2/26 - Wed

Today was a day four of their rotation; I spent 8:30am-1:00pm working with Mrs. W and her students.

3rd grade: 30 students/90 min
These students had not yet voted for the paintings that would be sent in to the duck stamp contest, so Mrs. W clearly demonstrated and asked, "can I trust all of you to be quiet in the hallway? Is there anyone that can't be trusted to be quiet?" I thought this was really great, it meant that the students agreed to behave in the hallway as they were dismissed by table. Mrs. W also told these students that she was proud of their work and that she would not have hung them in the hallway unless she believed that they were their best works. Mrs. W then asked the students if they remembered how to safely come and stand around the supply table, the students said yes and they gathered around. She then modeled how to both correctly and incorrectly attach the next pieces of their sarcophagi. I then assisted students with the next step for the remainder of the hour. These students worked hard during class and were really excited about the project; I asked them if they liked it and they all said yes. I think that Mrs. W does a great job of asking questions that guide them towards success, I've carefully written down her questions and am planning on incorporating some of them and similar ones into my lesson; I really think they're powerful.

2nd grade: 14 students/90 min
This class seemed so small after working with 30 students; this class was beginning their stained glass aspect of their castle books. Mrs. W asked these students, "What does good mean?" and "How many of you like a challenge?" She uses questions to get them thinking and involved in learning and to motivate them in their art making. She also asked, "How can I learn from my mistakes?" Mrs. W is really teaching these students not only how to make art, but how to live and be successful in society/other classes. This aspect of their book was difficult for many students; I spent the remainder of the hour explaining the process and walking through it with them individually. Other students did not struggle for a moment. I helped with this part of the project in another class, but with 30 students. Honestly, it was a little overwhelming in there with 30, but 14 students seemed much more approachable and reasonable. It was much more difficult to teach a difficult lesson with 30 student than 14.

Kindergarten: 30 students/45 min
Mrs. W began the class with, "Good afternoon, Kindergarteners!" and the students replied, "Good afternoon, Mrs. W!" This class was beginning a new project today, they were starting their cuckoo clocks. This project is introduced with a short video about German cuckoo clocks, "who can remind us of what I expect while we watch a video?" Although there were so many of these young children, they seemed to behave well during this introduction. Mrs. W then asked questions about the video, "I will call on students who raise their hands." She then introduced the concept of telling time using a children's book that was projected onto the screen. Students were surprisingly receptive to the concept of telling time. We then began the first steps of this project after a demonstration that engaged students with questions and demonstrations of both correct and incorrect methods. "Does that look like I did a good job? What about now?" I think this is a really great way to engage students rather than just lecture to a group of 30 five-year-old children. This gives them the opportunity to really listen to what is being said. I feel like I've already learned a lot about working with young children through my shadowing of Mrs. W. She is an exceptional educator who really cares about the quality of education that her students receive.