Third Day

From now on, every Thursday we will be able to spend about two hours over at the elementary. I was really excited to spend more time with the kids, but sadly they had a field trip so I was only with them until 9 am. Yesterday was kind of like a free day since they were getting ready to head out to the field trip. While the teacher graded and conferenced with some of the kids, others stayed in their seats and read. My teacher said if I wanted to I could read out loud to them while they waited. All of the kids were really excited about this, so we all headed to the reading area and they all gathered around me as I read. It felt awesome to have them all pay attention and be so interested in the story. Afterwards, the teacher made the kids reflect on what I had just read. I thought this was a really good idea to see their level of comprehension. I noticed that one little girl had said a bad word to another little girl, and the teacher took care of that immediately. She talked with the girl who had said the bad girl and explained how that was wrong and should apologize. Overall, the kids were very excited for the field trip and kinda restless but the teacher was able to keep them settled. It was an awesome day, my favorite part being reading to the kids.

Teacher for a Day

On my second day at the elementary, the teacher I was assigned to shadow was absent. The subsitute didn't know any Spanish, which was a problem since the worksheets the kids were working on were completely in Spanish. When I arrrived, she asked me if I could walk around and guide those who had questions. I sort of took over the class. As soon as the kids saw me, they began to raise their hands and ask questions. I was really excited to be able to help them. I explained what the assignment was and attempted to keep their voices at a level two just as the teacher did. There was one little girl who had finished with her work and didn't want to read, but I was able to convince her and get her back on track. I really did feel like a teacher for a day. It was really exciting to know that I was making a small difference in their lives whenever they would get excited about overcoming a difficult word. I enjoy going over there every Thursday and getting a hands on expirience on what it would be like to be a teacher. My favorite part of the day was when I had to leave and the whole class stood up an ran to give me a hug. None of them wanted to let go! It was adorable.

First Impressions

I was very nervous about meeting the kids and the teacher, but I was also excited. When I first entered the room, they all seem intrigued as to who I was. I felt a little less nervous and more excited at being able to get to know the kids and see how the teacher worked the classroom.The class that was assigned to me was a bilingual 2nd grade class. On my first day there, the teacher had the students rotate between three stations: writing, reading, and a combination of the two. I began at the reading station and was soon on the floor along side the students helping read through the difficult words. It was really exciting feeling like I was actually teaching something to the kids. As I rotated, I began to get a feel of how the class worked. For the most part everyone kept busy except two boys who kept getting distracted, but the teacher handled the situation quickly and they began to work. She also explained to me how there was a little girl who had just moved from Honduras and she was behind from the other kids as far as skills.Because of this, she needed a little more attention.I liked how when the teacher noticed the class getting loud, she would raise two fingers and remind them to use level two voices. Overall, it was a good day.