mid semester reflection letter

8/7/2019 Mid Semester Reflection Letter

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Dear Dr. McKool

So far this semester I have learned a lot from my cooperating teacher and the firstgraders in my classroom. The very first day in the field I was excited and nervous to

meet the students and see how they would respond to me. From the very beginning the

students welcomed me with open arms and I was nervous they would see me more as afriend then a teacher. My cooperating teacher made it clear to the class that I was ateacher and should be treated like a teacher, so the students would willingly ask me for

help with class work or to ask a question. The first day went well and I had a lot of funbut the next field day I performed a math lesson about fact families. The lesson didnt go

according to plan and I realized that if I was ever going to become a successful teacher, Ihad to relax and prepare for every possibility, such as differentiation amongst students, I

had to make my expectations very clear to the students, give understandable directionsand perform proper classroom management skills.

During the first lesson plan, I realized that I a should have prepared better bygiving better instructions and planning for the differentiation amongst students. I was

very nervous about the first lesson and it showed, I lost my train of thought and the lessondidnt flow like I had planned. Writing a lesson plan and teaching it are two completely

different things, and it is crucial to exhibit proper classroom management or else thestudents will get out of control. My cooperating teacher helped me through my first

lesson, and I was happy that the students understood the concept of the lesson, but theorganization simply wasnt there like I had planned. When I went into planning my

second lesson, I wanted to include a mini lesson so the students could gain knowledge ofboth literacy and math. I had already experienced an unsuccessful lesson so I made sure

to plan very well for my second lesson. Just because mini lessons are brief, this doesntmean they are effortless to plan. In fact rule of thumb is that teachers probably need to

spend as much time planning a mini lesson as we spend teaching (Calkins 50). I madesure to script myself very well and spent a long time planning my lesson, playing out the

lesson in my head and thinking about any possible troubles that would arise. My firstlesson in front of the class was a huge eye opener and I was determined for the students

to take me seriously as a teacher and in order to do that I had to work on differentiation,classroom management, scripting myself better and making the students very aware of

my expectations.The second lesson I taught an interactive read aloud with a mini math lesson.

This lesson went a lot better then the first because I scripted myself so I knew what I wasgoing to say and when I was going to say it. My classroom management was more

effective, I made sure to give explicit instructions before we started the mini math lessonand all the students seemed intrigued and involved in the lesson. The only critique the

students themselves gave me was to call on different students because I unknowinglykept picking on the same students. I also realized during my second lesson that the

students love getting involved in the interactive read aloud, I found the students readingalong with me as I read the text and that the students really related to the story. For

example, You can help your students listen and comprehend by stopping at certainplaces in the book to discuss a picture as it relates to the story or to review the plot

(Chen 34). I would stop on certain pages to ask questions about what we had just readand almost all students raised their hand with a story to share. Not only is asking


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questions about a book important, but when the teacher reads a story and asks a student toreview what they just read, it shows that the students comprehend and understand what

they are reading, which is an important skill to acquire since students will have to be ableto comprehend all kinds of text like stories, instructions, directions and much more.

Realizing how excited and involved the students become with interactive read

aloud makes me want to create another lesson where the students maybe read a story totheir peers, and reverse roles so they become the teacher. Through this lesson thestudents would be able to pick a book of their interest and read it aloud to their peers.

The students would be able to practice oral reading, which will help them develop betterlanguage development because when they hear themselves talk they will be able to pick

up on miscues and mistakes they make. Overall the second lesson went a lot better thenthe first, I learned a lot more about the students and how they interact with literature.

Not only is engagement important while the teacher is reading out loud to theirstudents, but it is also important while being read to by their students. Almost every

class, one girl in particular asks to read to me. Of course I always say yes and amthrilled that more students have started asking to read to me. This one girl loves reading,

she never hesitates to tell me her passion for reading and during parts of the story shellstop reading, converse with me about the book so far, ask questions, make comments,

which makes me feel good to know that shes intrigued and enjoys the book shesreading. Not only does she love to read, but also when she reads a story, she reads the

text with such enthusiasm, emphasizing certain words and phrases, which keep meengaged in the story. Ive witnessed certain students who rarely read during independent

reading time, so Ive made an effort to come over to those students and ask them to readto me. They always agree and during their reading, Ill ask questions to the students to

get them more involved in the story, which is great because my questions sparkconversation between the student and I, and I find them relating the characters and plot to

their own lives. Independent reading is very important and I want every student to enjoyreading, so by provoking the students I rarely see reading and making it enjoyable by

having them question and reflect, hopefully theyll develop a better respect and liking forreading.

Reading is a huge part of the students day, but so is writing, and all over theclassroom students has helpful words and phrases to help them while they are writing.

For instance, in the classroom, there is a word wall, labeled colors, shapes, and objectssuch as the clock, bathroom, desks and bookshelves so the students can learn sight words

since they are all around them. The labeling of objects in the classroom is a helpfulstrategy for students because it helps them develop an understanding of print. For

example, Once children develop the understanding that alphabetic symbols carrymeaning, they begin to hypothesize about what those symbols can mean (Owocki and

Goodman 28). Once children learn that the letters of the alphabet form words that carrymeaning, its important for children to make the connection from those words to pictures.

By labeling certain objects, colors and shapes in the classroom, children develop a betterprint awareness to help them progress in reading and writing. In addition to the alphabet

and number line being displayed at the front of the classroom, it is also available for thestudents on their desks so they have easy access to it when needed. In the classroom

there is one chart that gives words students will use in writing such as, a, by, because, or,are, is, it, and, to, all, as, in, and the title of the chart says, We Use These Words In


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Writing, Please Spell Them Correctly. This chart is particularly important because itgives students a helping hand if they are writing a story and need help spelling one of

those words. It also demonstrates the importance of words and how they are spelledmakes a difference, not only does the spelling make a difference, but the context in which

they use the word matters too.

I particularly enjoy the word wall, I remember having a word wall in myclassroom in the first grade and I am pleased to see one in Mrs. Millers classroom.Word walls are usually organized in alphabetical order. High frequency words are

usually displayed underneath an alphabet letter category in order in which they wereintroduced or taught (Reutzel and Cooter 85). I was helping a student the other day

spell the word pencil. He first wrote the word, pensle, so I told him to double check hisspelling and he figured out which word was spelled wrong and used the word wall to

correct himself. After that, he went back and corrected the word pencil wherever it wasmisspelled. Not only is the word wall important for students to learn sight words and

more challenging words, but also it helps the students establish a sense of alphabeticalorder. The students have a folder with cut out words and sometimes the students are

asked to pick a certain amount of words and place them in alphabetical order, then rightthem down in their writing journal.

I was helping a student put his words in alphabetical order and he had them inalphabetical order based off of the second letter. I told him that his thought process was

correct, but before he could jump to the second letter he had to use the first letter todetermine the words alphabetical order. After I told him that piece of information, he

proceeded to place the words in alphabetical order, sometimes referring to the alphabeton the wall for guidance. It is very important for students to develop an understanding of

the alphabet and the letters order because, The alphabet represents the relationshipsbetween letters and sounds. We can match letters-sometimes singly, sometimes in pairs-

to sounds from left to right and create words (Bear et al 5). When students understandthe alphabet, the letters that make up the alphabet and their sounds, they will begin to

realize that sometimes two letters make one sound, or that one letter can create twosounds, such as a long and short vowels and much more. The alphabet is the groundwork

for reading and writing so students need to be very aware of the alphabet and its features.Ive come to realize the diversity in Mrs. Millers first grade classroom when it

comes to reading and writing but especially in writing. Some students have very strongmentacognitive awareness and self correct themselves without prompting. This one

student in particular always writes his Bs as a D but right after he writes a B as a D heinstantly corrects himself which makes me realize he is thinking about what hes writing

and he realized his mistake before proceeding. This other student greatly struggles withspelling, the other day in class, the students were labeling parts of a Pill Bug, and even

though the word bank was at the bottom of the page, the student still had trouble spellingthe words. There are some words hell write and call them, easy words which are

usually three to four letter sight words. When he does write a word he is unfamiliar with,he often uses to many or not enough letters and the letters he uses are incorrect, but the

sound is accurate, for instance, hell use an S when it should be C. Based off of what Ihave observed from his writing and the spelling inventory assessment-scoring chart, I

would say that this child is straddling the phonetic stage and transitional stage. He is inthe phonetic stage because he Spells the words like they sound and the transitional


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stage because, A visual memory of spelling patterns is apparent. He understands thatwords have patterns and that every word involves a vowel, but sometimes he uses the

wrong vowel or hell use two vowels when they are not needed. Its interesting to seehow the students write and to relate the students writing to one another to see how

different and diverse they all are in literacy.

Ive learned a lot about classroom management and how effective or ineffectivecertain strategies can be. I appreciate my cooperating teacher because she never yellsabove the students to quiet them down because if she did she would just add to the noise

level. She also ignores bad behavior like when shes being interrupted, which I started todo because a lot of students interrupt me while Im trying to help another student. I like

the fact that my cooperating teacher stays quiet and waits for all the students to quietdown and sometimes shell turn off the lights or clap to get the students attention which

seems effective with her first grade students. I always knew that classroom managementwas key to running a successful classroom but how a teacher administers direction and

discipline makes the difference between a well-run classroom and a noisy, disorganizedclass.

Ive learned a lot so far from my students and cooperating teacher and Ivelearned very quickly about proper classroom management, planning and developing

lesson plans. Writing a lesson plan is a lot different then actually teaching the lessonbecause the lesson never goes according to plan. As a teacher, we should prepare for the

best and the worst and be ready for anything. The students are a joy to teach and watchthem learn. I get so excited and happy when a student finally understands a new math

problem or learns a new word. Being a teacher is about changing lives and positivelyinfluencing students and I am thrilled to be a part of these students first grade experience

and while they are learning from me, I am equally learning just as much from them. I amanxious and excited to see where the rest of the semester goes because I know it will be a

fun and educating experience.

Sincerely,Nikki Meyer

mid semester reflection letter

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