Observation

Instructional Lesson
Classroom: Polo Ridge 5th Grade
Grade: 5th
Curriculum Area: Language Arts
What I notice
Writing Thick Questions for a Research
Paper
-The teacher gathers the class and some
students come to the rug if they sit in the back
and can't see the board.
-Models how to come up with thick research
questions with her example research topic
-Students Think-Pair-Share to talk about their
topic and some questions that they have about
their topic
Objective:
-The teacher uses her information that she
gathered to narrow her topic for her research
paper
-The teacher asks student what their topic is
something that they are interested in about
that topic
-The teacher is using Abraham Lincoln during
the civil war and his views on slavery before
and after the war
-Hands out a worksheet for them to gather
information on their topic independently from
their sources that they gathered.
-The teacher pulls students aside and looks
over their questions and assists any students
whose topic is too broad or their questions
can be answered too easily

Observer: Lauren Jones

Date:3/17/16
Time: 9:00
Thoughts, Questions, Connections to Methods
Classes
-Pulling the class together gets them focused
and ready for the next subject

-I like how the teacher gives the students time

to talk and bounce their idea of others to see
what they think

-The teacher did a good job narrowing down

her topic and showing the students how to
come up with good thick questions

Lauren Jones
Dr. Miller
ELED 3226
3/31/16
Reflection
While I was observing a fifth grade language arts language arts class at Polo Ridge, I
observed a lesson on how to write thick questions for a research paper. I observed the teacher
getting the students to gather information on a topic and write questions that they can research on
and find more information. The teacher started the lesson by asking the students questions about
the example topic she s doing that the students could answer yes or no to. She did this to show
that those types of questions werent good research questions because they didnt take any time
to answer and the students already knew the answers. I thought this was a great way to show
what a good research question wouldnt be. She then started asking questions that students had to
think about and that went more in depth in her topic. This lesson was interesting because I found
out that some topics the students had chosen were very broad and hard to come up with questions
to research. I never knew how hard it was to come up with questions about a specific topic would
be until I observed this lesson. The students topics ranged from cats, to the history of legos, to
all of the sports and the students were having some difficulty with good thick research questions.
The teacher did a good job explaining how to narrow down a topic and make it more specific and
have questions that couldnt be answered simply with yes or no but needed to be researched and
discovered so a whole paragraph could be written on the question. The students were coming up

with good questions that I was curious about what the answers were. I really enjoyed this lesson
because the students were really engaged and interested in their topic.

Classroom Documents

Document Collection Reflection

The classroom layout was designed to meet the needs of the students. The desks were in
groups to promote group work and interaction with other students. The I thought this was a great
way to get students to collaborate with others yet still have their own space to work
independently. The SMART board was in the front on the class and all the desks were positioned
so everyone can see the board. I think that it is important to make sure that none of the students
backs are to the board because this gives them the opportunity to not pay attention because they
can't actively be engaged due to their seating arrangement. I did notice that during the day if the
teacher was sitting at the computer that was connected to the SMART board some students had
difficulty seeing the board because the teacher was blocking their view. It is also important to
monitor the seating arrangements of the students throughout the school year because you might
need to adjust some seats for multiple reasons. Some students may not be able to see from their
seat because they are shorter than who they sit near you might need to move students because
they are off task too often during the day because they are talking to their peers. Around the room
there were lots of posters that had reading strategies on them to help students to remember how
to closely read a text. The teacher also had posters on different math concepts and strategies to
help students with that specific concept. There are also some posters that have quotes on them
such as Excuses Stop Here and I liked the inspirational posters because they were simple but
also a daily reminder of how to be mature and take responsibility of situations.
The SMART board was used daily for all the subjects and the teacher did a good job using the
board to make the lesson more engaging and an extension of the topic, she didnt just have power
points and talk through them. At Polo Ridge all of the fifth graders were provided with Chrome
books. The students are permitted to use their personal computers a lot during the day across

subjects. I like the fact that the students get to be independent and work at their own pace on
their computers and it gives them the opportunity to be in charge of their learning.
One thing that I noticed about my teacher is that she was very organized with her classroom.
Everything had a place and all of the subjects were color coded so she knew where everything
was. She also kept individual student files and she would keep work samples to show parents
when they came for a conference. I think it is very important for teaches to be organized because
they are constantly moving and transiting t new subjects and they need to have the materials they
need for the next lesson. Through this experience I learned al lot about how to set up my
classroom so that all students can stay engaged. I also learned how the use of multiple
technology sources can support lessons and help students facilitate their own learning.

Interview Protocol
Teacher
Interviewer:
Interviewee:
Date:
Time:
(These are sample questions. Please add your own questions to learn more about your specific
classroom. This interview should take place in your initial meeting, prior to the two week
intensive).

How do you write a typical lesson plan?

We write our lessons as a grade level to make sure that we are all on the same page with our
pacing. But it usually starts by reviewing what we did the day before, telling them what the
objectives for today are and then modeling what they are going to have to do.
What types of materials do you need available when you plan lessons?
We do have textbooks that we are provided with but they serve as more of a guide of
what they need to get out of the lesson rather than what we actually teach from. There is
a big shift in todays society that is leaning more towards getting information from
online resources.
In what ways do you plan to accommodate individual differences in the classroom?
Trying to accommodate every one of your students is tough challenge to face but its one
where you really have to know your students and know their ability levels. This is an
area where you have to see how far you can push your students and hold them to higher
expectations before they actually dont understand or struggle with the content.
What are some of your instructional challenges as a teacher?
I have lots of kids at different levels and it is hard to plan lessons that will hit each of
those levels so that every student gets something out of the lesson.
What have been some of your instructional successes as a teacher?
I feel like because I am an experienced teacher I have a better understanding of what
works and what doesnt. I can monitor quickly an know when a lesson is not effective
and when I need to change something to make the lesson better.
What do you consider essential characteristics for successful teaching?
Teachers need to be persistent. Teaching is not a 8-4 workday, there is so much more that
is involved in teaching, such as grading, planning, and gathering materials and teachers
need to be willing to go that extra mile for their students. Communication and
collaboration skills are also needed in this field
How often do your students receive social studies/science instruction?
We do science 3 days a week and social studies one time a week.
Are you satisfied with the amount of time that you currently allot for social
studies/science instruction? Explain.
I am because I came from a school where I only taught reading and math to gifted
students so I like being able to connect the subjects together throughout the day and
incorporate different subjects in my lesson.
What social studies and science topics/units will be studied during the second week of
my clinical experience? What are possible goals/objectives I could address for my
lessons? Do you have any instructional resources that would support these
goals/objectives?

In science we will be covering forces and motion as in understanding Newtons laws of

motion and in social studies we are learning about the causes and effects of the American
Revolution. For both subjects the textbook is a great resource to use.
What does reading instruction look like in your classroom (e.g. readers workshop, basals,
etc.)?
What reading topics will be studied during the 2nd week of my clinical experience? What
are possible goals/objectives I could address for my reading lesson? Do you have any
instructional resources that would support these goals/objectives?
For reading instruction we start with a mini lesson and then we break off into groups.
During this time I like to work one-on-one with students who may need extra help. We
will be covering different researching topics over the next few weeks as in primary vs.
secondary sources and how to tell if a source is reliable.
What motivation tactics do you use to ensure a desire to learn?
With this group of students they are all eager to learn and I think they get a lot of support
at home to do well in school and want to learn.

Lauren Jones

Dr. Miller
ELED 3226
3/31/16
Teacher Interview Reflection
I never knew how much planning went into being a teacher of older grades. After interviewing
my teacher, I gained some insight in how much time goes into teaching the upper grades in
elementary school. Even as an experienced teacher, my teacher still faces some challenges in her
teaching. She still struggles with teaching to every student ability level and making sure her
lessons are going to engage all of her students and challenge the ones that can think deeper. I
found this very surprising that even though she has been teaching for some time she still finds
herself wondering how well lessons will work for all of her students. When I was teaching my
lessons in the other subjects I found myself struggling to find the words to explain concepts
using vocabulary that they could understand but also find a way that it was going to challenge
them to thin deeper.
My teacher did a great job at knowing the content she was teaching and anticipating
questions and misconceptions that her students might have and I think that is an important skill
to have as a teacher. My teacher mentions that she came from a school where she only taught
reading and math to academically gifted students so she was the sole planner for those subjects.
She now enjoys how she teaches all the subjects because she can incorporate content matters into
different subjects throughout the day to tie everything together. She also likes that her team of
teachers plan together because she gets a lot of idea from her team because they are all
experienced teachers and have different backgrounds of knowledge so collaborating with them

sparks new lesson ideas. My teacher also promotes collaboration in the classroom. She will let
students work in partners or small groups for assignments because this allows students to bounce
ideas off one another and get different perspectives on topics.
I gained more appreciation for teachers if the upper grades in elementary school because
it takes a lot of time to prepare for lessons because the content is more difficult and as the teacher
you have to know the content forwards and backwards to be able to explain in to your students. I
found myself researching and reteaching myself many of the topics I was going to be teaching
just so I felt more comfortable when I was teaching it. I was very pleased with the teacher I was
placed with because I felt as though I gained a lot of knowledge on how to have an effective
classroom of students. She was a great mentor teacher because I struggle with transitions and
tying lessons to one another and she was great at connecting her lessons. This was a wonderful
experience and I can't wait to have my own classroom.

Student Interview
1. How old are you?
- 11 years old

2. Tell me what its like to be a reader/writer in this classroom?

- I enjoy reading and writing, sometimes it can be hard but in reading we read about
some really interesting topics. Writing has never been my favorite topic but I like
the fact that we got to choose what we wanted to write about. I think if we did
more projects like that I would enjoy writing more
3. Whats it like to be a mathematician/scientist/social scientist?
- I like math but I feel like we do too much work for it, like we have math
homework and Google classroom work and it gets boring doing so much with one
concept. I feel like if we did more exploring with math instead of worksheets it
would be more enjoyable.
- I never really liked science until this year because I like what we are learning
about because it can relate back to everyday objects. I like that we get to explore
new ideas and then present to the class what we found
- Social studies is my favorite subject and I think we should do it more than just
once a week because there is so much to learn.
4. How do you best learn as a student?
- I best learn by exploring new subjects and making them fun. I like interactive
activities, I dont just like to sit and read about a topic
5. If you were the teacher in this classroom what would you do the same? What would you
do differently?
- I would make recess longer because students need time to be active. We are in
school for 8 hours a day and only get 30 minutes of recess. I would also make
time to do social studies everyday and have more interactive activities for students
in all subjects.
6. What makes a good teacher?
- What makes a good teacher is someone who is funny at times but can also be
serious when needed
7. What makes a good learner?
- Good learners need to focus and listen to what the teacher is saying and also be
respectful to the teacher

Lauren Jones
Dr. Miller
ELED 3226
3/31/16

Student Interview Reflection

Having a conversation with the students, especially fifth graders is one of my favorite things to
do because they say the funniest things sometimes. The student I had a conversation with was so
outgoing enthusiastic about school. He introduced himself to me on the first day I came to the
class as the talkative one and it proved to be true.
When I was interviewing the student I realized that I got to know him very well and I
think I want to sit down and get to know all of my students like that in my future classroom. I felt
like I had a deeper connection with this student after I interviewed him and I would like to have
had that will all of the students. I found out that the students favorite subject in school is social
studies and I found that very surprising because they only have social studies instruction once a
week. If this student was the teacher for a day he would make it so that they had more time for
social studies because he finds American history very fascinating. He learns best by doing so in
an ideal social studies lesson he would have his students acting out wars and other major events
in history. He felt like to be a good teacher you need to be nice and give less homework because
kids like to go outside and play and not be inside doing homework all day.
My goal as a teacher is to make learning fun and do interactive activities as much as
possible because I feel like it is more powerful and students get more out of doing activities
rather than sitting in a desk listening to the teacher talk about a subject.

Lauren Jones
Dr. Miller

ELED 3226
3/31/16
Overall Reflection
Throughout my experience at Polo Ridge Elementary, I have learned so much that I will take into
my future classroom. I have learned that preparation is the key to having a successful lesson and
that no matter how much you plan something will still surprise you when you are teaching the
lesson. As teachers, we have to be flexible with the time we have with our students and not lose
our composure when something doesnt go exactly as planned.
From this experience I also got to test out some behavior management techniques to see
which one was the best fit for me. I still need some work on how to pick my battles with students
and not let the little things bother me as much when in the long run they dont matter as much. In
ELED 3226 we have been talking a lot about Writers Workshop and I finally got to see a
successful workshop in action. The students were all brainstorming and writing questions for
their research paper. Other students were gathering information an even starting to draft what
they wanted to say in their paper. It was cool to see how even though each student was a different
point in the writing process that everyone was still on task and writing. The teacher would
conference with students on how their questions were coming along or how successful they were
on finding the answers t their questions in their research.
The days of the teacher telling the students that they must be so far in their writing by
this day and keeping everyone on the same track are in the past. Teachers can still stuck to
having due dates and holding students accountable for their work but have the student work at
their own pace. The students in my class were excited about their work and like when they had

time to work on their research paper. When I was in school I dreaded writing time because I felt
rushed and pressured to write words on the page whether they were good or bad. I had such a
positive experience and I can't wait until I can actually have my own class to do Writers
Workshop with.