Post 4 Week 5

The last week of my field experience was just as great as the first. This week was a little different than the usual, but that was nice because I got to see what they do during the afternoon (when I'm not there). Usually on a regular day, the students come in, work on their morning work, and we start the day by doing calendar and then we go right into the daily 5 but this week like I said was different. After doing calendar, we jumped right into STEM. The students were learning about chemistry and how in chemistry, we need to follow a process (steps). The CT demonstrated this in a fun way, by having the students make play-doh. In order for the students to make this, they had to follow a process. They made low quality play-do, and high quality play-do and they compared/contrasted to what they did differently. Throughout watching the CT give directions and incorporate other standards into this lesson, I couldn't believe how well she does all of this. She is such a good teacher, and I can tell that she has been doing this for many years because she explains and teaches things in such a fun, organized, way to where the students understand and that is something that I hope I can do when I become a teacher someday.

It was fun doing this with the students and having them learn what way to make play-doh is the best and why. The CT and I asked the students questions and they answered back with the correct statement so we could tell that they have been listening and focusing on what the CT was telling them. I really liked seeing them learn other subjects other than literacy because it allowed me to experience a little more.

Overall, I had such a great experience and I can't even begin to tell you all how much I learned! This experience was so fun and I loved getting to know the students and seeing them grow and learn just in 5 weeks is incredible. I can't wait to start my next field experience and eventually have my own classroom!

Final Week

I ended my week singing Twinkle, Twinkle Litter Stars with the Kindergarteners. I was really happy to learn so much from my cooperating teacher, from classroom management to actually understanding that 6-7 aged children are not so hard to handle if you have transitions. I was also happy to have a partner that has a lot of experience with kids and show me how to get er done. Something tragic happened on Thursday, that affected me enormously and didn't want to go to my final day of field experience, but my husband assured me to go because it would be best to go than to stay at home. I went to my field experience on Friday and what Joy it was to laugh and smile the whole day, I nearly forgot the tragic incidence. I would definitely agree that love cures many things and I am so glad I am loving to be a teacher! This experience could not have finished any other way, the best experience yet!

Post 4

This last week with my kindergarten class really showed me how much the students can grow with practice every day. Every morning we got the opportunity to practice sight words and number with our students, and some of them really struggled with many words and the blending sounds like th, sh, and ch, but after practicing every morning on the same words and sounds, they were able to get the hang of it and eventually remember them. I really enjoyed seeing them succeed and they were very happy when they were getting their words right too. When I showed excitement in their success, they were proud of themselves, and this went a long ways.

I also got to read my last read aloud this week, and I read a book called "My Life as a Chicken" by Ellen Kelley. I chose this book because my kindergarteners are hatching chicken eggs in an incubator in the classroom and they are super excited to see them every morning when they walk in. I learned to listen more carefully when they ask questions during my story to bring up a conversation. The students were able to point out the rhyming that went along with the story, and this is a benchmark they have to have down in kindergarten, so going over these words would have been beneficial as well.

We decided to stay for a majority of the day on our last day because we wanted to get the chance to see more than their reading hours, and I'm glad we did. I learned a lot from this experience and I am excited to see what else I'll learn in the next couple semesters before I have a classroom of my own one day!

Post #4 week 5

This last week was eyeopening. From seeing how much the kids have grown to growing closer to my CT and learning how she runs her classroom. We were able to attend a field trip with the kids to the green house. It was hard to manage a class, while still respecting the workers at the green house. The kids were so interested in the plants, but sometimes a little bit too much at times. It was a good way for us as student teachers to learn that the change in the environment can change how kids behave. They need structure, and when things are changed that it is hard for the kids. Overall the field trip went well, and I am glad we got to experience this within our last week with the kids. I am sad that this was our last week with the students, but it makes me excited to start my career as a teacher. Seeing how much the kids value our opinion, and also seeing how much the kids can change us was amazing as well. I cannot wait for the future, and to learn more about the teaching field!

Post 4 Week 5

It makes me so sad that this is the last week of field experience. I feel like I have made a lot of connections with the students and I feel like I didn't get enough time with them. My CT said that he would be okay if I still came in after my classes were over and I am very excited about that because I would love to continue going. Also the chicked hatched and all of the kids are so excited. They had a hard time focusing on their schoolwork though because they all wanted to sit and stare at the chicks. On Friday they each got to hold a chick and their reactions were so cute. They were all so excited and my CT had them praciticing how to calm their bodies so they wouldn't scare the chicks. My CT does such a great job with his classroom management and I have found myself taking notes to keep track of things that he does that I would like to do in my future classroom. I couldn't have been more lucky to have been placed in the classroom that I was placed in. I got along great with my CT, the para and the students. It was one of the best experiences that I have had in a classroom setting and I know that I learned so much from my CT. Also on Friday we had a little going away party for me and my partner and we brought in treats for the students so we got to eat cookies and go outside and play and it was a lot of fun. It was such a bittersweet goodbye (even though I know I'll be going back in like 2 weeks). I'm already counting down the days until I get to go back!

Post 3 Week 4

I did my second read aloud this week and I chose to read Not Your Typical Dragon by Dan Bar-el. The children giggled their way through the whole book and it was so fun being able to get them engaged in a book like that. This week in class we also planted some seeds for flowers that the kindergarteners will be able to take home later. Each student had their own pot that they planted a couple zinnea seeds in and then there were some extra pots that were used to plant some beans, sunflowers and peas. Also, I forgot to say this in my second week post but an incubator is in our classroom and we are in the process of hatching chicks and some of them we can see beginning to develop. My CT has taken an egg out a couple of times and he uses his flashlight on his phone to see through the egg and we can see the veins forming and the yolk is turning into a little chicken fetus. I feel like there's never a dull day in kindergarten. We're always busy and doing awesome projects. This week I followed the EBD student and his para around to see what they do when they aren't in the classroom and it wasn't what I thought it would be like. The student has a chart of pokeballs and when he gets to 5 pokeballs he's able to go on a "break" and that's what I was curious about. He gets to choose what he does on his breaks and he chose to use a body sox and I had never seen one before. It has a similar effect like a weighted blanket. If you don't know what a body sox is I highly recommend you look it up. It's hilarious and also very helpful for students who need that calming kind of pressure.

Week 5

            Week five concludes the time in my field experience, and I will definitely miss the students in my class. I have learned a plethora of information from observing and helping out in this classroom, which I hope will help me to become a successful educator in the future. In the past week, there were a few guest teachers who came to teach the class and both the students and the guest teachers had to learn from each other and realize that things may be a bit different from the student’s regular routine. At times the class was pretty chaotic because there was not a ton of structure within the classroom when a new guest teacher came in. The guest teachers did not really have a plan or an idea of how the student’s regular routine went, so the classroom environment was difficult at times. Even though the last few days of my experience was not what I was expecting, I have learned a lot and would not have traded the experience for any other!