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My Last Lesson for Field II: Planting Seeds
I taught my 4th and final lesson for my field II course today in kindergarten at Harbor View Elementary. My lesson was formated very differently than any lesson I have ever taught thus far, in that it did not require much writing or concrete handouts/worksheets or design projects. The theme this week is plants and so I read an Eric Carle book on a seed and how a seed grows, and then had each of the four groups plant seeds n a clear container so that that can hopefully see the roots once it begins to grow. Because I taught the lesson so that each group was given one container and several seeds, I focused some of the objectives of my lesson on teamwork, sharing, and cooperation. I think this is very important to learn and when students respect each other and work together in a classroom there is much more trust and students start to open up more. Being able to trust peers and respect each other allows students to take risks when learning and know that they have their peers' support and that they are all working toward a common goal, not competing with one another. This is the optimal learning environment for the classroom. I know that in kindergarten, students are still very focused on themselves but I think that social skills and working with others still need to be focused on. Many students are not used to having to share with so many other children, especially if they did not go to pre-school. I think the lesson went well and I really think that hands on lessons are great for this age. I hope that in my third field I will do more hands-on and tactile/kinesthetic-based lessons.
Something I tried new to this semester's placement was using a soft ball to throw to students when they raised their hands so that only the student holding the ball can talk. I really like this and used it last semester and will probably use it in my classroom. It makes learning a little more fun rather than just sitting back, especially if I tell them that they have to be alert because even if they are not raising their hand they may have the ball tossed to them. I also used a magic wand that makes noise to get their attention and quiet them down because Mrs. Noble had suggested a bell but I was unable to track one down. The princess-noise wand I really like though for the time being until I find a bell or something very different (maybe a rain-stick would be something different to try. I am enjoying the experimenting I am getting to do and think I need to open myself up to trying new things and doing things different ways in my third field because part of learning what works for me is going to be trial-and-error and it will be my last opportunity to try some things out before my clinical in the spring. Overall, I really enjoyed my experience in kindergarten and coming into this program I thought kindergarten might be the grade I would ideally want to teach. Thus far, I think I liked kindergarten a little better than 3rd grade, however, it is hard to tell if I liked it better because I really liked my cooperating teacher and the space was better, etc., or if I really do like that age better. Regardless, I have loved both my fields and think teaching kindergarten or third grade would be so fun! I look forward to the week after net to see Sam's last lesson and to do some more observing.
I taught my 4th and final lesson for my field II course today in kindergarten at Harbor View Elementary. My lesson was formated very differently than any lesson I have ever taught thus far, in that it did not require much writing or concrete handouts/worksheets or design projects. The theme this week is plants and so I read an Eric Carle book on a seed and how a seed grows, and then had each of the four groups plant seeds n a clear container so that that can hopefully see the roots once it begins to grow. Because I taught the lesson so that each group was given one container and several seeds, I focused some of the objectives of my lesson on teamwork, sharing, and cooperation. I think this is very important to learn and when students respect each other and work together in a classroom there is much more trust and students start to open up more. Being able to trust peers and respect each other allows students to take risks when learning and know that they have their peers' support and that they are all working toward a common goal, not competing with one another. This is the optimal learning environment for the classroom. I know that in kindergarten, students are still very focused on themselves but I think that social skills and working with others still need to be focused on. Many students are not used to having to share with so many other children, especially if they did not go to pre-school. I think the lesson went well and I really think that hands on lessons are great for this age. I hope that in my third field I will do more hands-on and tactile/kinesthetic-based lessons.
Something I tried new to this semester's placement was using a soft ball to throw to students when they raised their hands so that only the student holding the ball can talk. I really like this and used it last semester and will probably use it in my classroom. It makes learning a little more fun rather than just sitting back, especially if I tell them that they have to be alert because even if they are not raising their hand they may have the ball tossed to them. I also used a magic wand that makes noise to get their attention and quiet them down because Mrs. Noble had suggested a bell but I was unable to track one down. The princess-noise wand I really like though for the time being until I find a bell or something very different (maybe a rain-stick would be something different to try. I am enjoying the experimenting I am getting to do and think I need to open myself up to trying new things and doing things different ways in my third field because part of learning what works for me is going to be trial-and-error and it will be my last opportunity to try some things out before my clinical in the spring. Overall, I really enjoyed my experience in kindergarten and coming into this program I thought kindergarten might be the grade I would ideally want to teach. Thus far, I think I liked kindergarten a little better than 3rd grade, however, it is hard to tell if I liked it better because I really liked my cooperating teacher and the space was better, etc., or if I really do like that age better. Regardless, I have loved both my fields and think teaching kindergarten or third grade would be so fun! I look forward to the week after net to see Sam's last lesson and to do some more observing.
Leigh, I thought tossing the ball to well-behaved students was a creative way to keep their attention and encourage their participation. It was definitely a classroom management technique I would consider using in the future as well.
ReplyDeleteI thought it was funny that the students themselves were giving you tips on behavior management throughout your lesson like, "You should use the tambourine instead because it's louder" and Abi.... giving you a list to write the names of good and bad students. haha.
Good job, today. The students were really engaged and actively involved in the learning process :)