Teaching Thoughts: Classroom Observation

I was serving as a teaching assistant for third grade this past week. I noticed in the one classroom that the students had lamenated name tags on their desks. What was neat was that they were designed by them. They printed their names and then decorated the tags. This personalizes it form them. Also, if room is remaining they could place reward stickers on it.

As I wondered around taking in different things, I also spotted a student's picture made into a key ring. I thought it would be creative if at the beginning of a school year students could not only design their own name tags but make personalized book marks. Since sometimes there are problems with obtaining authorizations for taking pictures of students and classmates, maybe I could send out a note to parents to submit (if they wanted) a snapshot of their child so it could be used in making a bookmark. The students could cut out their faces and put them on bookmarks. Then they could decorate the front as they wished. I would have them lamentated and use the back to place reward stickers. For each book read and reported, they would receive a star or sticker. This would also be an excellent way to keep track of progress and promote reading.

Substitute Teaching/Classroom Observation

How I love to be in the classroom! Last Wednesday and Thursday I spent my days at Lehigh Valley Academy as a Teacher's Assistant. Wednesday, I assisted in the kindergarten and first grade and Thursday I covered fifth grade for most of the day and then finished up in the middles school in a seventh grade history classroom. They were tough but I maintained control and finished strong!

Here are some interesting things I observed:

1) Counting with colored tiles by ones, fives and tens in the kindergarten classroom;
2) A fifth grade science lesson on motion and energy using a pull down globe to show how even after the globe is swung it contine to move; and
3) Tennis balls placed on the legs of desk chairs in fifth grade to reduce noise and rocking on the chair legs.

During the last class on Thursday (this was the seventh grade history class), the teacher left me with a video on Egypt in 1550 B.C. I was losing the students! I decided to do some comparing and contrasting between ancient Egypt and the U.S. today. I started listing items on the board including: climate/location, warfare, worship, dress/appearance, every day life, etc. I had the students do a Venn Diagram. I also added an art assignment. I gave them the choice between drawing an Egyptian in present-day dress or drawing themselves as an Egyptian in Egyptian attire. It worked! Their behavior improved, and I finished out the day strong.