Ellen

Peper
4/8/15
Secondary Methods

Planning and Teaching Reflection

Mr. Thatcher had specific criteria for what to cover for my lesson. He wanted a note-

taking introduction to the characteristics of quadratic equations to be taught on a late

start/shortened class period day of 34 minutes. Vocab words to be covered were opens up,
opens down, vertex, minimum, maximum, axis of symmetry, and zeros of a function.
Unfortunately he cut out the students from the video, so it is unclear exactly how
interactions with the students went according to the video. I did continuously walk around
the classroom to stimulate engagement.
I had students come up to the board to solve a problem using the concepts and
vocab they learned within the lesson. One student was chosen to begin and that student
picked the next and so on. This engaged students as if it were some sort of game. They all
had to pay attention because at any moment they could be picked next. Because students
took solving the problem into their own hands, they all seemed to be alert and excited.
Students were given the freedom of making their own choices in the problem solving
process as well as choosing the next student to participate.
Students created their own definitions in small groups and then consolidated and
refined the definitions in large group discussion in order to add any needed components or
correct any misconceptions. They could then apply these definitions to the given practice
problems.
Throughout the class period, I analyzed my wait time after asking students
questions. The wait time was consistently 4-7 seconds depending on the question asked
and their prior knowledge for the content addressed within the question. As the teacher,

Ellen Peper
4/8/15
Secondary Methods

this 4-7 second period seems like an eternity, however, it is a necessary and appropriate
time frame for students to analyze the question and think about appropriate responses.
After this allotted time, if the students have a response, they are able to voice their
solutions by either answering out loud as a class, raising their hands or being called on, all
depending on the situation. If no one seems to know the answer, I continue with further
clarification and instruction.
When students give an incorrect solution but have the correct thinking process I
always recognize and voice that they are on the right track. This reassures them that they
may have made a small, simple, error that they need to continuously be aware of, but are
NOT wrong. This strategy also reassures them that it is always okay to speak up and
participate. I do not want them to be discouraged. An optimistic attitude and use of
encouraging language are also key components to creating a productive and positive
learning environment. Saying things like good, perfect, well done, thank you, and I
know you know how to do this, you proved it on your last test are all necessary to use
continuously in order to encourage and reassure students that they CAN do math and they
are making great progress towards conceptual understanding. One critique that I do have
for myself concerning language is that I say so too much. When I first started in my
teaching profession, I used umm a lot and thankfully corrected that habit. I can always
use improvement, one step at a time.
I would like to think that because of the encouraging and respected atmosphere that
I continuously provided, students began to encourage, support and critique their fellow
classmates as they came up to the board to demonstrate their knowledge. However, this

Ellen Peper
4/8/15
Secondary Methods

could also be due to the way Mr. Thatcher may support and encourage his students when I
am not around. Determined from their enthusiastic participation in small and large group
discussion and their body language, students seemed to have fun throughout the majority
of the lesson. When discussion did dwindle away, I was sure to provide probing questions
in order to advance their thinking and promote further discussion. For example, when the
students struggled with defining the vertex I asked them, Where is it located on the graph?
Is it a line? A point? A number? Another purpose of walking around to small group
discussions is to get an idea for whom, or which groups, have great insights to add to the
large group discussions.
When I planned this lesson, I created a PowerPoint presentation that included the
solutions to each problem with an on click option presenting them only when indicated.
However, when I delivered the lesson I caught myself working through the problems on the
whiteboard with a marker instead. I would have to erase the board and click through the
solutions in order to move onto the next problem. This may have confused some of the
students or it may have just taken up necessary time. I like the idea of having the solutions
available to check our work for mistakes, but I feel as though it takes away from interactive
teaching and student involvement with the problem. I used this approach because it seems
to be an effective method for Mr. Thatchers instruction, but it didnt seem to work for me.
Thankfully I am there for a five-hour period every Monday, so I am able to teach the
same lesson four different times in one day. Because of this opportunity, I was able to play
with different scenarios when approaching problems. For Instance, during first period, I
called on six volunteers to come up to the board to solve the problem as a team, then

Ellen Peper
4/8/15
Secondary Methods

decided to choose six names out of a cup for the next period in order to accommodate for
more diverse learners, and finally decided on choosing one student and having that student
choose another student and so on. The first approach was far too chaotic, the second was
great due to the fact that I was able to incorporate a wider variety of learners but didnt
have the structure or engaging environment that I wanted, and the third got the students
involved and excited yet still incorporated a wide range of learners.
During the lesson, I spent as much time interacting with the students as possible.
Keeping them involved and engaged is extremely important in order to ensure and provide
the best opportunities for understanding. The lesson seemed to flow very well with great
transactions and an exceptional balance between lecture time and student interaction. The
only time I can recall any of my students being off task or being disruptive is when one
student, in second hour, yelled out the answer at an unacceptable volume level. Before I
even had time to react to the situation and explain to him that this was unacceptable and
disrespectful, Mr. Thatcher reacted and took him out of the room instantly. I wish he would
have allowed me to handle the situation, however, I do realize it is still his classroom and
he wanted to remain in control.
If I had more time to teach the lesson I would have loved to incorporate a real-world
activity where the students calculate the equation for a quadratic function of their choice
from a list of options. These real-world examples, consisting of shooting hoops in
basketball, playing angry birds and bridge construction as well as rollercoaster
construction, were introduced at the beginning and the end of the lesson to help stimulate
interest.

Ellen Peper
4/8/15
Secondary Methods

The way a teacher acts and how they conduct a positive environment shapes

student learning. More importantly, using the evidence obtained by teaching a lesson in
different ways provides an opportunity for a clearer understanding of student learning and
classroom management that will ultimately improve the learning environment. To improve
my instruction, I plan to implement more high-engagement activities in my classroom. I
will continue to focus on my students' weak areas in order to improve their learning and
their understanding. I will also strive to continually reflect on my practices to determine
what works and what doesn't making the necessary adjustments along the way. I firmly
believe that a teacher's work is never complete and we need to constantly change and
adapt.