Observation Went Well!

Hello Everyone! Wednesday's school day went fairly well. I began the morning by continuing my mini unit on light. I tried to focus my lesson on large group activity rather than small centers because after reflecting on the student's learning needs I noticed that giving instructions and examples in front of the class gives those that are confused additional reinforcement and those that are understanding can move at their own pace. I have noticed through all of my lessons that light was a very hard topic for this particular group to grasp. In realizing this fact, I would like to come up with type of game or review that covers all of the main points from each lesson and combines them into one fun and interactive learning experience. This way the children get to work in pairs or groups and use the knowledge they have gained collectively rather than separately. I am hoping that this game or review will give them a chance to show me what they have absorbed from my lessons and also give me a chance to further reflect upon my teaching to see what I could have done differently with the concepts that were not understood. I noticed that the girls were a lot more receptive when I was doing the little experiments in front of the class. They really learn well from hands on experiences.
I worked with some small groups that were having trouble with their maths problems. I found that when attempting to help these particular students with their questions I was in fact causing more confusion because there are a few different math sequences and problem solving methods that I have learned differently than what they are used to. In fact, this math session was not solely myself teaching the students. There was a lot of teacher teaching students and students teaching teacher which is something that I want to always promote in my classroom. I saw this experience as a great learning tool and found that I can not always assume the students have been taught the same methods as myself. I also found that in teaching math it is always important to show many examples in order to reach each learning style. For instance demonstrate a problem through words, visually, and numerically if possible. I will make sure to always ask questions each step along the way. From my experiences in school I have found that even though students may not ask questions there may still be confusion.
The games around the world project has wrapped up nicely. I have conferenced with each group and given them an interview based assessment on what they have learned throughout their research process. Based on the interviews with each group I have picked a few groups to present to the rest of the class on their findings. Throughout the school I have noticed how incredibly encouraging and uplifting the students are to one another based on school work. The girls give wonderful compliments to each other and have the nicest remarks to add about the work their peers have done. This I have found to be very encouraging as a teacher as well. It is wonderful to look around and see the students in your class building each other's confidence. This allows for the full potential of each students to be attained.
For my observation session I taught an English lesson on rhyming. This lesson was not out of the girl's workbook but more of a culmination of the material they have covered so far. I began the lesson with a basic review of rhyming words giving me a chance to assess the student's prior knowledge. I found through the next activity that most of the students had a firm grasp on rhyming words. I listed several rhyming word pairs and asked the children to put their thumb up if the two words rhymed. The children enjoyed this and it was a great way for myself to tell if they knew if the word pair rhymed or not. I continued with practicing rhyming words by giving each child their own word that was to be read a loud in the Dr. Seus book I was reading. When they heard their word they were to come up and place it on the board. After each student heard their word they were to look at all of the words on the board and find rhyming pairs. After this activity I connected rhyming words to poetry. We read together a spring poem that I had found. This poem not only contained rhyming words but used vivid vocabulary as well. We had a great time reading through the poem and finding all of the rhyming words. Lastly the girls were able to illustrate the poem in their English notebook copies. I felt very confident throughout my lesson and had a wonderful time with the girls. They did great! I also had good feedback from my supervisor as well. I was very grateful for this! I will now get back to my lesson planning. Until next time Slan!