Final Notice- Kayleigh Robb

Noticing Blog

I've grown to like the way that people look at me when I say I'm a kindergarten teacher. Whether it be the CEO I am bar tending for at a 50,000 dollar holiday party, or just some sweet, lonely woman on the subway, I almost always get the same look, and then the same response. The look, well, that is this wide-eyed stare, the "taken-aback, oh my goodness are you completely sane?", look. And then I typically get this, "God bless you, that's a job I could never do."

But as I pound out this, my last noticing blog, I have to
disagree. I think that, as my first four months in kindergarten come to a close, more people COULD do this job. Of course, I am biased, but I will tell you what I have "noticed" about kindergarten, this semester, through the words of those I have spoken to about my profession:

-"It is complete chaos!"
One of the highlights of my teaching experience this year so far has been introducing centers into my classroom. My MT and I have spent a lot of time perfecting and getting some sort of routine into the several "center times" we have developed (BURST, Literacy, Math and Open center times). It is a highlight not only because I get to work one on one with a small group of students but also because my students get time to work truly independently, or with partners. It is also a great time because the classroom is loud, it looks like chaos at times and yet I know the students are still learning. They're in kindergarten and developmentally these little munchkins are not completely able to sit down and work silently to always stay in their seat, to not ask their friends for help or to show interest in what they are doing.
-"The kids can't even tie their shoes. I'd just feel like a babysitter."
No, most of my students cannot tie their shoes. The individuals who usually say something of this nature when trying to fathom why on earth I love teaching this grade are not really talking only about the matter of tying shoes. When students enter this grade, they're not used to all day school life. They cannot read, they cannot write and they can't tie their shoes. This leads many individuals to believe that as a teacher, I have to do everything for My students, they're basically helpless. This is a misconception.
If anything, I have learned that my students can do so much more than I could imagine. They are growing exponentially; emotionally, socially and intellectually . It doesn't matter to me that I have to zip a jacket or two and tie a shoe here and there when I get to witness a year of such great growth and change. When in four months you see a student who was struggling with basic English utterances when she began, write and illustrate beautiful compound sentences and sit at the head of your class, eyes bright, hand raised, no longer shy, you can't help but think, every little shoe print on my new dress is so worth this!
-"I just don't have the energy."
And I don't. It's not me who walks in to class every morning with a smiling face, greeting the new day. It's the students. Their smiles bring my smile. They have the energy and the drive to get through a dynamic three hours straight of language arts and an hour of math. They have this fresh passion to learn that students so often lose as school goes on. Kindergarten and kindergarteners are the epitome of energy, but it is absolutely contagious.

Jones- Week 14

Recognizing Student Achievement

            As this year has progressed, there has not been a large display of student achievement outside of the classroom for other students, teachers and administrators to observe. I know that it is hard to grade and choose which work is appropriate to be displayed however, students work must be displayed because it will instill a sense of pride in students. In my classroom students often have homework but they are simply worksheets and often do not require much thought. These worksheets are not an appropriate display of what students can do. There has been work that is displayed outside our classroom however it was on students writing and my MT basically told them what they should change in order for them to have  good paper. In order for them to be a good display of student work, we should have put student writing up at the begining of the year and as the year progressed put up different displays of student writing to show student growth. The important thing here is that students need to be able to see their work displayed. This not only instills a sense of pride in their work, it also helps to build a strong classroom community. If a student sees that another student is good at a particular subject, they may or may not ask this student for help. This will in turn help small group work and help students to feel comfortable asking their classmates for help. I can understand what is happening here. By not displaying student work for students to see, students may not know where they stand as an achiever in my classroom. If students have a constant reminder that they are on the right track, they are more likely to stay on the right track. I feel that students need to be reminded that they are smart and kind. For the month of December, I have decided to have student post random acts of kindness that they see their classmates doing. This will not only show students that they are capable of helping each other, but they can do it all the time. I think that by displaying the kind things that my students do, this will also build a stronger classroom community. This is a case of making sure that students understand where they stand as achievers and doing all that they can to help each other achieve.

Jones- Week 13

Understanding Students' Spoken Language and Body Language

            I can tell when something is wrong with a student not only based on what they say but also based on how they sit and where they choose to sit. Students do not always want to tell me or my MT when something has happened such as name calling or bullying. However, when a usually chipper student is no longer active or puts their head down on their desk, this is a sign that there is something wrong. There has been a lot of instances of bullying in my classroom this quarter. Students seems to not care how another student feels and often does not care about the repercussions that come behind name calling. Students just say what is on their mind and rarely thing about the consequences of their actions. Noticing and understanding students spoken language and body language is also important in noticing if students are understanding material or if they have questions that they are afraid to ask. During my Guided Lead Teaching, my 3rd graders would often respond with “yes I understand” when I asked if they understood what I had just explained to them. However, the frowns and the heads down, told me something different. Knowing the gestures and behaviors of students not only help with behavior management, but it also helps to clear up misconceptions during whole group discussions. This is a case of students not wanting so say they don’t understand something. When students speak up and say that they do not understand something, they are not only helping themselves, they are helping other students as well. The important thing here is to note specific actions of student either in anecdotal records or in students file. This will help me become aware of students normal behavior so that as I teach and plan lessons. I can make sure that I can make sure that I am tending to students individual needs when possible.

Jones- Week 12

Common Sense isn’t common- Focusing on the Respect issue in my classroom.

            When I was in 5^th grade, my Math Teacher always said that “Common Sense isn’t common” when a student would do something silly and could not explain why they did it. While I laughed at the saying then, as an educator, it makes a lot of sense now. A handful of my students are very disrespectful. They are very bright students but when it comes to listening to the teacher and following simple directions such as not talking in the hallway, they cannot do it. There are four particular 4^th grade boys in my classroom who are very disrespectful. I bring this up because the time that these students take to go back and forth with the teacher or do something that  they are not supposed to be doing takes away from their learning. My MT makes it very clear that the times it takes to calm students down and for students to stop talking takes away from their learning. This is a particular interesting thing to notice because students need to be aware of their learning. It is important for teachers to be aware of what the things that students are doing but it is also important for students to understand what they are doing. Another thing that I have noticed is that when students do not want to take responsibility for something that they did and I ask the student why they did what they did, the student simply replies “I don’t know.” The student assumes that this statement will get them out of trouble and what they did will be forgotten. As a teacher, this is very frustrating because I feel that if you do something, you should know why you are doing it. This is where the saying ‘Common sense is not common” comes in. Although I may think that a student should always be aware of what they are doing, sometimes, they are not. This is the case for adults as well. Sometimes an adult will do something as will quickly say, what was I just doing or why did I do that. Adults will admit to this however, some students will not. This is a case of, as I mentioned before, students not wanting to get in trouble or own up to something they have done. When students are disrespectful by talking back to the teacher because they need to “explain what happened” students are trying to keep themselves out of trouble. When students are out of their seats and something happens, students are quick to say “that wasn’t me”.  Students do not want to get in trouble at school because they do not want to get in trouble at home which is understandable. However, students cannot raise their voices and think that this is a common thing that will happen. I demand respect from my students as they demand respect from me. I can understand what is happening here. Some students do not really understand what it means to be disrespectful and the definition that I have for being disrespectful and the definition that they student have may be completely different. It is important to be clear and use language that students can understand when setting expectations for students.

Jones- Week 11

Relating to Students can be a powerful thing

            Since I’ve started my student teaching, I have noticed that being in tune with how students feel and why they feel that way is very important. Some of my students do not know how to express themselves in a way that will not get them in trouble. Instead of taking deep breaths or asking to step outside to collect themselves, some students make loud outbursts and/ or try to start an altercation with another student. I have mentioned this in other noticing blogs but it is a very important thing to notice because being aware of things like this is vital information in terms of how to do classroom management. I have also come to realize that being able to channel your anger/ negative energy in a positive way is a learned behavior. Students have to be taught how to do this. However, I have also noticed that if students learn certain ways to behave in the classroom and these behaviors are not practiced at home, they will be prove to be ineffective. As I watch how my students approach math, some of my 4^th graders get upset not because of Math but because of the fear that they will fail. This is a case of student success and students lack of confidence. This was mentioned in articles that were read in class. The articles talked about classroom equity and creating tasks that can be accomplished by students to build their confidence and build on their learning. As I watch students work and wiggle in their seats, I approach them and tell them that I struggled with some concepts in Math as well as when I was n elementary school. When I tell students this, they don’t believe me. I tell them just because you don’t understand one thing, does not mean you are not capable of learning other things. I can understand what is happening here. When you show students that adults struggle too, the trouble that the student is having doesn’t seem so large anymore. Sharing a relate-able  experience with students is a great way to connect with students.  

week14

This week was an interesting week as one of my students with an IEP did not have a new presecription for his medications so was without them Monday and Today. I could not believe how different this student was off his medicine, I knew their would be a big difference but I honestly did not think it was going to be this vast.

It did not occur to me until this point how hard it could be to reason with a student when they are not on the appropriate medications because they cannot listen to what you are saying, do not understand what you are saying and most of all do not care about sitting still and getting work done. I have never seen this student unruly like he was Monday, it was as if he was a whole different person. When we asked him why he did not bring his afternoon/night medication like his mother had said he was going to in order to take it after lunch rather than after school, he said he forgot. But when we asked him again he began to tell us how he did not enjoy the way the medicine made him feel. He said he hated how it made him sleepy, not hungry, and most of all just out of it. It was sad to hear this little boy describe how he hated taking this medication he had to take every day yet, he knew when he was off it he could not comprehend the lessons or even behave.

While talking to this student I realized how difficult it is for the students with IEPs who take medication. They understand that they have to take it regardless of the side affects as the medication is beneficial to their learning. I never realized until this point how difficult it must be, especially when you do not feel like yourself. After today, I have a new found understanding and respect for these students as they not only have to learn the material that the rest of the class does, but they also have to learn how to deal with their behaviors, coping methods when they get angry or upset, and have to take medication constantly. They are certainly taking a lot more than the students without these problems.

Delise Week 14

On Monday, my MT was absent so I had the opportunity to run the show on my own (which I loved). The sub that was scheduled in my classroom was astonished at how quiet and on task the students were. I don't think that a quiet classroom always necessarily means that the students know what they are doing, understanding the lesson, etc. The students know that when they are doing independent work they are to keep from talking. The occasions for where students are supposed to be quiet are when we are assessing or during writing. I tell the students that during these times they have to keep from talking so that they can focus and do their best work and so that they don't disrupt others from doing their best. For other times of instruction, we do not tell the students, "okay you may talk to your friends now." If we said that, the classroom might be a little out of control. During these times, it is quite incredible to see how students are working collaboratively. Some students are asking others for help or comparing their thoughts and/or answers. Other students who are finishing their work early are taking the initiative to help others around them. These second graders are really good at being productive! Instead of having discussions that are non academic, they are discussing the assignment or the lesson! I notice the students collaborating the most during centers, math, and writing. During centers, the students do a good job of helping each other and rarely come to my MT or I. The students work collaboratively even if they are just helping their partner sound out a word in a book that they are reading. During math, the students are working together during collaborative learning time as well as when they are working in their math journals. Students are vocal about being confused about a problem. When this student raises his/her hand for help, he other students around him/her are eager to help out that student. I especially like this because I am able to see what the students who are helping know about the problem about the way they explain it to the other student. Also, by teaching the other student, it will help build their knowledge of the subject! During the writing mini lesson, students have time to turn and talk and discuss something that we have learned that day. Yesterday, for example, students were to tell their partner what small moment they would like to write about this week. Then, they could tell their partner what they are going to do this week to make their paper really good! (This was after we had created a list of what good writers do). I was being observed by my field instructor during this lesson and she had noted that the students were pretty loud during this time, which is what sparked me to write this noticing blog. Yes, my students were loud. They were also engaged and participating. I saw students telling their partner what they would do to make their writing better. I saw students pointing to parts of our "Good Writers..." poster. I heard students give their partners suggestions and advice about how to add details to their story. I saw students pointing to the lines on the page to plan what words they wanted to use on each page. I heard questions being asked, I heard students praising each others' ideas. So yes, my students were "loud" but if this is how "loud" looks in my classroom everyday, I cannot complain. :)