Observation Documents

 

Student Name: _____Pebbles Byrd_____________________

EDU 200 OBSERVATION JOURNAL

(TO BE COMPLETED BY STUDENT)

Observation Date & Time	What was the lesson? What did you notice? What ideas can you use in the future? What questions do you have after this observation?
1/29/24	The lesson was about the letter “K”. I noticed that the children got bored quickly and the teacher kept having to change the activity. She would go from a sit down activity to a “Stand up” activity. One example is they started off with a story about the letter “K” then they danced to a song about the letter “K” then they did a color/trace page of the letter “K” and lastly they got up and looked around the classroom to look for things that start with the letter “K”. I can use this technique in the future to keep their attention and also keep them moving. I wonder why she did not start off by reinforcing the letter K sound.
2/7/24	The lesson was about the different colors that make up the rainbow. I noticed that the teacher did not force the order of the colors. One idea I can use in the future is making a rainbow out of objects not just drawing one on paper. Why did the teacher allow the colors to be out of order when the children made their rainbows?
2/21/24	The lesson was about George Washington Carver. I noticed that the kids were more interested in recounting their own experiences with peanuts. The teacher used fake peanuts in her lesson to avoid allergies. I will try to remember this for later use. I don't know if the children are old enough to understand learning about individuals.
3/12/24	The lesson was about friendship. I noticed that the children had a pre-existing idea of what qualities make good friends. In the future I will remember to allow the kids to tell me in their opinions what makes a good friend and a bad friend. No questions, only want to add that the children also reflected on themselves and what made them good friends.
4/12/24	There was no formal lesson. The children were participating in their school POW-WOW. The teacher was there to observe the POW-WOW as well as watch the children who did not dance. Some of the kids dancing asked me to come watch them perform. I noticed the kids were extra rambunctious being out of routine. Something I saw that I can use in the future is the teacher gave the kids the option to dance or not and did not try to force them to do it. The kids that chose to dance seemed a little nervous about it.
4/23/24	This lesson was Show-and-tell. The children were allowed to bring something from home. I noticed all the children brought in their favorite toy. In the future, it may be helpful to make sure the children bring a variety of things instead of just toys. The kids seemed to get bored because of the lack of variety. Some of the kids refused to “tell” anything about their toy. They would only hold it up for the other kids to see.

Student Name: _Pebbles Byrd____________________________

EDU 200 TEACHER OBSERVATION REFLECTION (TO BE COMPLETED BY STUDENT) *ANSWER EACH QUESTION COMPLETELY FOR FULL CREDIT

Describe the classroom (grade level, subject, room arrangement, etc.). Are the items on the walls/bulletin boards helpful? Is the room arranged appropriately? Is this a good learning environment? Why or why not?	Pre-K Classroom has a lot of seating options (chairs, rugs, and a bean bag). Large smart board, weather bulletin board, and a birthday board. Storage bins are at the level of the children. Classroom encourages learning through play. A lot of color and toys throughout.
Describe the teacher (teaching style, method of classroom management, teaching philosophy). What kinds of routines does the teacher use? What teaching strategies does the teacher use? (thought provoking questions, visual displays, demonstrations, use of student names, cooperative learning, learning styles…..)	Teacher is welcoming, nurturing, and patient. Teacher uses consistent rules and positive reinforcement to manage the classroom. Teacher believes children learn best through hands on learning and exploration. She uses storytelling, music and movement, and hands on activities to encourage this. Allows the children to communicate and learn from each other.
How do students differ from one another? Include gender, ability, motivation, physical attributes, etc. What are some of the ways that these differences may impact teaching and learning processes in the classroom?	There is a mixture of boys and girls. The class is primarily Native. There are a couple of students who seem to be more motivated than the others. The boys are more rambunctious than the girls. They like to wrestle and run. The teacher has to redirect them a lot. The children use tablets to do an online requirement. The teacher has to reinforce the tablet lesson for a few of the students that are not interested or get bored quickly of the screen time.
How are the students/teacher in this class different from your schooling experience at the same age? How are they the same? What experiences have you had in your past that might help you relate to today’s students?	My teacher at this age was more stern and I did what she asked all the time out of fear of her. This teacher is a lot calmer and patient. My class was a lot more structured whereas this class is more centered around play. I was not allowed to converse or collaborate with my peers. I will use my experience to try to remember what I wished I had as a child and not be the way my teacher was.
Often times, the only experience a teacher-in-training has before student teaching (in the last semester of college) is that of a student. Now that the roles have changed and you are considering teaching as a profession, what have you learned about being the teacher from this observation? Has it made you think twice about entering the profession, or helped solidify your decision? Would you consider teaching this subject or at this school? Why or why not?	This observation has solidified that I want to be a teacher and that I want to teach Pre-K or Kindergarten. Children of that age are a lot of fun and are soaking everything up. It is a privileged to teach them and make a difference in their lives so early on. I would love to work at this school because it is my community school and there are a lot of Native children that attend. It is an opportunity to give back to my community. I have learned that teachers need to be patient and flexible. They also need to be compassionate and make connections with individual children and not just the class as a whole.
FINAL COMMENTS ON PRACTICUM:	I really enjoyed the observation. I liked getting to know the teacher and the students of this class.