First Grade

I had the opportunity to observe and help a first grade teacher today. The students did not stay at their seats for long. Mrs. Lanier had the students engaged in activities that kept them moving around. She also had the students engaged in centers. I assisted some of the students while Mrs. Lanier did Guided Reading. I enjoyed being in her classroom and it was interesting to see her teaching style.

Observations

Today went by so fast! Although I did not teach I did work with small groups of students. I had the opportunity to observe my clinical teacher as she taught. I had planned to visit another classroom; however, the teacher had a change of plans in her schedule. She called this morning to let me know that her class would not be in the room at the time that I was supposed to visit. I plan to observe other teachers during the week.

Helping in the Classroom

My clinical teacher decided to teach all day. I worked with individual students some of the day. I also helped the teacher assistant get work together for the next couple of weeks. In addition, we started to decorate for Christmas. All the students have Christmas Stockings with their names on them. We put them on the railing of the staircase. The students were excited to see them. The day seemed to go by fast.

Extra Help

My clinical teacher taught for the most part today. While she taught, I worked with individual students. Some of the students need extra help and it does make it easier to do with three teachers in the classroom. Most of the students have improved a lot from the beginning of the school year. It will be interesting to see how much they have progressed at the end of the school year.

Music Class

Music class began today. The students were excited to sing and dance. In order to avoid loosing instructional time, we have music one day a week during our computer time. Our principal thought it would be a good idea so that we the students were not out of the classroom for 80 minutes. During our instructional time, the students did work hard. They are doing a great job with beginning sounds.

Indian Hats

We made Indian hats today for the students to wear. The students decorated sentence strips by drawing pictures on them. We also attached feathers to the strips. The students wore their hats in the classroom as well as to lunch. They enjoyed making the hats; however, it did make them a little rowdy. Mrs. Bennett read books about Thanksgiving and the class talked about the first Thanksgiving.

Turkeys

The students made turkeys using paper plates. They cut their turkey bodies out of construction paper and glued them to the plates. Then they colored the plates to represent the turkey’s feathers. Once they finished, I helped the teacher’s assistant decorate the stair case rail using the students’ turkeys. We also read more books about Thanksgiving.

Teaching

The students were talkative today. I think it has something to with the Thanksgiving holiday coming up. One of the students asked me this morning if I was going to teach. He wanted me to teach all day. I am glad that he enjoys my teaching; however, my clinical teacher is in charge of the classroom. I did teach some of the day and my clinical teacher taught as well.

Columbus Visits

My clinical teacher and I started to transition back to her taking over the classroom. I taught the first half of the day, while Mrs. Bennett taught the last half. When I was not teaching I worked with individual students. In addition, Christopher Columbus visited our classroom today as part of Columbus County’s birthday celebration. The students were excited to see him and talk to him; however, his visit was brief.

Newspaper N

Today we allowed the students to tear off pieces of a newspaper. They glued their pieces to form the letter n. As the students worked, we went over the letter and the sound it makes. The students enjoyed the activity and so did I. We also did their theme skills test. Most of the students were able to identify the beginning /n/ sound.

Onsets and Rimes

I went over onsets and rimes with the students again today. I gave the students the sounds and they had to put them together. I was so proud at how well they done. The majority of the students were able to name the words that I was sounding out. At the end of the lesson, I went over taking the beginning sound off. Some of the students were able to give me the correct answer. It is amazing to see how much they are learning.

Pattern Necklaces

The students seemed talkative today. One student told me that he did not want to do his work; however, I reinforced the rules of the classroom. Afterwards, he completed his assignment and did not say anything else. We made necklaces out of yarn and Fruit Loop Cereal. We used the necklaces to make an AAB pattern. The students enjoyed the activity and it seemed to help them understand patterns.

Testing

We had to do our theme skills test today. It was the first time that we completed the test as a whole group. We moved some of the students to different seats and we moved other students’ desks around. Some of the students scored well, whereas, others did not. One section was where the students had to infer what would happen in the story and that is what brought their scores down.

Pat, Pat, Clap

The students worked hard again today. They are doing a great job recognizing beginning sounds. They are also going good with onsets and rimes. We use a chant in order to break words into parts. Pat, Pat, Clap is our chant. We pat our legs as we go over the sounds and we clap as we say the words. The students like to do the chant.

Bear Hats

We had a great day! The students worked hard and their behavior was good. The new student has been doing so much better this week. I have prayed for him because I know there is a language barrier. It makes it difficult to communicate with him; however, he seems to be picking up a few words. During small group time, we made bear hats. The students cut out blue bear faces and added the facial features. Then we glued them to sentence strips. Next, they wrote the letter b on the strips. We stapled the strips to make hats. The students wore their bear hats about all day.

B is for Bear

The students behaved well today and they worked hard. We began our study on the beginning sound /b/. I used a stuffed bear to help the students remember the letter b and the /b/ sound. During our small group time, the students traced the letter b. They also colored their letter blue, black, or brown. Afterwards, they glued buttons onto their colored letter. We plan to do activities all week that will help them remember the letter b and its sound.

A Hectic Day

Today was so hectic! This morning my clinical teacher took a student to the principal’s office. The student has been misbehaving a lot and his father gave the principal permission to spank him. After his punishment, he did seem to act better. At PE, we had another child fall off the slide. We called his mother and she took him to the hospital. We found out that he broke his elbow. My supervising teacher also visited me. I was glad when the day was over!

Pumpkin Carving

The students were talkative today. We carved a pumpkin and they could not wait to look at the inside. They were so excited to see what the inside of a pumpkin looks, smells, and feels like. We took the seeds and pulp out. After washing the seeds, we let them dry. Then we used the seeds for a math activity. The students guessed how many seeds were in the pumpkin. Afterwards, we counted to see how many seeds were actually in it.

A Talkative Student

The students did not behave very well today. They wanted to talk a lot. During our instructional time, I had to keep calling one particular student down. He is a new student; therefore, we are teaching him the rules and procedures. It takes away from the other students whenever I have to stop teaching in order to get his attention and it does make it hard for me to teach.

Pumpkin Unit

I started to teach my pumpkin unit today. The students were excited whenever they saw the pumpkin. I allowed them to hold a small pumpkin so that they would be able to tell me what it felt like. They seemed to enjoy our discussion on what a pumpkin looks and feels like. For the most part, the students behaved well.

Pre-test

I administered my unit pre-test yesterday and today. Today, I used objects such as an apple and bell pepper as part of the test. The students seemed to do much better with the objects. In addition, I did this part of my test on an individual basis. I believe this helped the students as well. The majority of students did better with the representations.

Behavior Issues

A few of my students misbehaved a lot today. One little boy has started to play in his food at breakfast and lunch. He seems to be very immature for his age. The other student has a bad home life; therefore, we believe many of his problems are a result of it. We are trying to work with both of the students on their behavior.

AB Patterns

We went over AB patterns again today. The students were responsible for adding to a pattern as well as coloring it. Some of them seemed to get confused whenever they had to color their pattern. I worked with a small group and so did my clinical teacher. They seemed to work better with us working with them and their behavior was better too.

Hot Potato with Shapes

The students behaved well today and they worked hard. During our math lesson, we played a game. I introduced the students to the concepts of spheres and cubes. After we discussed the shapes, we played hot potato using the shapes. I passed the shapes to each student and they had to tell me what the shapes were. By the end of the lesson all the students could tell me what the shapes were.

Fire Trucks Visit

We had a busy day. This morning we had to administer our weekly theme skills test. My clinical teacher and her assistant worked on the test while I taught the class. During our break, we discussed the results. The majority of the students seemed to have done well. After lunch, the fire trucks came to visit. The firefighters talked to the students about what to do in case of a fire. They also allowed the students to hold a water hose and to try on some of their equipment. Thankfully, the visit was towards the end of the day and it did not interfere with our instructional time.

Patterns

We worked on patterns today and the students seemed to catch on fast. I allowed them to make a pattern using their bodies and they seemed to enjoy it. We created an AB pattern by every other student standing, while the other student sat down. All the students participated in the pattern. We also used marsh mellows to make patterns. I used two colors of marsh mellows and allowed the students to create a pattern of their own. After making the patterns the students were allowed to eat their marsh mellows.

Halloween Pictures

The students created Halloween pictures today. We used big pieces of construction paper in order to complete the project. Each student colored a picture of a haunted house. Afterwards, we glued the pictures to their construction paper. The students completed a sentence about what they saw in their haunted houses and they drew pictures based on their sentences. The students did a great job on their pictures and we are displaying them in the cafeteria in order to show off their work.

Marsh Mellow Prints

The students worked hard today. They listened well during circle time and I could tell that it helped them during our group time. We use group time to complete work sheets that accompany our Basal Reader and the students were able to complete them with little assistance. We also made a craft with the students today. Since our beginning sound this week is /m/ we made marsh mellow prints. I used blue construction paper to make an outline of the letter m. The students dipped a marsh mellow into white paint and made prints inside the m. Although it did take some time, the students seemed to enjoy it.

Beginning Sounds

Today’s lessons went well. The students did a great job with beginning sounds. We played a game where they had to listen to two words. If the words had the same beginning sound, the students gave me a thumbs up. If the words did not, they had to cover their ears. Most of the students were able to identify the words that had the same beginning sound. I was pleased with their progress.

Classroom Behavior

The students did not behave very well today. Some of the students that are usually well behaved wanted to play during circle time. I believe it has something to do with it being fair week. They wanted to talk a lot and it was hard to keep their attention. I reviewed the rules and procedures for the classroom with the students and once they learned that I was not going to allow them to talk they settled down some. I discussed the matter with my clinical teacher and she said that during the fair the students usually seem to misbehave more.

New Student

We got a new student in our class today. He has been in pre-k; however, they finally got a copy of his birth certificate and he is too old for the program. We were not sure how he would react to a new class; however, he seemed to do well. He does not speak English; therefore, it does make it hard to communicate with him. On the bright side, his cousin is also in our class and he is bilingual. We also have another bilingual student and he helps us translate to another non-speaking English student. I would like to learn Spanish so that I can communicate with the students.

Mid-point Evaluation

My supervising teacher came by today to complete my mid-point evaluation. His visit was brief and everything went well. It is hard to be believe that my student teaching is half way over. The students were well behaved today and they worked hard. We have more time for instruction whenever the students behave because we are not spending instructional time going over the rules.

Field Trip

We went on a field trip to the fair today. Some of the students have never ridden the bus; therefore, they were excited about the bus ride. All of the students were excited to be going to the fair. We had the opportunity to go on a hayride and look at farm animals among other things. We were supposed to ride on the carousel; however, it was closed down by the time we got to it. We had several parent volunteers and they helped up tremendously. All of the students were well behaved and they all seemed to have fun. By the end of the day, we were all exhausted.

Fishing for Numbers

As part of today’s math lesson, I allowed the students to fish for numbers. I used a small inflatable swimming pool, magnetic fish, and small toy fishing poles. Prior to teaching the lesson, I write numbers 1-5 on masking tape. I placed the tape on the underside of the fish. The students took turns fishing for numbers. Once they caught a fish, they were responsible for telling the class what their number was and the class clapped the corresponding number of times. The students enjoyed the activity and wanted to play it over and over again.

Music

This week I gave the students a CD with songs that correlate to the Alpha Friends used in our reading series. Each song is based on one letter of the alphabet and its beginning sound. We also sent a letter home to explain to parents what the CD was. One of our parents called us and told us how much her son enjoyed listening to the CD. She said that he sang from the time he got home until it was time for bed. Other students in our class told us that they listened to their CDs and which song was their favorite. One of the students asked us to make him another CD with some of the other songs that we sing in class. This weekend we are going to make them another CD.

Tooty Ta

As part of our morning routine, I play songs and sing with the students. One of our songs is the Tooty Ta by Dr. Jean. The students love to sing and dance to the song. I believe it is their favorite song. Although they sing and dance to other songs, they really get into dancing to the Tooty Ta. Before class this morning, I asked the teacher assistant to take pictures of the students as they danced.

Today's Instruction

I feel good about today’s instruction. Mrs. Bennett and her assistant pulled students for intervention groups while I worked with the rest of the class. We also did our small groups. My group worked on writing sentences with their spelling words. After lunch, we did our math lesson. I wrote a number on the dry erase board and the students had to identify it. Using bear counters, the students had to count out the number shown. During the lesson, I noticed that some of the children were having trouble using one-to-one correspondence. Mrs. Bennett also helped the children; therefore, it gave her an idea of who needs help.

Fundraiser

The students worked hard today. Their behavior was good; therefore, we had more time to concentrate on instructional time. In group time, the students worked hard as well. My clinical teacher wrote “Good job” on a student’s paper. The student was excited to have it written on her paper. This afternoon we had an assembly to kick off our annual fundraiser. The students were excited to hear about all the prizes that they could win. In the auditorium, their behavior was also good. Although they enjoyed the presentation, it did take away from the time we could have been in the classroom.

Good Behavior

Today the class was a little talkative; however, they behaved for the most part. One student in my class has been in trouble quiet a few times this year. Today he asked me over and over if he was being good. I let him know that he was being very good. I also tried to take up some extra time with him. We talked about what he did over the weekend and about his birthday. He turned six years old on Saturday. I believe he is a student who needs a little extra attention.

Johnny Appleseed

To finish our study on apples we celebrated Johnny Appleseeds’ birthday. We read books about him and made hats for the students to wear. We made the hats yesterday so that they would be ready for the students to wear this morning. The students seemed excited to wear the hats. We also talked about apples some more. We have worked hard this week and the students have seemed to enjoy learning about apples.

Visitors

I had an exciting day! This morning we had visitors from the central office. Our assistant superintendent and our principal came into our classroom. They observed me teaching. I was not nervous while they were in our classroom and the students were well behaved. About an hour later, my supervising teacher came to observe me. I believe he observed me teaching for about thirty minutes. I had the opportunity to talk with him whenever the students went into their small groups. He had positive comments about my teaching. I was delighted with his visit.

Apple Tasting

This week we have been studying about apples. My cooperating teacher helped me come up with a lesson for today using our five senses. As part of the lesson, the students tasted various types of apples. Afterwards, we did a class graph in which the students picked their favorite apple. We used apple cutouts and the students placed their cut out on the graph. Then we counted to see which apple had the most votes. The students seemed to enjoy the lesson and I was pleased at how well it went.

New Information

The students worked hard today. We were busy all day and their attention was good. I started teaching them beginning sounds and I was impressed with how much they were able to do. A few students did not seem to understand; however, the majority of them were able to identify the beginning sounds of various letters. We also started using the Waterford Program. The students were excited to use the computers. The only problem was that it took away from the students completing their work. Some of the students did not complete their in class assignments because they were using the computers during seat work. Whenever the students had a free moment, I tried to help them catch up. Although it is hard work, I enjoy working with the students.

Waterford Training

I did not teach at all today. Our school is getting the Waterford program; therefore, we had a workshop all day. The Pearson representative allowed us to have hands-on training. I learned how to use the program to teach whole group activities, which will be fun. I experienced what kindergarten students would if they used Waterford. In addition, I learned how to enroll classes into the program. I helped Mrs. Bennett enroll her students. It was interesting to see all the features that Waterford has to offer.

Good News

My clinical teacher told me that she thought I did a good job at keeping the students’ attention today. I was glad to hear that! I want the students to listen as I teach them most importantly I want them to learn. I was pushed for time today because we had an early release. After the students were dismissed, I went with Mrs. Bennett to a PIMUST Workshop at another school. It was based on number concepts and the speakers did make some good points about teaching students about numbers. I am glad I was able to attend.

Visiting Author

The students were better today. We used small groups in order to complete worksheets. It worked out better as opposed to using whole group. We did have a busy day. The author, Michael Finklea visited our school. He talked to the students for a while before reading them a book. He autographed books that the children bought as well. After school, we had a staff meeting. It lasted for about 45 minutes. Then K-2 teachers had to meet with the principal. I was glad whenever all the meetings were over.

Choosing the Right Song

The children seemed to be more talkative today. As I taught, some of them wanted to talk to each other. I stopped teaching in order to redirect them. My clinical teacher also helped with redirecting the students. One thing I noticed was one of the songs that we sang was too long. I discussed it with Mrs. Bennett and she agreed with me. She suggested another song that helps with phonics; however, it is shorter. The students did seem to catch on as I taught my math lesson. We worked on the number 2. I did a rhyme as we wrote the number and they seemed to enjoy it.

Teaching All Day

Today I taught all day. For the most part, the students were well behaved. We worked all day! There is so much to do and I feel like we do not have enough time to get it all done. My clinical teacher was very supporting. She offered a few suggestions in order for me to make my lessons better such as using paper plates whenever we counted objects. She also helped me pass out materials. The teacher’s assistant was also helpful. I am excited about how well things went.

Red Day

Both kindergarten classes had Red Day. We have been working on the color red all week; therefore, we ended our study by wearing red. We have been going over the color as well as spelling red. By today, most of the students could spell it. I was so proud of a Hispanic student in our class. She could not speak any English; however, now she can say several words. As I was working with her today, she recognized half of her colors and she said the words. Her face would light up when she knew the right answers. I was impressed at how far she has all ready come.

New Ideas

We had our grade level meeting with the principal today. She offered some new ideas for testing such as using TPRI for literacy assessment. She had some good ideas to offer and it was interesting to sit in on the meeting. The students behaved much better. We had to be consistent and it took a lot of work. It was worth it because they listened better in class. They also seemed to enjoy the math lesson that I taught. They love using objects to count with such as the counting bears.

Using Manipulatives

I was nervous today as I started to teach my math lesson. As I began to teach, the feeling subsided. I allowed the students to sit in a circle using manipulatives to count. I wrote numbers on a dry erase board and the students had to use counters to represent the numbers. I was so proud of a female student that sat beside me. She does not know her numbers and she is easily distracted. As we worked, she seemed to understand numbers better and she was usually the first one to represent the number I wrote down. I believe using manipulatives helps children to understand concepts better and I hope I can continue to have ideas using them.

Misbehaving in Class

The students did not behave well today. We had to reinforce our rules and procedures a lot. I realize that we have to be consistent but it seems that we spend too much time repeating the same things. I noticed a female student acting suspicious; therefore, I went over to her desk. She had a right to look suspicious because she cut her hair. I saw it in her hand and I pulled her off to the side. We talked about her cutting her hair. As we talked, I ran my fingers through her hair. Hair kept coming out! Now she has a small section on the top of her head that is so short, it sticks up. My clinical teacher called the student’s mother and explained what had happened. The mother was so nice and I was so glad!

A Busy Day

I was so busy today! It seems that we do not have enough time to do everything that we need to do. I usually try to stay in the afternoons; however, I had to attend class at UNCP. I was glad to hear my colleagues talk about some of the same issues that are occurring at my internship. For example, classroom management is something that takes a lot of work. Sometimes I feel like I am saying the same thing repeatedly. On the bright side, I taught a math lesson today on more than. I was surprised at how well the students caught on and at how well behaved they were. I used manipulatives during my lesson and I let the students know that if they played with them, I would take them away from them. I think that helped with behavior. I hope the students continue to listen during my lessons!

Early Release

The school was shortened because of threats from Hurricane Hannah. We did not have much instructional time at all. It seemed like we had to rush to breakfast and lunch. I could see a difference in ours students’ behaviors. I do not think that we had to go over the rules as much as we usually do. Before I knew it, it was time to dismiss. I took a picture of the students as they prepared to go home.

Planning

I had the opportunity to sit in on a grade level meeting today. My clinical teacher and the other kindergarten teacher went over their lesson plans for next week. They asked for my input on some things as well. We worked together in order to ensure our lessons were aligned with the NC SCOS. I saw how the Basal Reader for Language Arts incorporated science and social studies into the lessons. I felt like I learned a lot from joining in on the meeting.

A Visit from my Supervising Teacher

My supervising teacher visited me today. I was so nervous! I knew he was supposed to visit sometime during the week; however, I did not know the exact day. He went over some things in the Student Intern Handbook with me and gave me an itinerary schedule of his visits. The students behaved well during Mr. Ebron’s visit. At the time of his visit, another teacher was in the room with me because my teacher had been called out of the room. When my clinical teacher returned to the classroom, I discussed my meeting with Mr. Ebron with her. We both felt bad because Mr. Ebron did not have an opportunity to meet with her.

Daily Routine

My clinical teacher started her daily routine today. I had the opportunity to observe her teach her lesson plans. She incorporates songs into many of her lessons. The children act as if they enjoy them. I have noticed that the teacher has to stay on track with her plans because the students get off task quickly. We are still working on the rules and procedures. I am nervous about taking on some of the teaching load next week.

What a Day!

What a day! All the students attended school and I could see a big difference. They talked more and most of the day was spent showing them how to act. Whenever the children did not follow the rules or procedures, we would go over them again. I felt like we had to say the same things repeatedly. I know that classroom management is important and it takes practice. By the end of the day, I was exhausted!

Chicka Chicka Boom Boom

I helped put up a bulletin board for the beginning of the school year. The theme was based on the book Chicka Chicka Boom Boom. We took pictures of the students and put them on the board. The students decorated the first letter in their names to put on the board as well. We titled the board "Chicka Chicka Boom Boom Look Who's In Our Room".

End of Staggered Enrollment

Today was the last day of staggered enrollment and half of our students attended. It was a lot more work when compared to the last few days. One child cried for a while this morning; however, he made friends with another student and stopped crying. It took a lot of work to keep the students on track. I know tomorrow will be hectic whenever all the students attend!

Working With The Students

I had the opportunity to work with the students today. The teacher needed to take care of something; therefore, I worked with the class. Although they were a little talkative, they seemed well behaved. Whenever they started to talk, I went over the classroom rule about listening. I was impressed at how well they listened to me. I hope they will continue to listen!

Small Class

The time went by fast today. There were only five students in my class because we have staggered enrollment. I went over some of the classroom rules with them. I was surprised at well they listened. The students were shy to begin with; however, it did not take them long to open up. By the end of the day, they were talking a lot!

First Day of School

I had a great first day of school! My clinical teacher had to screen the students; therefore, they were only at school for a short time. I observed the teacher as she worked with the students and I also screened a student. When we were not screening children, we worked on newsletters for the class. Things today were calm; however, I know it will change by the end of the week.

A Quiet Start

My first day of student internship was quiet. I had the opportunity to talk with my clinical teacher as well as her assistant. They were both friendly and willing to help me. We worked on adding the last details to the classroom before the students begin school. I am excited as well as nervous about teaching!