Part I: Contextual Factors, Modifications & Adaptations ...
Contextual FactorsBattle Creek Elementary School is located in the heart of the Willamette Valley in Salem, Oregon off of South Commercial Street. Salem is the capital city of Oregon with a population of 156,244. The Salem-Keizer School District is composed of 67 K-12 schools that serve a total of about 40,000 students. There are also several parochial and private schools in the Salem area that serve the needs of specific families. Battle Creek is a kindergarten through fifth grade school that serves about 400 students. The student to teacher ratio is about 21:1 with additional support of instructional assistants and specialists. Battle Creek was built after the passing of a 2008 $242.1 million dollar bond to renovate and repair schools in the surrounding areas. This bond was necessary due to the fact that many schools were becoming overcrowded. Before and after school there are Child Care Services available for parents. There is a strong Parent Club at Battle Creek that organizes many fundraisers and other events to raise money for classroom teachers, and other programs. Battle Creek offers students with free and reduced breakfast and lunch based on income. The surrounding community near Battle Creek has a variety of housing options, from apartment complexes to large houses. There are also several community churches and fitness centers within walking distance. The school itself is very welcoming to all students. Teachers have access to translators in order to increase the communication between students, staff, and parents. There is one part time counselor at the school, that shares her time between several other schools. Although she is there on a part-time basis, she does an incredible job of truly knowing the students and developing a trusting relationship with them. A part time nurse is also shared between various schools, but the office staff is always ready to take on basic first aid care for the students. The students participate in Physical Education, Music, and Media an average of 3 times a week, providing them with a well-rounded school experience. My Clinical teacher recognizes the importance of physical activity during the school day. Because the students only have physical education three times a week, she incorporates 15 minutes of “outside exercise” into the school day on one of the days that the students do not have PE. During this outside exercise block, the students go outside and are required to move for the full 15 minutes. Students walk around the track, jump rope, or play organized games of basketball. The staff at Battle Creek has developed a good sense of community, something that I think stems from the tone that is set by the Principal. I saw many times that the Principal attended PLC meetings, and offered a great deal of support and resources when teachers were frustrated or confused about how something should be implemented in their classrooms. Grade level PLC meetings happened on a weekly basis, and were productive in coming up with setting goals for planning and assessment. The instructional coach at Battle Creek , who is equipped with a great deal of ideas about teaching diverse learners, was also a great resource for staff members. She was helpful in providing opportunities for teachers to learn more about how they could best support their students.I did my work sample unit in a fourth grade ESOL classroom. There are a total of 30 students; 17 boys and 13 girls. There are four English Language Learners in the classroom of beginning, intermediate, and early advanced levels. Each student has a different primary language that is spoken at home. The different languages represented are Spanish, Russian, Vietnamese, and Mandarin. There is a dedicated English Language Development block of the day where these students have the opportunity to further their English language practice as well as prepare for the ELPA exam that they take on a yearly basis.The reading levels in the classroom are generally widespread. My Clinical Teacher uses leveled book clubs, as well as reading interventions in the morning, as a time to provide students with differentiated instruction in their zone of proximal development. Nine students are currently on IEPs, while one is currently being tested for services. Many other students attend the Learning Resource Center several times a week for additional services in reading, writing, math, and behavior. One student does half days in the Learning Resource Center, and the morning in the general education classroom. This requires that the LRC teacher and general classroom teacher have a lot of open communication so that these students are not missing out on important instructional time. The classroom environment has a welcoming nature with student work displayed on bulletin boards, and a lot of anchor charts that are resources for students during the day. My Clinical III teacher truly focuses on teamwork. The first day that I entered the classroom, students raised their hands to let me know a few things about how the classroom works. One of the first comments from a student was, “Something that you should know about us is that we are not a class, we are a TEAM.” It was quickly evident to me that community has been a priority in this classroom and that the teacher sets high expectations of the students in their treatment of each other, themselves, adults in the school, the building itself. Along with community as team focus, character, respect, and manners are also encouraged and integrated into lesson plans. Students never leave their desk without pushing in chairs, ask politely to be excused from small groups, and show respectful etiquette as they walk through the hallways and interact with their specials teachers. Students are set up in table groups of 4, and are rotated on a monthly basis. Each table group is named after a college in Oregon. This truly encourages students to think about attending college after high school starting at a young age. They become familiar with the school, and show an interest in each school’s location and unique specialties about it. Students use community supplies, as well as have their own personal school supplies in their desks. The classroom is equipped with a SmartBoard, document camera, projector, and six student computers. There are many opportunities for students to interact with technology and for teachers to implement technology into their lesson plans. In order to best cater to the needs of the students in my classroom, I have to adjust teaching and assessment methods on an individual basis. Differentiation through the workshop model has been a focus of my instruction throughout my work sample. For my English Language Learners, it is important to provide as many opportunities as possible for them to engage in authentic language practice. Also, in order to prepare them to take the ELPA test, we have been going through sample test questions and incorporating test taking as its own separate content area. It is my belief that this process will reduce anxiety as students go into the test having seen what it looks and sounds like on the computer. I can also front load vocabulary in my lessons so that students have the tools to engage in using academic language. I can also provide sentence frames to demonstrate writing and speaking targets. Not only do sentence frames need to be present, but they need to be modeled in how they are to be used. Finally, I can gradually release responsibility from I do, we do, and you do in helping students reach that independent level of practice. These strategies will not only benefit my English Language Learners, but also students in special education. Providing as much small group time as possible will allow that individual attention that is necessary for helping students to progress at their individual level.Salem-Keizer School District has developed a Strategic Plan, for all those involved in the school district, to implement as a priority in the classroom. The plan includes four main headings: Improve Student Achievement, An Effective Organization to Improve Student Achievement, Leadership Development, and Public Engagement. Under Improving Student Achievement, the focus is on collecting and using student data as a method of driving instruction. It also includes an emphasis on the Common Core Standards that have been adopted by Oregon, as well as the K-12 Literacy Model. With Effective Organization to Improve Student Achievement, teachers are encouraged to participate with the district’s University partnerships in preparing teacher candidates for working as licensed teachers. This section also focuses on school improvements to better the learning environment for students. In order to incorporate Leadership Development, the plan encourages team meetings, such as PLCs on a regular basis. Professional Development sessions are both encouraged and required throughout the district as opportunities for teachers to improve their practices and learn new strategies to support learning. Finally, the district wants Public Engagement to be a priority in communication with parents and other community members. I can see this plan having an effect on how teachers view their role in the classroom. Through Professional Development, inquiry, weekly PLC meetings, and collaboration with parents, coaches, and other mentors, classroom teachers are furthering their knowledge which is directly influencing student achievement. In order to enhance communication with parents, my Clinical Teacher send out a weekly email to inform parents of homework assignments, upcoming events, and what has been happening in the classroom. This is just one way that teachers can have a consistent home-school connection.Also included in the Strategic Plan, the district has incorporated a vision that all students will graduate and be prepared for a successful life. I can see these goals being incorporated into the classroom I am placed in. For example, on the front bulletin board, there is a poster that says “Class of 2022”. This is just one way that my Clinical Teacher has encouraged students to think about life beyond fourth grade, and to set goals for themselves to graduate from high school. This school was a change for me personally. I grew up in a small town with only about 300 students in my Elementary School. Not only was it a small school, but there was very little diversity. The majority of students were caucasian and I don’t remember any English Language Learners in my classes. I then moved to Chavez Elementary, which has nearly 800 students, with many diverse cultures and languages present. It was a good experience to work with such a diverse population and recognize that students can come from such a wide variety of backgrounds. Then, moving to Battle Creek, another fairly large school, but with a very different socio-economic status. Many students at Battle Creek have supportive and involved parents in their education. I was not able to witness a lot of parent-teacher interaction at Chavez because many of the parents/guardians did not attend conferences, respond to phone calls or emails from the teacher. It has been beneficial for me at Battle Creek because I am learning about how to handle certain situations, while working with the parents, as their child is dealing with situations such as divorce, foster care, domestic violence, anxiety, and other family and friendship issues. It was beneficial for me to understand the teachers role in working with the counselor and being a mandatory reporter. I have been able to participate in many parent phone calls, IEP conferences, and DHS reporting. Although each of the students in my classroom are very different, I recognize their endless potential to become successful learners inside and outside of school. Each child is unique and has brilliant ideas and knowledge to share. In my own personal reflection, I know that this experience has benefitted me in that I have a depth of knowledge in what ways I can be the best teacher for students of various backgrounds and educational experiences. Modifications and AdaptationsIn each of my lesson plans, I noted some specific things that I would do to modify and adapt my lesson plans for the students that are unique to my classroom. I focused primarily on ELLs, Low SES/Poverty, SpED, and TAG in my lesson plans in order to fit the population of students in my classroom. I found that by implementing math workshop into my lesson plans, I was able to provide many opportunities for individualized instruction. As students rotated to different stations, I was able to meet with small groups of 5-6 students that had similar needs at a specific level. The following are ideas of how I would adapt and modify my lessons, assignments, and assessments in order to meet the needs of all students.SpED:In order to assist students in special education, I provided a lot of opportunities for students to work with a partner. By grouping students intentionally, I can help certain students that may be successful with some extra support from a peer. For example, when students finished the warm up problem early, I would ask them to go around the room and help a student that was not finished yet. Many students in special education benefitted from these expert students. With only one teacher during whole group work time, I can only get around to each student so quickly. This was a good experience for students on both ends as they got to act as either the expert, or the student who was receiving individual attention and instruction. I also made a photocopy of the math notes for a group of students. This group of students had difficulty writing down the notes and listening at the same time. With the photocopy of the notes, they were able to add their own ideas but still have the chance to listen and absorb the information that was being presented. Whenever the group was presented with a task, I invited those who wanted to work independently to stay at their own individual seats. Those students who wanted extra guidance and/or support were invited to sit at the kidney table. I sat at the table and guided students through their task, while also allowing them opportunities to think independently. ELL/ESOL:Because the classroom I was placed in a classroom with a population of ELLs, and I am currently working on my ESOL endorsement, I did my best to continually use strategies that would benefit English Language Learners. Sentence frames and sentence stems were an important part of each of my lessons. When specifically thinking about the steps of solving story problems, I provided students with stems for each step that they should think through. These sentence stems I found to be helpful for the ELL students as well as other students who speak English as their first language. As a strategy of synthesizing and analyzing text in story problems, I also used graphic organizers to arrange information in a way that was easy to comprehend. Hand signals associated with vocabulary words were reinforced throughout my lessons as well. Through formative assessment and random questioning of students I felt that their grasp of the vocabulary associated with the lesson was very solid. Through the continual repetition and reinforcement of those vocabulary words, ELL students were able to relate the definitions to completing their assignments and station work. I also incorporated discussion in small groups and with partners during my mini lessons. This language practice was guided through sentence frames, as well as teacher and student modeling. Because the discussions were authentic, students transferred that language practice into their writing. I provided scaffolds for students by gradually releasing responsibility from student to teacher when they were ready. As I showed content related videos to the students, I would pause and demonstrate a think aloud, pointing out specific parts of the video. I also created anchor charts off of LearnZillion videos, so as to help students visualize the same information in several different ways. TAG:Although I do not have any TAG identified students in my classroom, there are several students who often finish assignments early and look for an extra challenge during the day. On some assignments that were done collaboratively as a class, I had those students work independently and try to complete the task without very much support. These students really liked the challenge and were able to complete the assignments with just enough struggle that it wasn’t frustrating for them. During math workshop, this particular group of students was grouped together. I provided them opportunities to work on critical thinking of the concepts presented. Instead of solving a story problem, students created story problems for each other to solve, specifically thinking about the important elements that should be included. Math workshop truly gave me that opportunity to challenge those students in both pace and rigor of work. Lastly, I provided opportunities through intentional grouping where these students would have the chance to be the leader in a group in discussions and projects. As I stated above, students who finished warm up problems early (generally this group of students) were asked to walk around and serve as experts to their peers who needed help. This gave the students a chance to teach and explain how they came to the answer. The students helping others were able to gain a deeper understanding themselves as they had to logically explain their thinking. Low SES/Poverty:Many students in my classroom come from family situations of poverty. In order to support those students, I found it necessary to expose them to as much technology as possible. While some students may have the opportunity at home to work on a computer and watch digital media, others only experience that at school. One of the math workshop stations involved playing a fraction game on the computer. The game required that the students not only have knowledge of the concept presented, but also that they have some basic computer skills in typing and navigation. I felt that this game would be an excellent exercise for fluency in computers and fractions. I used videos daily as a method of teaching concepts to students. I found that students were very engaged in the videos and after several times watching them were able to remember many specifics. Video and fraction game links were also sent home during the weekly class email. I also provided a safe environment for students to discuss their thoughts and ideas by establishing an expectation of what respectful listening, body language, and dialogue looks like when working in partners, or collaboratively as a group. Students were aware of these expectations and if reminded of them were quick to respond to what was set in place as a class. Behaviorally Challenged:One student in my class had difficulty when he became frustrated or was reminded to stay on task. It became a challenge to provide any kind of feedback without him becoming angry and upset. I learned to start with something positive that the student was doing, and then when providing feedback or instruction, to say it directly and then walk away to let him process. If I continued to talk to him in order to help him understand, he would completely shut down and hide in the corner of the room. My Clinical III teacher created a system of choices for the student. When he became unwilling to participate or work with a group, he would be presented with three choice cards. The choices included #1: Join the team and participate with the group#2: Walk to the cool down room for a break (LRC room)#3: Visit Mrs. Dougherty (Principal) The student was very responsive to the choice cards and often chose to take a short cool down break in the LRC room. When he came back, he was often read to join the group and participate. When students were refusing to complete assignments or stay on task, I would give them the option to finish during class time, or I would be happy to stay in during lunch while they finished. I think that this was a really beneficial method because it gave students an option and wasn’t necessarily looked upon as a punishment, but rather something that the student made a choice to do.During math workshop, there were many situations where the class had difficulty staying on task and focusing on what was required at that station. Because the class had created an anchor chart of “Workshop Expectations” before the unit began, I was able to refer to the ideas that the class provided. Students seemed to be invested in what they had come up with as a group and were responsive to reminders of what that was to look like. Literacy InstructionIt is my belief that literacy-reading, writing, listening, and speaking, can and should be incorporated into every lesson across the spectrum of subject areas. In order to be successful throughout their education experience, students need continual practice and instruction of literacy because from it stems each individual subject. Not only do I believe that literacy should be embedded into every content area, but also that the implementation should be intentional. We should not have students reading just for the sake of decoding words, but instead give them purpose and goals as they read and write. When we make intentions and goals clear to students, they become much more invested and interested in what it is they are asked to do.In the primary grades, literacy instruction is at a crucial point for students. This is the time when students are laying the foundational skills for reading, writing, and speaking. If the foundational skills are not reinforced and practiced, students may fall into a continual cycle of difficulty and frustration as they progress into the upper grades. I saw many students in my fourth grade student teaching placement that were lacking some of those foundational skills that were taught in the primary grades. It is my belief that the teachers attitude about reading, writing, listening, and speaking that can reflect upon the students. With the teacher’s genuine enthusiasm about literacy, students can model that behavior and find their own ways of connecting to literacy instruction across content area. In the unit that I taught, I implemented literacy into each and every lesson. The following are a few specific ways that literacy was intentionally incorporated to reinforce concepts to students.Vocabulary Signal Words: This math unit I taught involved a lot of new vocabulary that students had not been exposed to. In order to develop that academic language and utilize it throughout the lesson plan, I decided to create a set of vocabulary signal words. These signal words were introduced with formal, written definitions, and then were also reinforced through hand signals and chants. The signal words were also used as a method of classroom management as it was a way to get the students attention during transitions. Exit Cards: At the end of the majority of my lessons, students wrote on notecards about things they learned and questions they had regarding the lesson. Students were asked to write in complete sentences and do their best to demonstrate the most important things that they learned during the lesson. Exit cards are beneficial because students were synthesizing their learning and putting it into writing. I was able to analyze their exit cards and gain information about what stuck with them and what might have caused unintentional misconceptions. These exit cards drove my instruction during the following lesson of what I needed to review or move on from. Math Journals: Students took notes in their math journals during nearly every mini-lesson. Students were able to use this math journal as a resource on their assessments, and so it was important for them to take quality notes and take down accurate definitions of vocabulary words. Each vocabulary word was represented in the math journal with several examples and steps to take in using the word and applying it to a mathematical concept. Anchor Charts/Input Charts: As a class, we created many anchor and input charts that were based off of videos or other examples used during mini-lessons. These anchor charts were displayed in the classroom for students to refer to. I found a real value in creating the anchor charts with the students. They were much more invested in the concepts and process as we created the chart collaboratively. Anchor charts included key examples, vocabulary words, and important steps to take when encountering specific problems. Story Problems and Problem Solving Steps: A main standard in this unit was solving word problems where fractions are added, subtracted, and multiplied. Students needed some important literacy and mathematical skills in order to solve these problems. As a class, we went through the problem solving steps that one should go through when answering problems that involve a “story”. Students were asked to identify important information, the question, and which operation would be necessary to solve the problem. An important part of solving story problems is communicating the method and procedure you went through to solve it. Students used a graphic organizer to help organize their thoughts. Sentence frames were also provided for students to help them communicate their thought process. Students were overall very successful in solving these word problems as they went through the appropriate steps.Video Lessons: As literacy involves a listening and speaking component, students were presented with video lessons on the LearnZillion website. Students would listen to the content that was presented to them through audio and video, and then transfer it into writing in their math journals. At the completion of the video, students were then engaged in discussion through open ended questions about the video. Some of the discussion was whole group, and other times it was in a “pair share” format. TechnologyIn today’s ever changing world, technology is being incorporated more and more into classrooms. I think that it is important for technology instruction and exposure to technology should happen at school, beginning in the primary grades, for several reasons. First, computer skills are essential as students move up through school, into college, and pursue jobs. Many students at Battle Creek Elementary come from low socioeconomic status, and have limited technology in the home. If students are not exposed to how a computer works at home, they need to be given that opportunity at school. Basic internet navigation skills, as well as the fine motor skills for typing are essential skills that students need to carry with them through public education and into their adult lives. Also, many students are visual learners. There are many ways that videos, pictures, and interactive software can be incorporated into lessons, bringing to life many things that may have been unavailable otherwise. I found that the incorporation of technology also increased student engagement in the topics that were covered. I was fortunate to work in a classroom that is equipped with a SmartBoard (interactive whiteboard), document camera, projector, and six student computers. These forms of technology were utilized throughout my lesson in order to enhance student engagement and learning. I used a lot of videos from the website LearnZillion in my lessons. This website is based off of the Common Core State Standards and provides lesson videos for math and literacy. I would play the same video twice during the lesson. The first time, students would simply listen and absorb as much of the information as possible. The second time, I instructed students to record any notes, examples, or vocabulary that they felt was important to write down. I found that the students were able to focus and understand at a much deeper level after seeing the video once already. They were able to get the overall idea of the lesson, and then focus more directly as they took the notes. The LearnZillion videos truly drove the mini lesson. After watching the video twice, we would create an anchor chart together as a class. Students were able to refer to concepts from the video, and engage in example problems that were similar to the video.During math workshop, I was able to incorporate a computer station with the six student computers in the classroom. There was a plethora of online games for kids that involved fractions. Many of these games also required that students practice some typing skills in selecting answers and navigating the pages. I created an icon on the desktop of each of the computers that took students directly to a blog page that contained links to the fraction games. These fraction games were both engaging to students and also gave them some fluency practice. My Clinical teacher recently received a student response system to use in the classroom. This technology includes a class set of “clickers” that allow students to participate in random opinion surveys, formative, and summative assessments. This new technology was being installed with the help of a district technology specialist. He was able to load the program and give some basic instruction on how to utilize it in the classroom. Unfortunately this system was established after I completed my work sample, but I hope to use it in the next math unit as a tool for exit tickets or other formative assessments. I think that it will be a great asset to the classroom. Many of the teachers felt inadequate to properly run some of the technology in their classrooms, or were experiences significant difficulty with some aspect. The district technology specialist was very useful to all teachers in assisting them with resources and technical support.Another technology source that I utilized was my Google Drive account. I plan on always writing my daily lesson plans on Google Drive because it can be stored and opened on any computer. I think that this will be a beneficial way of keeping track of the lessons and units that I teach with any handouts or notes from implementation attached. I also want to continue to use Google Spreadsheets to organize student data, because with anything on Google Drive, it is automatically saved and cannot be lost on an individual computer. I was able to quickly share my lesson plans, presentations, and other handouts with my Clinical teacher, as well as my university supervisor.I hope to learn more about using SmartBoards in the classroom in a way that provides interaction with the content and kinesthetic movement. If I have a SmartBoard in my future classroom, I want to look for classes or other resources that I can take with how it can be implemented into classroom instruction. I had difficulty using the SmartBoard on a regular basis because the program was installed on my Clinical teacher’s computer, making it a challenge for me to work on any lessons outside of class. If I had my own classroom, I would definitely utilize the SmartBoard more. I did not have any major technical difficulties during my unit, but I would like to continue to learn and expand my knowledge about some of the programs that are available to teachers. Another form of technology that I want to use in the future, are having students create podcasts. I think that students will benefit from creating a final product that is digital as they use video cameras and editing programs to complete it. ................
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