Classroom Observation
Dear Amy,
During my IMB clinical weeks, I was able to see more than one social studies lesson. One of which was just an in class, direct instruction lesson. The students and the teacher read and discussed the chapter in the book. They focused on new vocabulary and class discussion skills. The students then had to answer questions in their social studies workbooks to show they had learned the information. This was the second social studies lesson I saw during the two weeks.
However, the first thing I saw related to social studies was a wax museum. All of the students in my classroom chose a famous person to portray in the museum. The characters ranged from Mark Zuckerburg to Rosa Parks. In the weeks prior to the wax museum, the students were assigned to write a research paper about their famous person, so they could learn the information they were to share at the wax museum. They also had to create a poster board with information about their person on it to display at the museum. On the day of the museum, the students all came in dressed up as their famous person and they had circles drawn on their hands. They all set up their posters in the cafeteria and stood in front of them. Students from other classes came through and pressed the ‘buttons’ on their hands and the students would share a short speech about their famous person with the museumgoers.
While this wasn’t exactly me observing a teacher teaching a social studies lesson, it was very obvious that students had learned and were learning social studies. I thought it was a fantastic use of many of the things I have been learning in my methods classes. I was able to see all five elements of powerful teaching in this social studies observation. The students were up and active, both the students who completed the project and the ones going through the wax museum. The information the students were learning was relevant to the common core standards. The assignments were integrative because students had to write their research papers, read about and research their chosen famous person, create a poster, and they had to give a speech about the person. The students were challenged by all of these assignments, but at the same time, there was a lot of value in this lesson. They were able to take new skills with them after the whole thing was over. Students learned speech, research, writing, and even presentation skills that they will be able to take with them through their school careers.
By observing the wax museum and the basic direct instruction lesson, I was able to see two completely different types of teaching styles from the same teacher. It helped me to realize that as a future teacher, I will not be nailed down to just one teaching style. I can teach a different way every day if I choose to do so. I also realized how important it is to do just that. If I taught in one style every single time, I would only be reaching certain students. By switching up my teaching styles, I will be able to teach to all of my students and ensure they are all learning the material they need to know.
Sincerely,
Jessica Wilson
During my IMB clinical weeks, I was able to see more than one social studies lesson. One of which was just an in class, direct instruction lesson. The students and the teacher read and discussed the chapter in the book. They focused on new vocabulary and class discussion skills. The students then had to answer questions in their social studies workbooks to show they had learned the information. This was the second social studies lesson I saw during the two weeks.
However, the first thing I saw related to social studies was a wax museum. All of the students in my classroom chose a famous person to portray in the museum. The characters ranged from Mark Zuckerburg to Rosa Parks. In the weeks prior to the wax museum, the students were assigned to write a research paper about their famous person, so they could learn the information they were to share at the wax museum. They also had to create a poster board with information about their person on it to display at the museum. On the day of the museum, the students all came in dressed up as their famous person and they had circles drawn on their hands. They all set up their posters in the cafeteria and stood in front of them. Students from other classes came through and pressed the ‘buttons’ on their hands and the students would share a short speech about their famous person with the museumgoers.
While this wasn’t exactly me observing a teacher teaching a social studies lesson, it was very obvious that students had learned and were learning social studies. I thought it was a fantastic use of many of the things I have been learning in my methods classes. I was able to see all five elements of powerful teaching in this social studies observation. The students were up and active, both the students who completed the project and the ones going through the wax museum. The information the students were learning was relevant to the common core standards. The assignments were integrative because students had to write their research papers, read about and research their chosen famous person, create a poster, and they had to give a speech about the person. The students were challenged by all of these assignments, but at the same time, there was a lot of value in this lesson. They were able to take new skills with them after the whole thing was over. Students learned speech, research, writing, and even presentation skills that they will be able to take with them through their school careers.
By observing the wax museum and the basic direct instruction lesson, I was able to see two completely different types of teaching styles from the same teacher. It helped me to realize that as a future teacher, I will not be nailed down to just one teaching style. I can teach a different way every day if I choose to do so. I also realized how important it is to do just that. If I taught in one style every single time, I would only be reaching certain students. By switching up my teaching styles, I will be able to teach to all of my students and ensure they are all learning the material they need to know.
Sincerely,
Jessica Wilson