each student is at. The tests my teacher gives the students also do the same but they test a specific topic they are on. Also, grades are earned and not given. Now that the year is on its way to the end, the students are being tested more often. I'm so excited to get back in the classroom and work with the students on a more one-on-one level, and keep learning from my teacher.