Blog #2

1. Describe what you observed in your classroom.

The classroom is very structured. The teacher has the same subjects covered on the same day at the same time. However, the teacher is not so rigid that she will not allow a lesson to be moved around if time allotments do not occur as planned. The class size is pretty small, but that may be changing soon. The students are working at different levels, but they all seem interested in learning.

2. How does the teaching style compare to yours?

The teaching style, while not the same as mine, has many similarities with mine. She does not use games as teaching mechanisms as much as I do, but she is always open to me using them. She is open to trying new strategies, which I think is wonderful. I have approached her with some ideas that I learned in a class that I had been wanting to try out, and my supervising teacher is constantly open to trying new things for the betterment of the classroom, which is something that I try to be as well. I want to make sure that I don't fall into a "rut" with my teaching, but that I mix it up, so that the lessons remain interesting for the students.

3. What elements of your supervisor’s teaching style will you incorporate into your style? Why?

I have already adapted her discipline strategies, for if no other reason, to at least provide consistency to the students. However, I feel like her discipline strategies are effective and logical under the setting of this particular classroom. She uses a "card" system, where if the student misbehaves, their card turns from green to yellow to orange to red. At red, the student's parents will receive a call home. This system seems to work well with this group of students.

4. What instructional/curriculum elements were new to you?

Teaching whole class lessons is not entirely new to me, but it is something I have less experience in. The curriculum that has been covered thus far has all been familiar to me.

5. What was familiar and comfortable for you? Why?

Working with the students one-on-one was very comfortable to me. I am used to listening to children read and tutoring in a one-on-one setting, so having the opportunity to pull students aside and work with them individually was well within my comfort zone. I hope to do more of this in the future, because I believe that it benefits the students immensely, particularly the students who are prone to falling behind.

6. What do you plan to do next in your professional development?

I plan to work with the students more and more, and continue to try new tactics with the students. I am also in constant communication with my supervising teacher: asking for feedback, as well as asking about new ideas to try. This is proving to be incredibly beneficial, because it allows me to have another, more experienced professional offer her opinions about what went well and what could have been improved. Constructive criticism is incredibly important for personal and professional growth.