Blog Post 2

Goals:

• Prior week:
• In the past two weeks I became acquainted with the full names of my math students. I would say i have approximately 80% available for recall and would be able to correctly identify the last names of my students if provided a list of options. I continue to practice this information in order to gain proficiency and further connect with my students.
• An opportunity arose during the previous two weeks to have have lunch with the fifth grade team. I took this opportunity as chance to get to know these women a little better as individuals, to put together first names with last names, and to better understand their team dynamic.
• Coming Weeks:
• I will strive in the coming weeks to limit the number of times I have to refocus the class due to talking. This goal involves both disciplinary classroom management in ensuring that the students understand they can and will receive the same consequences for failing to meet expectations with me as they do with my cooperating teacher as well as time management in providing adequate opportunity for brain breaks and turn and talk activities. 
• I look forward to beginning to work with my students on their writing. in the coming weeks I will read ahead through the next few weeks worth of lessons in the writing program, even ahead of preparing my lesson plans, in order to gain a sense of the way in which each lesson works with and builds upon the others. Familiarizing myself with this curriculum will assist me in presenting this material to my students to their full benefit. 
• Word of the week: Hectic. We had several class sessions which needed to me switched around in order to accommodate testing schedules this week.

Reflections:

• In the classroom I work in, most of the time not spent in direct instruction is set aside for student driven work and collaboration. My cooperating teacher will make a list on the board of items which require completion and the order in which they should be completed. This list will grow and change as the day goes on, some items carrying over o the next day as needed, until Friday when a push is made for all incomplete work to be finished. By ensuring the students never have to worry about "what comes next" or "what do I do when I'm finished," my cooperating teacher has set up this learning environment as one of self-motivated progress in which she can call guided reading groups or walk through the room and provide focused assistance to those in need confident in the knowledge that the other students are progressing toward their goals. 
• My cooperating teacher holds respect for our learning environment and for fellow students as a high expectation among our students. I hope to continue to foster this understanding in our students to foster a safe, open learning environment in which each student is free and confident to share his or her ideas without worrying about ridicule.  
• I have only had the opportunity to briefly glance at this week's readings and do not feel confident in selecting two takeaways from the text. I hope to take some times tomorrow to review this information as my school is off due to the weather. 

College Supervisor Corner:

• I appreciate the thorough feedback provided from your first visit to observe in our classroom. It was a positive experience all around.
• It may surprise you to know that after you left, on of my homeroom students, having returned from Math in another classroom, asked me when you were going to arrive. I had prepare the students from my homeroom as well as my math class as I assumed you would arrive a few minutes ahead of the class time to find a seat and get acclimated. You arrived so unassumingly that this student, with a seat right next to the classroom door, never even noticed.