Standards

In the classroom where I am volunteering right now, the students are preparing to take the SAGE test. Before the date of the SAGE test was as close as it is now, there wasn't much preparation going on for it, lessons preceded as normal in every different subject area. However, a couple of weeks ago the children took a practice test and the scores were horrific. After evaluating the test scores the teacher has decided to put all effort towards preparing for the test. The 3rd graders spend most of their day practicing Math and English materials. I have noticed that more emphasis at this point, is being put towards their math skills. I think this is because the math that is on the SAGE test is much more abstract then what they are use to doing. For example, the children are most use to doing math problems that are straight forward like 5678-2890=?. The problems, from what I understand, on the assessments require a bit more thinking, they are problems such as story problems. This is harder for them to understand, thus the extra practice. The teacher that I work with, does not like the standardized testing at all. She thinks it is a complete waste of time. She would rather the children be able to show what they know through different mediums such as projects, research, or presentations. 

Diversity

In my classroom there is a lot of religious diversity. Being in Provo, Utah, it is easy to sometimes assume that the most common religion in a classroom to be LDS. However, in the classroom where I volunteer it is very obvious that there are varying opinions about religion. I know that there are laws that prevent the combination of teaching religion in school, but the difference is very intriguing to the children and I often hear them talking about it at recess or during lunch. One time in specific, the teacher was singing a song to the class about a boy who ate a bad peanut. This boy went through much turmoil and eventually ended up dying. In the song, there is one verse that sings about the boy dying and going to heaven, however heaven wouldn't accept him and in the end he was sent to hell. The entire class, except one girl found this to be hilarious. The girl later came up to me very upset and said, "How could we sing a song about that, in my religion we don't joke about things about that." I mentioned her comment to the teacher and later the teacher, without mentioning names, had a class meeting discussing differences in what people believe. The class then talked about the ways they could modify the song so that it wouldn't offend children in the class. While discussing this, the teacher made sure that the discussion didn't cross over into a lesson about religion rather she taught the children ways to help others to feel comfortable. I thought she did a great job accommodating the child who felt uncomfortable. 

Engaging Class

Engaging Class

Our class has been studying a lot about plants recently. The teacher I work under has been going over parts of the plants, advantages of growing them, and how to grow them. In order to really input this lesson into their minds, the teacher has decided to start a garden. This week she took them on a walk through the garden area of the school. She taught them during this time about the envirmornt, climate, and best locations and times to start the garden. The class decided to start growing bell peppers and herbs. 

Another time, our class was having a hard time following the rules during lunch time. The teacher had tried talking to them, rewarding only the good behavior ect., but nothing seemed to be working. In order to show them the way they were behaving was not correct, her and I preformed a skit showing the bad behavior and asking what we were doing wrong. The children responded positively to the skit identifying all of the wrong behavior. That day during lunch, they acted exemplary during lunch time. 

A couple of months we studied fish. This month we are took a field trip to the Living Planet Aquarium. The children loved looking at fish and identifying the part of the fish and the types swimming around. This was a great way for them to apply the knowledge they learned. 

The teacher was giving a spelling lesson. The lesson to me was really boring, I even fell asleep in it... The lesson just consisted of going over the spelling words. Thats it. If I had been giving the lesson, I think I would have added an element of fun to the lesson. No one really likes spelling anyways. It could have been really fun to have incorporated shaving cream. While teaching the new words, if the children could have spelt them in shaving cream rather than just writing the in their writing books, they could have been more engaged and having more fun. 

Blog #3

Evaluation of the Teacher

• Describe a time your cooperative teacher has offered choice to students. 

There was a time that a little boy did not want to chose to do anything. So the teacher gave him choice, he could do what he was suppose to, or she could send a note home to his parents. The little boy chose to do his work, rather than receive a consequence.

• What does the cooperative teacher do to encourage a positive classroom community?  

The teacher I work with starts everyday with time on the line. While on the line she discusses important matters with the children, and the expectations of the day. Sometimes at the end of the day the class goes back to line, if they go back, the teacher gives acknowledgements to children who have done something great during the day. When she is finished she allows the students to also acknowledge students that they have seen doing something awesome. 

• What clear routines are established in the classroom?  How do they support a productive learning environment?

The classroom where I volunteer has a established routine. The children arrive at school, they sign in, mark whether they have school lunch or home lunch, they they get started on their work. They work until 11:30, Clean up, get their shoes, do their jobs, and eat lunch. After lunch they go to recess, and after recess they get to do a special activity (library, art, music, theatre, etc...) When they finish hat, they read for the last few minutes of class. And then they go home. I think routines are very important in the classroom. It helps the children to know what to expect, and I think that consistency is a great way for a child to feel comfortable in a classroom. 

Learning Theories

This week in my class, as I observed, I noticed that my teacher tended to use a lot of the behavioralism theory. I am working in a 1-3 grade class and I think because they are such young and developing minds, behavioralism is a great way to help them on their paths to finding a love for learning and for becoming geniuses.

Examples of how I saw behavioralism 

• A first grader who is slower in learning his numbers 1-20, was sent on a scavenger hunt to find the numbers written on white index cards. When he found the numbers, he was to pair the number with an equal amount of beads. The first day, the child needed help. When he completed the task, he was rewarded with a great job and then was allowed to work on an art project that he was very invested in. The second day, he was able do a little more of the work by himself, when he completed the whole task, he was rewarded with a job well done, and was able to work on what ever he wanted to. This process happened all week until today, when he counted all of the beads, he counted them correctly by himself. At the end of the day, he started counting the number of papers on the door and proceeded to count to 20 correctly, all by himself. He was rewarded with a high five and warm complements. 
• During lunch the children are suppose to remain relatively quiet. They can talk and socialize, as long as they do so peacefully and respectfully. In the past there has been a problem with the 3 graders sitting together, because they cannot follow the lunch rules. Last week, I gave them the chance to sit by each other, and made sure to complement them every time I walked by and saw that they were following the rules. When they acted up, I made sure to remind them that they had been following the rules earlier and if they wanted to continue to sit by each other, they needed to return to how they had been previously acting. Today the same thing happened. I let them sit by each other. I continued to complement them on their ability to follow the rules, and noticed that I had to redirect them less. 
• Lastly, today, a child did not want to participate in any work that he was required to do. When I asked him which of the three options he would like to start with, he said, "No", several times,  and then turned away from me. I pulled him away from the rest of the group and sat him on a chair. I told him that if he did not want to chose to be apart of the class he would have to sit in that chair. He couldn't talk to anyone or do anything fun. I also told him that when he was ready to follow the rules he could come back and finish his required work, and then do the fun activities. He sat for about 20 minutes, and then told me he was ready to be apart of the class. He did his required work for the day and was then able to do the things he wanted to. 

The teacher I work with does a very good job of understanding the developmental issues of the class. I think it's a bit harder for her because she has to deal with children spanning from the ages of 6-9. Those years are all very different from one another, developmentally and mentally. Something that I like that she does is how she runs her class. The class is not necessarily run as a class on a whole, rather individual students with individual needs. She doesn't exactly make a lesson plan for each student based on what they need. She does however, take into account that not all of the children are the same. She adjusts her lesson plans as needed to accommodate. I think the children feel safe and confident in the way she teaches. They know that she can help them. They trust her. 

Walden School of Liberal Arts

Walden School of Liberal Arts

The school where I am will be doing my service learning is called Walden School of Liberal Arts. It is a smaller school located on University Ave. right at the mouth of the canyon. Its a beautiful school it reminds me of a castle when I drive past it. The neighborhood surrounding it is occupied by very large houses. There is a large development being built right next to it. There is also a retirement home across the street. I have learned that often the children go over with their teachers and provide service and smiles for the older folks. Walden school of Liberal Arts is a Montessori School, the classes are grouped by age and not by grades. 6-9 year olds make up the 1-3 levels and 9-12 year olds make up the 4-6 levels. I have learned that many of the students require one on one teaching, but they also thrive with that specific attention. I will be working with the 1-3 levels.

My understanding of service learning entails my observation in a classroom. I am to observe the teacher and to obtain knowledge and experience in the classroom. I will get to work with children and hopefully decide for good that this is what I want to be when I grow up.