This past week was fairly abbreviated and more than a little frustrating.

On Monday and Tuesday the class spent the duration of our time there browsing the internet for information about a city of their choosing. Miss Dillon started them on a geography project, for which they were to go on a “virtual vacation.”  They were to research their city and eventually put together a report including information such as what food you would eat or activities you would participate in that location.  While this activity was creative and allowed the students to have a great deal of accountability for their learning process, the logistics of working with the computers are a nightmare.  To begin with, a number of the computers, which are shared by all classes in the school, are broken or dead.  For those who are lucky enough to find a computer that turns on, access to the internet is often denied without a password.  This problem had  Miss Dillion running around the classroom for the first fifteen minutes,  just to get the kids online.  Once they were online, the school’s firewall blocked many of the sights, including Google.  Many students in the class lacked a general understanding of how the internet worked at all.  One girl commented “it don’t tell me nothing about Paris” as though the internet were a single source of information and not a vast network of media.  Others didn’t understand what I meant when I used words such as “cursor” and “search bar.”  These are concepts I feel third graders should understand. Even if there is not a computer available at home, it is imparitive in today’s technology-driven culture that computer literacy be taught in schools. I didn’t have the chance to ask Miss Dillion if there was a computer lab or specific computer classes taught at Cornerstone.

On Wednesday Vicki and I arrived at 1:00 per usual.  The classroom was empty, but we figured that the class was either out for recess or at an assembly. We looked on the  board and on Miss Dillion’s desk but there wasn’t a note indicating their whereabouts.  After about twenty minutes we decided to walk up to the office and ask the secretary if she knew where the class was. She informed us that the ENTIRE school was at the high school for a field trip, and wouldn’t be returning until later that afternoon. Feeling disrespected, we left.

Vicki and I left campus early on Thursday so we could stop at Buehler’s to pick up some treats for the class.  We showed up at 1:00 with cookies and a plant, just to find Miss Dillion missing.  In her palce was a substitute teacher reading the class a story. Of course, “reading” is a relative term, as she seemed to have trouble getting through the complex plot involved in Wild Wild Sunflower Child Anna. It was obvious that the class wasn’t paying attention to the story.  The day proceded as usual until about 2:00 when two of the boys had an altercation in the bathroom.  They both came back with different stories, both involving shoving.  I had them each pull a card in an attempt to maintain order in the classroom.  One student took particular issue with this action, and stormed around the room for a few minutes. I took him into the hall to try to talk to him about why he was so upset, and he proceded to tell me that he was leaving the school, and that I ruined his life. He went on to say that school was stupid, I was stupid, I was evil, and he wished I had never come. I spent the remaining 20 minutes trying to explain that he had to face the consequences for his actions, and that pulling a card wasn’t, in fact, the end of his life.  I eventually got him to stop crying and sent him back in the room, wrote a brief note to Miss Dillon explaining the situation, and bid good riddence to Cornerstone Elementary.

Overall, my eight weeks at Cornerstone were somewhat disappointing. While I had a great group of kids, my teaching experience was extremely limited.  I’m glad to have had the time I did with the kids, and I know the experience will serve me well in the future.

On Monday, we started with an introduction to maps. We discussed the part of a map and how to use them. We started by reading out of the textbook to help us answer worksheet questions.  We passed around the microphone so they could be heard as they read. Then, as a class, we filled out the pages in the pack I made them. I had transparency copies made for the overhead so they could follow along with me as they went. I let the students volunteer to come up and write the answer on the overhead, which they seemed to enjoy.  I was feeling sick that day and had trouble giving the class a lot of energy. They seemed to pick up on this and give me little in return.  In addition, they had already done with worksheet with their cooperating teacher, of which I was not aware. I only heard a few “we’ve already done this” comments, for the most party they played a long. This was rather upsetting, as the week before I double checked with my teacher to make sure the lesson was appropriate and not something they had already done.

On Tuesday, we continued with the same format, this time discussing landform maps and product maps. I was feeling much better and was able to put more energy into the lesson. They definitely picked up on this, and gave me way more in return. Participation was much higher and they were very cooperative.  This just goes to show that when you’re sick as a teacher, you’re not the only one who suffers.

Wednesday started off our fun culminating activity.  The students were given the task of creating a map of their own.  The map was to be of an imaginary place, but include all of the components we discussed the previous two days. We began by creating a list of essential elements, which I put up on the overhead for the duration of the work period. That way, they could refer back to it if they forgot what they needed to include. I had a lot of “can we?” type questions at first, but once they realized they were allowed to be as creative as they wanted, they got straight to work. I gave them each a piece of printer paper at first where they could draw a sketch of their map and gather their ideas. Once they were finished, they has to show me their map and point out all of the elements we had talked about. They then received a large piece of tag board paper on which to create their final product.

On Thursday we jumped right back into work on the maps. My original plan was to stop them 15-20 minutes before the end of the period to give them the opportunity to share their work. However, they all seemed to be wrapped up in their work, so Miss Dillion and I decided to let them work for the rest of the class, and push the sharing time until Monday.

Overall, I’m very pleased with the way my unit went this week.  While power point lectures aren’t the most exciting form of instruction, by allowing them to fill in the answers I was able to maintain engagement. In addition, the culminating activity allowed the students to demonstrate what they had learned in a hands on manner. I think they took a lot away from the unity, and I will definitely implement this project in my classroom in the future.

Vicki led the class in a unit about the history of Ohio, Wayne County, and Wooster.  The class seemed extremely receptive to her lessons and especially enjoyed the use of the power point.   I’m sure the unit was interesting to them since it pertains to their hometown.

While she taught, I worked on my lesson plans for next week. Planning at school during downtime is a great strategy.  In addition to saving time in the evenings, I think that planning in a school setting puts your brain into the right mode for teaching!

On Thursday I used the teachers’ work room to make copies and overhead transparencies for my unit next week.  When I first got to the room there were already teachers there struggling with the copier. They were attempting to print their report cards on 11×16 paper which the printer apparently doesn’t like. I waited for a few minutes before I decided to come back a later time. This is a good example of Murphy’s law, in which I firmly believe.  It is important to have a backup plan in case what can go wrong, actually does.

I look forward to teaching my unit on maps next week! I think the class will really enjoy the culminating activity I have planned.

On Tuesday the class did Ohio standardized test preparation.  They have workbooks for both math and reading.  They filled out the questions in the books and then graded each others work.  Ms. Dillion talked the students through the logic of finding the “best answer.”  It was made obvious to the students that what they were doing was in preparation for a final test, not to benefit their education. Although I understand the reasoning behind this preparation, it seems absurd to devote so much time to teaching to the test.  It seems like a comprehensive education should be enough to prove what the students know.

On Wednesday I was able to spend more time with the third reading group.  There was little discipline within the group. In some cases, students blatantly disrespected the teacher and each other with on consequences.  Below are some conversations I wrote down, verbatim:

Student: “You have to wait until everyone’s ready!”

Teacher: “I don’t have to do anything.”

Student: “Then I don’t have to do it, I’ll take my time.”

The student then did proceed to move extremely slowly. When the rest of the group was on number three, she asked for the teacher to repeat number one, and she did, without hesitation. This only reinforced the disrespectful behavior of the student.

Teacher: “You guys fight like you’re sisters, are you sisters?”
Student 1: ” I don’t want her to be my sister!”
Student 2: “I don’t like her!”

I can’t understand why the teacher chooses to never reprimand her students.  In addition to being inappropriate for the classroom environment, it impedes the learning experience.

Thursday was writer’s notebook day again. They read a book called “Nicholas Bentley Stoningpot III” and wrote responses to it in their journals.  Again, I think this is a really great activity for creative writing.

Even though I won’t be in class for the next three weeks, I’m looking forward to my next time at Cornerstone.

On Wednesday, the students worked on a descriptive writing project.  Each student was to draw a creature and then write a detailed description of it. They were then to read their description to a partner, from which the partner was to draw his or her interpretation of the creature. The accuracy of the second partner determined how well the author described his or her creature using details.  I thought this was a fun and effective way of conveying to the students what exactly is meant by details and describing words.  One student even said after realizing his partner’s take on his creature looked nothing like his, “I guess I didn’t give good enough details!”

Thursday was a fun day!  We held preliminary testing of their secret projects they had been creating for science. Vicki and I took groups into the hall to see who could get their device to go the furthest.  They then had the opportunity to make changes to their device based on what they saw happen.  Some of their ideas are extremely creative. I love watching their minds turn as they try to figure out how to make their object go further than everyone else’s.
Overall, it was a great week, even though we didn’t have school on Tuesday due to the snow.  I got to see a lot of imagination at play in the creature project as well as in the secret science project.  It’s refreshing to see such creativity.  The reading groups finished with their work, so Miss Dillon and Mrs. McCoy’s group switched with one another.  It’s good to observe how teachers interact in such a situation.  It’s great to split students into smaller groups so that they get full attention from their teachers .

On Wednesday the class spent time working on publishing original pieces of writing. While the students seem to really like working on laptops, there are inevitably problems with technology. This is especially true of shared computers. Students seemed to be having trouble locating the documents they had started a few days before on the computers. We later broke into reading groups and I was left to supervise one of the groups for a few minutes while Miss Dillon went to get something from another teacher. A few students in the group, typically very well behaved, were out of control.  They refused to listen to me when I asked them to be quiet and finish their work; one even questioned  my authority by saying “you’re not a teacher, why do I have to listen to you?”  The other students in the group were getting frustrated because they couldn’t concentrate, so I gave them permission to move down the hall away from the group and split up the trouble makers near me.  When Miss Dillon came back, I told her there were four cards that I thought needed to be flipped and she gave me permission to act on that. I appreciate Miss Dillon giving me that ability, as it’s the only way to prove to the students that they do, in fact, have to listen to me. It also shows that she trusts my judgment.

I once worked with a cooperating teacher who told me that unusually boisterous behavior from students was connected to a full moon.  While this seems ridiculous, it always seems to hold true. I checked the calendar on Wednesday when I got home, and that night there was to be a lunar eclipse, followed by a full moon the following night.

Luckily, Thursday presented fewer behavioral issues. While the class was still talkative and energetic, we managed to get by without major issue.  I think that is is mostly because Thursdays are writer’s  notebook days, where students get twenty minutes of quiet time to work on  a reading response.  They have freedom to work wherever they please in the room. Being away from their desks and the structure associated with them must have been enough for them to get over their urges to act out, allowing them to do their work.

I’m looking forward to seeing their projects come along in the following days, and cant’ wait for the competition!

On Wednesday kids worked on new “publications” to be on display for parent-teacher conferences.  They were each given illustrations of comic strips and wrote words to go along with them.  It was interesting to see how each of the students interpreted the pictures and came up with different story lines.  I had the opportunity to observe Miss Dillon’s reading group. They’re reading a book about immigrants coming to Ellis Island.  The students seemed really engaged in the book and asked a lot of questions regarding the topic.   It was nice to see students actively participating in their education.

Thursday was Valentine’s day.  The class did a citizenship type activity.  Each student had a heart with his or her name on it.  The hearts were then randomly distributed to the rest of the class. Students then wrote one nice things about the person whose valentine they had, and then passed it to the person next to them.  This continued until each student had written something nice about everyone else in the class.  I thought this was a nice way to promote healthy relationships within the class and show individuals what nice things their classmates saw in them.

Vicki, Miss Dillon, and I discussed dates for our units.  I will be teaching my lesson the week of April 7.

Although the week was shortened, it was a good example of how the class runs under very realistic circumstances. There is no way to predict or control the weather, and it can be hard to keep students on task when they know a holiday celebration is coming.  Miss Dillon seemed to acknowledge this challenge and engage them in a holiday-related activity that wasn’t just a waste of time.  These are the types of things that cannot be taught in a classroom, and that must be learned from experience.

Miss Dillon has asked me to create a four lesson unit on Geography. I spent some time on Wednesday looking through her notebook getting some ideas of what I am to teach. I’m planning to do a series of mini lessons regarding mapping, and end with a culminating activity where each student creates his or her own country and creates a map of it.

The first few days I mostly spent making observations and getting to know the students. There are 23 students in the class, so it’s a good thing the classroom is large. The room lacks a word wall. Miss Dillon explained that she chose to omit this from her room to give her students more accountability for their spelling abilities. Each student has a dictionary which they use quite often.

There are only three rules posted in the classroom. They are:

1) Be kind

2) Be safe

3) Be an active learner

There are many visiting teachers in and out of the classroom. The students seem to like the visitors. Reading groups are divided between Miss Dillon and two visiting teachers. There are three groups. One is a group of student who are all below grade level. They get intensive instruction to help them develop. The other two groups are mixed ability.

The discipline system used in the classroom is the same as was used at both Kean and Apple Creek. A four card system of different colors shows the students status that day.

On Miss Dillon’s desk is a wooden apple that says “The teacher is busy, take a number” and has small apples on it numbered 1-4. Although I get the feeling this is only for decoration, it is not a bad idea to have a system in place for students to indicate they need help when the teacher is doing something else.

She uses a “countdown to quite” method to get her classes quiet and ready for the next activity. She starts and five and by the time she gets to one, the students are waiting quietly in their seats.

Miss Dillon’s class does an activity called “reader’s notebook.” Miss Dillon reads the class a story, and then they each write a response to it. They are free to respond in any way they wish, whether it be poetry, a critique, or related fiction. For twenty minutes the lights are dimmed, music is played, and students are allowed to sit wherever they please about the room. They really seem to enjoy this freedom and get quite creative with their writing.

I expect that at least five students in the class have IEP’s. For the most part the students seem pretty bight, but perhaps not highly motivated. Many of them still write poorly with large or backwards letters, often not on the lines. This fine motor skill, however, develops differently for everybody.

So far I’m happy with my experience with third graders. Their prior knowledge makes communicating with them easy. For example, when you ask them “What needs to go at the end of the sentence?” they can answer you confidently. I like being able to speak to my students like young adults.

I look very much forward to further time at Cornerstone.

www.nsta.org National Science Teachers Association

www.ncss.org National Council for the Social Studies

www.nctm.org National Council of Teachers of Mathematics

professional-organization-search-and-review.doc