College of Southern Nevada Field

Observation Packet
Student : Arian Mestas

School: Lawrence Junior High School

Arian Mestas
EDU 214
October 11, 2016

Assignment 1

1.My first impression of this classroom was it was very organized and friendly. The first 10
minutes of class was reading time. Every student had their own personal book to read, which I
thought was neat. The walls were decorated with the students’ art work on lab safety and
science posters.

2.Set up in rows facing the front of the classroom, paired in lab tables. Teacher work area at
front of the room. His desk was in the corner. There was one mac computer in the front of the
classroom and another at the teachers desk. There were filing cabinets next to his desk where
the students kept their lab journals and the walls were just covered with posters the students
work.

3. The classroom was very diverse with students of all different ethnicities. I didn’t notice
majority ethnic group. He only has one CC where he has some students with learning
disabilities.

4. The classroom rules are as follows: 1. Respect yourself, your classmates, the teacher, and
your environment. 2. Come to class prepared and on time. 3. Keep your mouth free of bad
language and gum. 4. Raise your hand to speak or get up. 5. Follow directions the first time!

5. The teacher does enforce all the rules and he has his Action Plan and Consequences posted
as well. 1. Student is given an instruction. 2. Student is given a precision command. 3. Student
is sent out of classroom and parent contact is made. 4. Student serves after school detention 5.
Deans referral.
He does not have reward system for individual students, he feels that by this time they should
be self motivated to learn. He does, however, as a whole class do review activities before tests
where he will pass out candy.

Assignment 2

1. Daily, the teacher writes down the board the subject/objective of the day. He also writes
down a question to answer after the lesson and the homework they will have to complete.

2.He delivers instruction differently every day depending on what they are dong in class that
day. If he is doing a normal lesson he will teach the class as a whole and then go around asking
if anybody needs addition help. He often does group activities as well, he will explain to the
class a whole what instructions to follow and then goes around helping each group.

3. I noticed the teacher lets the students do a lot of hands on activities. The very first thing I saw
when I walked in was the student’s work on the walls. After he gave the lesson, he had a
coloring and drawing activity for the students to work on as well. He does a lot of inquiry based
lessons where the students are giving a concept and they give their initial opinion and thoughts
and then they readdress as a whole class.

4. Mr. Stretz incorporates auditory, visual, and kinesthetic learning. During the time I was
observing, I saw him use powerpoint during his lectures and a lava lamp to show how
convection heat transfer works. He also had the students make their own books about heat
transfer with their own drawings and coloring.

5. In almost all his classes the students seem engaged. Most of the students participate in class
discussions and are eager to answer the teacher’s questions. The only time I noticed
disengaged students was during the class that has students with learning disabilities and even
in that class it was only a few students that didn’t want to participate.

6. Mr. Stretz had a very swift way of transitioning from one activity to another. He has a little bell
that he rings when it is time for the students to put everything away and clear their desks. On
the white board there is a list of materials they will need for the next part of the lesson. I thought
it was very organized and smooth.

7.Mr. Stretz uses a bell to get the the class’ attention. He rings the bell for transitioning from one
thing to another or if the class is getting chatty and he needs to direct the attention towards him
again.

8.One of the behaviors that I noticed the teacher has to deal with is negative attention seeking.
For example, a student talking out in the middle of the lesson to draw attention toward him/her.
I also noticed some disengagement. There are those few student who will put their head down
and just not pay any attention. As much as the teacher tries to keep them attentive or engaged
in the lesson, they just aren’t motivated.

Assignment 3
1. The students are always doing something. Mr. Stretz runs a very engaged classroom and
the students are on task. The space is used efficiently and everything has a specific place

Assignment 4

A. I liked the school atmosphere. It was a very comfortable and safe educational environment. I
never once felt out of place or uncomfortable. The building is locked from the outside until its
time for students to come in and the principle and staff are in the entrance and quad area to
make sure everything is okay, Once the students are inside the doors are locked and any
visitors have to enter through the main office. The school is very clean and neat and it feels
very open since there is a quad area to get from class to class. The hallways are decorated
with posters and students’ art. The teachers also have their doors decorated and windows
decorated as well.
B. The school’s mascot is a lion. “Lions Pride”. The school has a very friendly environment. The
office staff was very nice and helpful and the principle is very interactive with her students.
Every morning she stands outside in the quad and talks to the students and ask them how
their morning is going. The students hang out in the quad most of the time. The teachers
stand out in the hall during passing period and monitor the halls. The school has separate
halls for each grade level.
C. Mr. Stretz runs a great classroom. He has high expectations for all of his students and has a
fun classroom. He is a funny teacher who like to make his students laugh and gets them
excited about learning. He respects all of his students and expects them all to be respectful
as well. It was clear that the students really like him and they feel comfortable around him.
The students were joking around with him and have fun, but when it was time to get serious
and work they would. All of the students would participate and stay on task. It was just a
great classroom environment. Very few students were disengaged, and those students who
were struggle more on a daily basis because they have learning disabilities. That didn’t stop
Mr. Stretz from trying to teach them though. If he found that they weren’t participating he
would find a different approach on the lesson.

Assignment 5

1. What was the primary reason you became a teacher?

Though it may sound cliche, I have always loved learning from a young age. That, coupled
with the fact that my mother, two aunts, and two uncles are educators, teaching has been in
my blood. I love seeing the “aha” moment when a student grasps something they hadn’t
before.
2. What is the main challenge you face as a teacher?
Teaching in a public school, the major challenge I face is overcrowded classrooms and
underfunding. In the past years, I have had up to 42 middle school children in a single class
period. Being a lab based class, we simply are not given the resources (or even the physical
space) to accommodate that many children. It is a disservice to them.
3. What is the best part of being a teacher?
The best part of teaching is being able to positively influence a person’s life on a daily basis.
So many of my students lack positive role models, and I try to never take for granted being
that individual in their lives.
4. How do you determine where students sit in the class?
Depending on the activity, I try to offer students a variety of seating arrangements and
opportunities for collaboration. Obviously, students who may have trouble seeing or have
behavior issues tend to sit near the front of the class.
5. How do you select the members of flexible grouping?
When we do group work, I tend to pair children based on their learning abilities (i.e high level
students with lower students where they are able to teach/learn from one another).
6. How often do you interact in person with parents? What are the main
reasons for the interactions with parents?
I don’t interact with parents in person very often, maybe once or twice per semester. Most
interaction occurs via email or phone call. And generally those interactions are for parent
teacher conferences.

7. How much grading do you complete daily and weekly? When and where do you do most of
the grading?

I have about 160 students so I do my best to put in 2 new grades per week and that will get me
around 20 grades per quarter. I do most of the grading during my prep period. At least an hour
of grading at home per week.

8. How long does it take to prepare lessons for the day/week?

We have a new lesson plan template and I have two subject levels. I would say at least two
hours every Sunday for the whole week.
9. What behavior consequences seem most effective with this age group?
Parent Contact is number one, then taking there time, like keeping them after class or detention.
10.How often are you evaluated and what measurement tool(s) are used by administration for
determining your performance?
Now it is based on the Nevada Education Performance Framework. Administrators have to view
you for about 90-120. They are based on framework and different objectives or targets that you
have to meet.
11.What surprised you the most about teaching and the teaching profession?
I was surprised by how much work you have to do beyond day to day classroom instruction.
That is the main reason I think that some teacher don’t make it, because of the preparation and
the different committees and clubs.

Assignment 6

I observed one student during Mr. Stretz’ third class period. This class period I noticed was very
different from his first two classes and he later explained that his third period class was the class
that had students with learning disabilities. I began to observe this specific student because
during the lecture part of the lesson he put his head down. The lesson was on different kinds of
heat transfer and Mr. Stretz was discussing with the class and asking them questions. Mr. Stretz
then had the class look at his lava lamp he had to show them how the lava lamp used
convection heat transfer to work. When the class was looking at the lamp, that was when the
student picked his head up. The class started watching a Bill Nye the science guy video and he
watched the whole video, but when it came time for the class to discuss the video, he put his
head down again. At the end of the class Mr. Stretz was asking the class questions, but this time
it was like a game. He would throw the ball to a student and ask a question, after the student
answered the question they would then pick someone else to throw it to and answer a question.
The student participated during the review game. I think this student struggles with the
discussion part of the lesson. When it came time to discuss as a class or just listen to the
lecture part he wasn't engaged or attentive. However, when he was watching the video and
looking at the lava lamp he was paying attention and he learned because he answered the
questions right and the end of the class period during the review game. I think he just learns
better and is more interested with visual aids and hands on learning styles.

Assignment 7

One of the biggest thing I realized was how little time you really have to teach a lesson.
Mr. Stretz actually let me go over the homework with his last class period and it took me way
longer then it had taken him and I realized that I would have to be quicker in my own classroom.
Luckily that class was ahead so I didn't take away any o this time, but I was shocked when it
took me a half hour just to go over like 3 homework problems. I really enjoyed watching him
interact with his students and it made me understand just how important it is to make your
students happy to go to your class. All of his students stayed on task and were all participating
and answering all of his questions. I want to have that kind of classroom environment. I also am
going to use his transition technique when I have a classroom. He had a smooth transition from
one activity to another that wasn’t at all disruptive or chaotic and with such little time one has in
a class period, a smooth transition is very important. I was glad I observed Mr. Stretz because
he really is a great teacher and he just has such a fun class. He makes the students happy to
learn and be in his class. I learned so much during this time and it was truly a pleasure.