Day one: october 5th 2015 |
Students were very energetic! Overall I thought the way that I handled mini classroom management situations were acceptable. I used the phrase “I’ll Wait” a few times to bring back together the group, and have them mentally settle down so I could continue teaching. I had many students wanting to answer questions and create discussion, so I had to limit the answers at times to keep the class moving along. Time management was my biggest concern, for the active participation of students was so great, that I didn’t want to get behind or not be able to cover the entire material for that day. Students also really loved having their own workbook that I created. This book had all of their materials for the six week course, so they would be able to reference any old material as they went on with each daily lesson. Also, I included the vocabulary terms as a sheet in the workbook, so a lot of students referenced that sheet during our discussion. The students were very excited for to not only learn new terms, but also use them in context.
Day two: October 14th 2015
Lesson number two of the extended lesson plan at St Mary’s was very successful. The entire time one of my main goals was to keep control in a positive and energetic atmosphere. While the students were working with their peers, moving around the room, and preparing their project proposals, I still maintained the authority needed in the classroom. Students were very engaged in the process I had laid out for them. They did seem to appreciate the movement and actually “doing” of today’s lesson. Also, I noticed that many students did refer to the sketchbooks I made for them. In these books they contains the vocabulary, daily schedule, brainstorm worksheet, drawing paper, and the partner proposal. Together all of these items keep the students focused and engaged on the task at hand. One thing I would like to go back in a fix or alter would be the way that I add vocabulary into my lesson. Today I did do a small quiz like overview at the end of the lesson, but I also tried to include words during discussions and instructions to students. I also would like to show student examples next time. I did have some students share ideas, but no physical proof. That could be an area to work on, possibly scan in the pages and show the entire class on a large scale. Now that everyone in the class is in a partner system, they can better work together to create ideas and construct their 3D sculpture. The next days will consist of construction based off their proposal and plans.
Day three: October 15th 2015
The beginning of day three started as a recap from day one and two. Students were able to use good vocabulary, as well as explain their proposals. From there, I was then able to take the next step of the lesson and put students into groups. These groups were based off of their proposal ideas, so that they were working with a new peer on the same idea for their sculpture. At first students seemed a little distraught that they could not work with their “best friends”, and a small amount of whining was witnessed, but overall, they then got over it and got hard to work. By keeping my authority at this point in the lesson, students understood that I meant business and was passionate about getting the project started, and started well. I used the dry erase board to my advantage to have students see their classmate’s ideas, as well as see how the overall ending exhibition will look like. On this first day of working with the material, I decided to take an experimental approach since they were working in partners. I did no demonstration, gave them materials, and said, “GO”. By doing this, I was putting an extra challenge on my lesson, and putting great trust in my students and their success in peer work. Overall, each group did very well at starting, and beginning to explore how to problem solve with the guidelines and materials they were given.
Day four: october 19th 2015
After now teaching four lessons with these wonderful fifth grade students, I’ve started to understand how to motivate them to work faster, and also how to motivate them to enjoy what they are doing. At first this project was my idea, but they have taken it to many levels beyond what I thought was possible. During this lesson, the students continued to use their materials and tape to construct their sculpture. I also brought in specific items that were requested by students, so that they could add to their sculpture. For example, one group needed more cans, so I collected cans. This lesson was also the first time that I had helpers in the room for constructing, so we added the hot glue station. I was extremely nervous at the beginning because even at my age I burn myself with hot glue. But, as the lesson progressed, students were able to follow instructions and we only had two minor accidents. At this time I learned the protocol for how to handle in class injuries, so it was a learning experience was all of us. Overall, this day was a workday to get as far as possible in construction. Students worked hard and truly put effort and good peer communication into this lesson.
Day five: october 22nd 2015
As the process of sculpture making continued, students truly were excited and stayed mentally into the project. I never once had to motivate them to work. While my job seemed to be easy during these constructing days, I was still doing extra work to prepare for exhibition in the near future. Also, during this time of construction, my main concern was the safety of my students using the hot glue guns. As stated in my previous reflection, there had been a few incidents and this was something that I did not want to happen again. I had give the students more options for duct tape and better sticking duct tape so that they only needs to use the hot glue gun as a back up. And also if they did us it, I had an adult supervising it very carefully. Other than that, the lesson was a workday that truly gave students time to work and get as much as they could do. I was very proud of them for their work ethic, but also for the push for creativity as some students went above and beyond my expectations by making multiple sculptures and creating their own recycled scene of sculptures. This was not in the guidelines, but seemed to be a great addition!
day six: october 26th 2015
At this part of my extended lesson I was giving students the last time to truly work on constructing their sculptures. With this being the “last day”, students worked extremely hard and fast to get as much done as they possibly could. Towards the end of the lesson, I had them clean up and then quietly sit on the ground to go over vocabulary, artist statements for the future, and colors they would need to start painting their sculptures. I received wonderful behavior and participation! Students raised their hands and talked a little about their deeper meaning to their sculpture, and as they did so they included vocabulary words. Also, they gave me the list of colors that they want to use while painting, so then I could fully prepare for the next lesson. By giving the students choices, I was guiding them through the lesson with leaving it decently open for new ideas and new processes along the way. This worked wonderfully! I like the idea of being able to teach with a goal in mind, but also change and adapt the lesson or each day by the student’s energy and excitement, as well as their interests in the subject or social issue being taught. This day was an eye-opening experience for me!
day seven: november 2nd 2015
This day of teaching I was absent, but got extremely good reviews from colleagues who took over my constructing day in the lesson. Good reports back about student involvement, motivation to work hard, and behavior!
day eight: NOVEMBER 5th 2015
This was our last day working with painting and adding any last minute touches to the sculptures. Students had to work fast and stay focused. The minor problem I had was with the cooperating teacher; she brought her students to me 15 minutes late! This set me back a lot more then expected. I had to rush around a lot, helping, filling paint, gluing, last minute touches for all groups so they were exhibition ready pieces. And with the students coming in late, the clean up process was very hectic. I did not have time to assign jobs; I mostly did the clean up myself so that they could get back to class on time. Overall, even though the day was hectic, students were proud of their sculptures, and the ones that did finish on time had the chance to help others paint.
day nine: november 9th 2015
As today was the last day teaching, I am extremely proud of my students. The beginning instruction went back to partner work, taking individual ideas from each student and collaborating with their partner to create their artist statement. I first had them go about this as a discussion and then presentation so that they could translate it later to typing their individual artist statements. My students did very well standing up in front of the class and speaking about their work and process as a pair. Some at first were shy, but overall their partner helped the she ones. I did have to interject a few times, just to keep the flow of conversation going. At this time I was asking open ended questions to guide students to think deeper about their artwork and the process they went through. Also, I had put guiding words and phrases on the white board for students to look at, as well as the plan for the lesson. Using this technique seemed to keep a lot of students on task and interested in the lesson. They like know what they are doing and what’s coming next. After the pair presentations were finished, I then went back to individual tactics for students to take what they learned with pairs and do it on their own. As a class we went to the computer lab and students were given instructions to write their individual artist statement. I did mention that it must be different than their partners, even though some ideas may overlap. Overall this process was decent. It took some students longer to type than others, and some go stuck so I had to refer them to the guided questions so they could keep writing to fill a whole page. It was a great way to end the extended lesson with their proof of knowledge from the lessons vocabulary and process.