My Path to Inspiration and Inquiry

I am really grateful the perspectives and feedback I am gaining the past few days from my FA, SA, TOCs, other teachers and staff at my practicum school. My lesson for my SEL books didn’t go very well the previous day, so my FA suggested I should give it another try with some modification, which I did. I have also discussed with the TOCs that were in my class at the time I was teaching. My SA was away during both days of my SEL story due to family emergency. I am really glad I had a second chance to see how my SEL story could work more effectively.

I told my kinder students up front, we will be reading a story that are quite familiar with. I am quite surprised by their acceptance. The kids were really welcoming in allowing me to re-introduce the same book to them today. I thought I might get a remark such as “not again,” “that’s boring.” I purposely didn’t show the cover until the very end of my retelling. I did not read the story word by word today, instead, discussion and food for thoughts were prompted by pictures I am showing on the document camera. The focus this time was placed on the emotions of the characters in the story. I followed the story with an activity what listening would look. I modeled what listening looked like with the TOC sitting on a chair so everyone can see. I emphasized they have to sit close to their partner, so they can pay attention and show their good listening skills to their partner. The kids had so much to share with each other during this activity.

Classroom Management Adaptations

I felt I actually physically had more control of the classroom atmosphere today. Perhaps because before I even begin the story, we brain-stormed together as a class on what good listening looked like.

-what listening looked like not only when a teacher talks, but also when your friends shares their ideas with the class

– I set the expectation up front with the class so everyone hopefully is all on the same page

-for future reference: I don’t want to let call-outs disturb the flow of the lesson. But, at the same time, I don’t want negatively point out their behaviours all the time. Perhaps, I can move them to a different right away to prevent any further disturbance if I had already set listening expectations with them.

I taught two lessons today, one math, and one SEL story.

The math lesson before recess went really well and the SEL taught just before lunch did not really meet my original lesson intent. One crucial factor I learned from my class was the importance of routine, a sudden change in their familiar pattern can impact their focus on any activity introduced. They were used to a story followed immediately by lunch. So, by the time I finished the story, their entire focus was shifted to lunch and hungry tummies though it was not lunch yet. Only a small crowd bought in and went along with the lesson still. Five minutes into my lesson, I knew things were not going to be easy as I felt strong resistance in the crowd. I tried my best to use different strategies to shift their focus from the look of the day posted on the board. For example, taking out the “work time” label to associate my lesson to relieve extra stress for them. However, my consideration was not enough to retrieve their interest.

There was a point in my lesson, I was thinking in my head, “this is not going well at all, this is not happening! I lost them! Stop panning the book, it’s too slow a pace! Just get on and finish the story as quickly as you can because as much as it is hard to endure for me, it must be the same for the kids too!” I scrapped quite a bit of my lesson, because I knew there was no point in continuing ahead when their mind was totally focused on something else. I eventually did a wheel on the bus brain break that I knew they enjoyed because while they were doing the follow-up art activity, they were still singing along with the tune. I rushed their art activity because I knew I wasted too much time in the previous lesson, were losing focus and they had to go to music class right after.

I did notice one student got a bit teary with the lesson topic, and I went up to him afterwards and did a check in with him. It was tricky to understand the context because he was mumbling. But, I did tell him, “Thank you for sharing your experience with me, I understand if must be difficult and sad to think about it again.” I recognized his emotions, I can see it was a stirring up a sad memory in him. He nodded, smiled and continued on with his art. I really appreciated he was relating his personal experience with the lesson. However, one thing I would keep in mind for next time is perhaps ask the kids to show me a silent linking with their fingers whenever they make a connection to their lives or experience as a way for me to gage their emotional status or relevant experience. I don’t want the kids to dive into an “over eight” emotional status without adequate safe closure time and environment.

I notice I was micro-managing too much and too often even when I am trying to listen to a student’s idea while focusing on another! Next time, I will set my expectation and warnings first before reading the story to prevent possible disruptions. I was a bit fearful of portraying myself as being too strict, rigid or disciplining, but now I understand if I am not explicit with my expectation, it will confuse them. I can be reasonable and firm and it does not equate to being mean.

I addressed each student with their name and encouraged active participation. In the afternoon before going home I read another story, it worked better this time because I positioned myself in the corner and the kids were close to me and fanned out in the corner in front of me. Each of them had a clear view of the book, and I did not need to have to endure awkward long silence when panning the book like I did with my SEL book earlier in the afternoon.

Change for next time

• do not label my activity as something they didn’t associate with, especially don’t do it before lunch and label it as a story. I will loose their focus again, if I label it as a story before lunch, even though it is a story.
• I am going to label it as “carpet work”
• Shorter lesson, more wiggle time
• Set listening expectation
• Use the document reader for visuals of the page, instead of wasting time to pan the book
• Be aware of how I position the kids to engage their focus
• It’s okay to move the kids if they were not listening. Set expectation, give warnings!

Pumpkin Patch Adventure

I really enjoyed and valued the pumpkin patch field trip experience with Ms. Sull’s kindergarten class. I have always tried to introduce myself and my role as a teacher candidate in the upcoming school year to parents as they drop of their kids in the morning at any given appropriate timing. However, it was usually really short and succinct. The field trip gave me an opportunity to get to know not only the parents on a more familiar level but also the kids. I was able to establish a closer rapport with the kids by the end of the 3 hours field trip, though it felt as if we were together for a longer time than that. I had more opportunity to help kids and to interact with them on a more natural and less-structured learning setting. I definitely notice more kids were addressing me as Ms. Chen more frequently than ever. I’m starting to realize more of my presence in the class not only as a friendly Thusdays visitor but also an educator they sought for help from and respect. Ms. Sull gave me three kids to supervise specifically on the field trip in addition to looking out for the class as a whole to ensure they don’t step out of boundary. On the bus back to the school, Ms. Sull asked me how the field trip went. She said there was a reason why she gave me the 3 kids: she wanted me to build a good relationship with them as they are quite crucial and quick to changing the dynamic of the class if their attention were not appropriately addressed.

What I found throughout the field trip unique was a technique that I used in summer camps and also now I understand more closely from the article we read earlier in the term of “saying no indirectly with a purpose.” Some of the kids were either consciously or unconsciously doing things that I felt potentially unsafe and could lead to someone getting harmed. I saw Ms. Sull once said it in class too when she saw a kid almost poking someone in the eye, “How do you feel about that?” and then giving the child time to think before she continues “I don’t feel quite safe about that. What do you think?”

I knew all the kids were really excited about Halloween, but I know I won’t be celebrating it with them as I would be at Cougar Canyon with my other group of kids next day. So, I decorated some healthy treat (mandarin oranges) and left it as a surprise for them next day. I also wrote them a big letter card because I know they are starting to read and focusing on literacy in class. I did let Ms. Sull know of my intention in advance by the end of the day.

Practicum Reflection: Day 2

Grade 3 (Ms. Jassal)

I was really intrigued on how a geography class can be so interactive. Ms. Jassal first introduced a worksheet on continents and ocean. She went over each part together with the class on a projector allowing student’s discussion and questions. Resources around the classroom such as, maps, and the globe were also available for the student to use. The students then completed the worksheet at their own pace with the available resources while Ms. Jassal and I went around to give checkmarks to each correct answer. This geography worksheet was not an ordinary horizontal layout of the continents and ocean; it was an arrow view from North Pole and looking up from the South Pole. While I was going around to help, there were definitely times I was unsure of what continents were indicated because it was positioned in a way that I was not familiar with. So, I found myself sometimes would pose the question for students to further investigate rather than directly assisting them towards what I would see as the answer because I was unsure myself as well. There were also times, I would be working a question out with a group of students with the globe and I was figuring out the answer as we were experimenting and making our hypothesis together. It was apparent that most of the students were quite engaged in the geography worksheet activity as you see the group interaction, the uses of the globe and the map. Some students did not participate in the activities that pertain to the whole class as they work on other material with their educational assistant. An ongoing question that I constantly am asking myself, what is inclusion in this sense? The student is physically included in the classroom setting, but l wonder about content and learning-wise.

Kindergarten (Ms. Sull)

I found myself that I am working on my comfort zone of singing today with Ms. Sull’s kindergarten class. Ms. Sull sang through various activities such as circle time, and lining up to go home. I have sang before as part of instructions and games when I taught swimming lessons for babies and up to age 6. The similarity between the songs I sang and Ms. Sull’s were that it was sang with a purpose. My purpose were for my swimmers to display a learning outcome and so was Ms. Sull’s. Ms. Sull said for example the re-adapted alligator song she sings was recently learned at a conference with a purpose of having the student count to ten forward and backward. . I definitely would need to grasp hold of some songs the class sings on a regular basis.

Grade 3/4 (Ms. Calimbas)

The first thing Ms. Calimbas did after the students came in from lunch was they all settled down and sat on the carpet as they went over what happened during lunch and the breakdown of the rest of the day. I thought this was amazing at bringing the students back to a calmer level instead of going into classwork right away. The classroom set up are consisted of tables and chairs. The students store their writing utensils and binder in baskets around the classroom. This set up is similar with my grade seven classes I am co-teaching at Cougar Canyon for our social studies class. This set up I found creates a different type of community dynamic which allows students to more easily share their opinions.

Some questions that were asked by classroom teachers were broad. Some teachers allowed a range of student participation. Some teachers were looking for specific answers therefore turning down some student’s input. Some appreciated unique answers and appreciated their sharing. During my social studies class at Cougar Canyon, I found myself most comfortable when I posed the broad questions out there, paused for a few split seconds for students to think, and then I would pick hands for student to share. Sometimes, I would ask the student to expand because I was either intrigued by how they come up with that idea or for them to clarify what they mean. I found some students benefited from the expanding of ideas as it fuels up more sharing of ideas around the class. I would pick and appreciate the quieter student’s input as it seems they were usually not picked in the class. I really enjoyed seeing the range of student interaction, input, and what they have to share in relation to the social emotion lesson my partner and I was teaching. We were both blown away by each student’s rich knowledge, unique ideas and respect for each other.

Practicum Reflection: Day 1

I was very excited and a bit nervous going into our practicum school. I really enjoyed every bit of the first visit. It was definitely an eye-opening experience to see different teaching styles, how classroom management was continuously embedded throughout each activity in all the classes I visited. The whole school is very welcoming all across board with school administrators, teaching staffs, and the kids. Some kids we have not met popped their heads into the prep room and gleefully said hi as they were going by the room. I remember as we were doing a second round of tour with the principal, Mr. Russell, a student paused him casually in the hallway, and inquisitively asked the principal, “Mr. Russell, how many kids do we have in our school?” Mr. Russell replied with a smile, “302 to be exact.” I think this short interaction between the principal and the student says quite a bit about the school atmosphere. The student was very comfortable with the principal as he was nonchalantly returning to his classroom and this was only 1 student out of the 302.

First Classroom: Kindergarten (Ms. Sull)

• My first time re-entering an elementary classroom not just as a student, or a visitor but welcomed as a member and a part of their class.
• This is also the first time introducing myself as Ms. Chen. I was a bit nervous at first when the teacher, Ms. Sull, paused their art activity and told her kinder students to turn around and give their full attention to me, the new visitor in the class. I have to be honest, it was a bit scary as all of them turned towards me. But, my fear quickly disappeared as I see their welcoming smiles. I said, “Hi everyone, I am Ms. Chen,” and they cheerfully responded, “Hi! Ms. Chen.”
• I dove into helping the students right away as Mrs. Sull pointed out that this is their first major art activity and a lot of her students would need assistance with using scissors. As I was helping the students with using their scissors, I caught myself glancing quite frequently at Mrs. Sull as she was going around to help each students. I was a bit unsure to what extent I was to help them, some of them needed more assistance them the others. Some students grasped the fine motor-skills of turning the template with one hand while cutting carefully with a pair of scissors on the other hand quite quickly. There was a student I observed, he went through several templates and was not happy with any of his results. He wanted it to cut right near the black outline and was struggling. However, he didn’t give up. He managed to produce a product he was content with after numerous tries. Ms. Sull also saw this and praised his effort of not giving up.
• I was really surprised on how much work is needed to prepare the students for recess. The prepping needed were the following: putting away snack, taking off indoor shoes, putting on outdoor shoes, tying on shoe-laces if need be, putting on jackets, sometimes had to turn the sleeves inside out before ready to put on the jacket, and finally lining up, and waiting for the bell and the teacher to open the door to go outside. It took Ms. Sull and I at least a good 10 minutes helping with shoes and jackets.

Second Classroom: Intensive Literacy Program (Ms. Dalzell)

• This was a class of 13 students with a mixture of grade 4, 5, and 6. There was a youth worker coming in and out of classroom along with an educational assistant who helped to facilitate some activities. Ms. Dalzell said all her students were referred by their previous schools with a guarantee of staying in this Intensive Literacy Program for only 1 year. These students did not thrive in the main stream classroom setting. She found embedding SEL element is crucial in her teaching in order to foster a safe learning environment and allowing the students to regain their confidence and inquisitive passion for learning. This students were often labeled by their previous school as “student with learning disability”. This Intensive Literacy program run by Ms. Dalzell focuses specifically on developing literacy skills in terms of reading, writing and comprehension with a focus on the foundation of decoding.
• Dalzell working on a piloting program, Just Words® by Wilson Learning Training, with her students. She was working on decoding and spelling activity with her students in rotating groups as the others worked on their independent science project. It was amazing at seeing the booklet with magnetic alphabet, and how fundamental and crucial it was to alphabetize and read out each alphabet, and sounding out each phonics with the students before introducing the decoding activity word of the day: “gap”, “g_p”, “_ap”, “ga_”. The students had the freedom to create any words and sounding it all. She then asked for meaning of “gap”? And, once they all grasped the definition of gap, they wrote in on their gap. Next, the students were asked to construct a sentence using “gap”.
• I had the opportunity to witness the independent science project the students were working on. Each student had the flexibility on choosing the order they wish to explore the topic about “Our Body” on a website that highlights and read aloud simultaneously. There were enough devices to go around to each student: headphones, Mac desktops, I Pads, and Macbooks. This is also my first time seeing scribing done for students needing assistance with written output.
• I thought it was really interesting when Ms. Dalzell told the kid who came to her in frustration: “Thank you for coming to me for help. But, you need to come to me with a solution, not just a problem.” I understood Ms. Dalzell wants to build a sense of autonomy in her students with every possible opportunity. Students all have the capability to self-solve problems. She wants to reinforce and remind them that they are capable of finding solutions in addition to give them a boost of confidence and independence.

Third Classroom: Grade 3 (Ms. Jassal)

• The idea of silent reading to me was novels or books from the library. Ms. Jassal’s class was doing silent reading on I-pads through a program called Raz-kids. I was assisting them in logging into their accounts. Each student has an individual account, and had access to books at their reading level. Ms. Jassal had the authority in choosing their reading level accordingly, and monitor how much time is spent on reading, and assess their reading comprehension by their quiz results. The students were really motivated in doing the reading. They were collecting star points for each correct answer they respond to. Ms. Jassal said she is monitoring the time spent on reading versus the quiz results because she is suspecting that some students were guessing their quizzes and by luck hoping to get a star rather than understanding the story.

My question/ponder                                                         

• I understand we want to establish an inclusive learning environment. But, in the case of this school’s Intensive Literacy Program for students with learning output exceptionality, and Fast Track program for children with fetal alcohol syndrome, what is the role of inclusive learning? The students are thriving and benefiting in these specific programs dedicated to their learning needs. Segregated learning for the time being was beneficial for these students. It seems as if there is a long process of assessment needed to be done before meeting their learning needs. How do we identify students needing more than just main-stream classroom instruction? Ms. Dalzell said the goal of her program is to boost her student’s reading ability in 1 year to the degree that they are ready to re-enter their main-stream classroom. What if the student needed more time to grasp those skills? Will their previous school be on board with explicit adapting teaching strategies to welcome this student back to their learning community?