TESOL Certificate Programs

Observation Notebook

Observation Report Form

Name of Observer: Maria Maciel Observation #: 1

Observation
Date Environment Class Skill/Content Level Teacher
How to teach
7/5/17 Online* TESOL/CELTA N/A Diane Dowejko
Grammar

*https://youtu.be/5Re-FWcA03I

WRITE THE OBJECTIVES ACCORDING TO THE OBSERVATION GUIDELINES:

STUDENTS WILL BE ABLE TO FILL IN WORK SHEETS USING PAST SIMPLE VERBS.
STUDENTS WILL BE ABLE TO CONVERSE WITH THEIR PARTNER USING PAST SIMPLE
QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS.

Notes while observing:

0:10 Warm Up
T greets Ss: Hi guys, you alright?
T gives Ss directions about their next activity. Ss will be shown a famous picture for 10
seconds. After 10 seconds screen will be turned off and Ss will talk to their partner about
what they saw. T: You can talk about what you saw, if you know anything about the
picture. You can even talk about how it made you feel.

Comprehension Check:
T asks, Are you going to be looking at the picture for a long time or a short time?
Ss respond, Short time.
T: Is it a famous picture?
Ss: Yes.
T: What are you going to do after the 10 seconds?
Ss: Discuss with a partner.
T: For how long?
Ss: 10 seconds.
T: Are you going to discuss the picture?
Ss: Yes.
T: Are you going to discuss what you saw?
Ss: Yes
T: Can you discuss maybe how it made you feel?
Ss: Yes.

Last Updated: 9/8/2017 11:44 AM

 TESOL Certificate Programs
Observation Notebook
T: Anything you know about it?
Ss: Yes.
T: Fantastic.

Ss view the picture for 10 seconds. T gives them a few minutes to discuss the picture with
a partner. As Ss are discussing, T walks around to monitor and answer any questions.
T and Ss discuss the picture as a class.

3:03 Presentation
T provides Ss with a short reading about Picasso and a sheet with eight short sentences.
Ss need to identify which sentences are true based on the readings. They have three
minutes to complete the exercise.

Comprehension Check:
T: Are you going to read every detail or are you just going to try and find these?
Ss: Every detail.
T: Now, how many sentences are there?
Ss: Eight.
T: Good. And are they all true?
Ss: No.
T: How much time do you have?
Ss: Three minutes.

Ss compare their sheet with a partner to see if they have the same answers. As Ss are
discussing, T walks around to monitor and answer any questions.
T asks student A if the first statement is true or not true. Student A says, not true. T
asks Ss, Does everyone agree? Ss respond, Yes. T continues through this process
until the next presentation.

5:40 Presentation 2
T writes OTB 3. He started to paint when he was 10.
T asks students if the action was now, or the future, or the past?
Ss respond that it was in the past.
T: One action or many actions?
Ss: One.
T: When did it happen?
Ss: In the past.
T: Do you know exactly when it happened?
Ss: Yes.
Student B specifies the year 1891.
T: So weve got this idea that its a single action in the (pauses for students).
Ss: Past.
T: Fantastic. How do we know from looking at the words on the board? What can you
tell me about this?
T goes to board and underlines started and circles the letters ed at the end. Then she
asks, What do you notice about this word?

Last Updated: 9/8/2017 11:44 AM

 TESOL Certificate Programs
Observation Notebook
T guides Ss and they identify the beginning of the sentence as S + past simple. T
continues this process for two more sentences.

21:55 Practice (Controlled)

T gives Ss directions about the next activity. They will have a sheet with eight sentneces
that are written in the present simple tense. Ss will have to change the sentences to simple
past and add the word yesterday. Students will have 3 minutes.

T reads the first sentence as an example: I use the internet and asks students what the
new form should be. She starts the sentence with, Yesterday I (waits for students to
respond). Ss responds with, used the internet.

Comprehension Check:
T: So how many sentences?
Ss: Eight.
T: Are they in the past or present?
Ss: Present.
T: You need to change them to the...
Ss: Past.
T: And you need to add the verb yesterday.
T: How long do you have?
Ss: Three minutes.
T: Alone or with your partner?
Ss: Alone.
T: Wonderful.

T gives Ss three minutes to complete sheet. As Ss are working, T walks around and
checks on progress. T asks students to work with a partner to compare their sheets. After
20 seconds, they all check their answers together as a class.

25:00 Practice (Freer)

T gives Ss Directions about their next writing exercise. They will have a sheet of paper
with the beginning part of a sentence. Ss will have to fill in the remainder of the sentence
using their own words. T asks students for some examples of verbs they can use in their
sentences. T writes OTB: study, is, work, play, sleep, eat, read, visit, & chill.

T gives an example of a sentence she would write: Last month I visited my aunts in
Cape Town.

Comprehension Check:
T: The first one is going to be
Ss: Negative.
T: Negative. Good. But these ones (points to board), do you have a choice?
Ss: Yes.
T: Do you have to use these verbs (points to board)?
Ss: No.

Last Updated: 9/8/2017 11:44 AM

 TESOL Certificate Programs
Observation Notebook
T: Can you use your own ideas?
Ss: Yes.
T: Ok. Are you going to write alone or with your partner?
Ss: Alone.
T: How long have you got?
Ss: Three minutes.
T: Good.

Ss work alone for three minutes. T monitors as Ss work. T asks students to work with a
partner to compare their sheets. After 20 seconds, they all discuss their responses together
as a class.

29:45 Production
T has students count off alternating A & B.
T starts talking to Ss about art and visiting a museum. She tells group A that they will be
museum guides in a Picasso museum. Group B will be tourists visiting the museum.
Group B will ask group A questions and group A will do their best to answer them. T
tells Ss that they are allowed to make up the answers because the point is to practice the
language. Ss will have 4-5 minutes to practice.

33:45 Wrap-Up
T and Ss discuss exercise and T dismisses Ss.

Last Updated: 9/8/2017 11:44 AM

 TESOL Certificate Programs
Observation Notebook
What did you learn about teaching or learning from this lesson as it relates to the
theory you have studied in your TESOL classes? Include at least one reference (with
an in-text citation) to support your response. (250-500 words)

During this observation, my focus was on the PPP method as well as on the
Simple Six for Lesson Delivery. This was a grammar class given to TESOL students so
each part of her lesson plan was very discernible in order for them to view a model of
what their own lessons should be like.
The teacher followed the Simple Six during the Presentation, Practice, and
Production portions of her lesson. The only exceptions were the first two exercises for
which she didnt provide a model. This might have been because they were just for the
warm up and presentation so she might not have found a model necessary. The most
notable of the six steps was the comprehension check. She made sure to ask several short
answer questions in order to confirm that the students understood exactly what was
expected of them. She did all of this using appropriate teacher talk, i.e., speech that is
comprehensible to students but which is not oversimplified or unnatural in order to
avoid any confusion (Richards & Farrell, 2011).
Although her students had a strong command of the English language she still
made time for the last step, Correct as a Class, and she provided valuable feedback. I find
this step extremely important since, in addition to correcting errors, it is also provides
opportunities for interactive and collaborative uses of language among learners
(Richards & Farrell, 2011). Collaboration was also increased since she provided several
opportunities for the students to discuss their work with a partner.
Overall, I thought the lesson was very well organized and the delivery was great. I
definitely see the value in following the PPP method and the Simple Six. They allow for
a well-structured lesson that is organized, maintains student attention, increases student
collaboration, and facilitates a student-centered environment.

References

Richards, J. C., & Farrell, T. S. (2011). Practice teaching: A reflective approach. New
York, NY, USA: Cambridge University Press.

Last Updated: 9/8/2017 11:44 AM

 TESOL Certificate Programs
Observation Notebook

Last Updated: 9/8/2017 11:44 AM