While reflecting on my placements this semester, I really feel like I missed out on seeing a variety of literacy lessons. My 4th grade placement teacher had superb management and technology integration but I didn't get to witness my students writing. I know my teacher incorporated writing into many lessons and my students had writing portfolios, however, I rarely actually saw my students writing (to just write or for writing purposes other than worksheets, etc.).
Collaborative teaching rarely occurred in my 4th grade placement classroom. The reading specialist came in to work with the lowest students for thirty minutes each day but she merely mocked what my teacher was doing just adding more structure and support for the students. They never planned together or discussed lessons before the class period. I saw this as a great opportunity for my teacher to receive extra support and another perspective for helping with lesson plans, but sadly it was not used. However, I have been able to see collaborative teaching in my ESOL placement. My teacher team teaches with another 4th grade teacher and they work together to plan and incorporate the subjects they are responsible for with the others. My teacher is responsible for language-arts (writing usually) and social studies. Her team teacher is responsible for math and science. The teachers switch classrooms to teach the other class their subjects. I really wish I could see them working together in the same classroom but that’s not how they have their schedule set up. Also, my teacher really acts as an advocate for her students whenever they participate in other lessons. For example, my class went to the library for a lesson on bibliographies. My teacher inserted comments and suggestions throughout the lesson to make sure her students were understanding the information being presented. My teacher is really aware of what each student understands (as far as English) so when the librarian used a word that her students wouldn’t understand she made sure to explain it. The librarian worked really well with my teacher and the lesson really turned into a collaborative teaching lesson because as the lesson progressed my teacher was explaining or teaching at least half of the lesson. Sadly, I saw very little reading and writing instruction. The main thing I saw impact student's motivation to write was creating the class book and individual books. My teacher took the time (and her money) to make a book with student's poems listed inside. She took it a step further by giving students time to create their own book online. Students could then purchase the books for $6. One strategy that we discussed was used in my placement classroom. I incorporated the idea of writing poetry through PowerPoint into one of my lessons. The students loved being able to use the laptops and the students used their Haiku poems in their online books :) I added an 'about the author' section in to the powerpoint and my students seemed to have more fun completing that part than the poems. It was an excellent opportunity for me to get to know my students better and really see what they value. Some students went into great detail writing paragraphs about their interests, pets, etc. Overall, it was a great lesson for me and the students! Through-out this semester (and through-out the entire program), I have really seen how important it is to involve reading and writing in the classroom EVERY day. Reading and writing should not necessarily be separated from other instruction/content but should be addressed every day. Reading and writing is the basis to education and learning English (for ELL's) so why wouldn't it be a part of every class day?? Even though writing and reading are not my strong point, I've learned to make writing and reading fun and enjoyable for my students. Incorporating student interests, fun activities (skits, plays, etc.), and visuals make reading and writing a positive and educational experience for students. My burning question is: How do I make sure I incorporate every student’s interest into lessons or the classroom?
Collaborative teaching rarely occurred in my 4th grade placement classroom. The reading specialist came in to work with the lowest students for thirty minutes each day but she merely mocked what my teacher was doing just adding more structure and support for the students. They never planned together or discussed lessons before the class period. I saw this as a great opportunity for my teacher to receive extra support and another perspective for helping with lesson plans, but sadly it was not used. However, I have been able to see collaborative teaching in my ESOL placement. My teacher team teaches with another 4th grade teacher and they work together to plan and incorporate the subjects they are responsible for with the others. My teacher is responsible for language-arts (writing usually) and social studies. Her team teacher is responsible for math and science. The teachers switch classrooms to teach the other class their subjects. I really wish I could see them working together in the same classroom but that’s not how they have their schedule set up. Also, my teacher really acts as an advocate for her students whenever they participate in other lessons. For example, my class went to the library for a lesson on bibliographies. My teacher inserted comments and suggestions throughout the lesson to make sure her students were understanding the information being presented. My teacher is really aware of what each student understands (as far as English) so when the librarian used a word that her students wouldn’t understand she made sure to explain it. The librarian worked really well with my teacher and the lesson really turned into a collaborative teaching lesson because as the lesson progressed my teacher was explaining or teaching at least half of the lesson.
Sadly, I saw very little reading and writing instruction. The main thing I saw impact student's motivation to write was creating the class book and individual books. My teacher took the time (and her money) to make a book with student's poems listed inside. She took it a step further by giving students time to create their own book online. Students could then purchase the books for $6.
One strategy that we discussed was used in my placement classroom. I incorporated the idea of writing poetry through PowerPoint into one of my lessons. The students loved being able to use the laptops and the students used their Haiku poems in their online books :) I added an 'about the author' section in to the powerpoint and my students seemed to have more fun completing that part than the poems. It was an excellent opportunity for me to get to know my students better and really see what they value. Some students went into great detail writing paragraphs about their interests, pets, etc. Overall, it was a great lesson for me and the students!
Through-out this semester (and through-out the entire program), I have really seen how important it is to involve reading and writing in the classroom EVERY day. Reading and writing should not necessarily be separated from other instruction/content but should be addressed every day. Reading and writing is the basis to education and learning English (for ELL's) so why wouldn't it be a part of every class day?? Even though writing and reading are not my strong point, I've learned to make writing and reading fun and enjoyable for my students. Incorporating student interests, fun activities (skits, plays, etc.), and visuals make reading and writing a positive and educational experience for students. My burning question is: How do I make sure I incorporate every student’s interest into lessons or the classroom?