Blog Entry #2

• Tell about an opportunity you had to work with a small group.

           I worked with a group of kids who have minor reading disabilities. We went into a room in the back of the class that had a door so we could have some privacy. We had the kids take turns reading paragraphs and highlighting information they thought would be important. Then when we finished the article, there were questions on the back for them to answer, just to test their reading comprehension. It was good for keeping the focus on just those kids, they participated a lot more than when they were in the whole class. It was easier to let them know they were doing a good job and it boosted their confidence.

• Tell about an opportunity you had to work one on one with a student.

          I got to pull a few students aside for one on one work. It was in a class of first graders, and we were testing their sentences that they had learned the week before. I had to read them the words and they would write them down. I couldn't give them any hints or help, it was specifically a test to see how much they had learned. So it wasn't really like I was helping them, I was just reading them stuff and they would write it down.

• What other responsibilities does your classroom teacher have?

           They're constantly doing something. They're making lesson plans, schedule parent meetings, going over students progress. They've had to meet with the principal or other teachers on lunch break, after school, and before school. Also, whenever there is a student with special needs in their class, they have to attend IEP meetings and put in that extra work to make sure they are prepared to care for and teach that student. Even when they're home they still have homework to grade and lessons to prepare for. They are always trying to keep things clean and organized to better the learning environment of their classroom.

• In what ways is the school in which you are serving similar to or different from schools in the earlier periods of history in the United States?

           Well the school I am observing at, Sunset View elementary, has Hispanic students as the majority. As I sit and watch what goes on with the kids, different interactions and such, I can tell that there are some cliques and posses. I remember seeing 4 little Hispanic girls that were kind of telling a little white girl that she couldn't hang out with them. It reminds me a lot of that picture of the two girls, one white one black, in class. I think it's unavoidable with kids, that they notice difference in skin color and say something. Kids are honest and blunt. So just like earlier schools, they're is going to be some inclusion issues because of differences. But unlike schools so many years ago, there is a ton less racism. As a culture we have changed our view on different races, and kids are a part of that. I'm glad kids in school are more accepting