January Daily Logs
January 7, 2008
Our day usually starts
at 8:00. There are four teachers in the classroom. For the first half of the day we, the teachers, are out of the class from
8:00 to 11:30. In the afternoon we engage in group tutoring sessions with the students. Teachers should arrive at 7:20 and
leave at 3:30 Monday through Thursday. On Fridays teachers are allowed to 2:30. There are two computers in the classroom for
the students to do extra instructional time on.
Teachers do not have to
do their own lesson plans. They co-plan and co-teach therefore they are not required to make the lesson plans out themselves.
Each day we are faced with different problems whether it is getting plans ready for the next day or deal with behavior problems.
January 8, 2008
Today was a good day. I
got more hands on with the students. I was able to get a much better feel for the students and what teachers have to do. Timed
seemed to move pretty fast today. In the afternoon I worked with two students on their work. One of the students and I worked
on math; ones and tens. The other student and I worked on readings. He had to fill in the blanks with the right word from
the word bank. After much practice one of the students seemed to really be grasping the concept for math.
January 9, 2008
Today was a great day!
I went around to classes by myself today because my advising teacher had to go on a home visit. It was very interesting to
see how I was with the students by myself. I was proud that I was able to handle the students by myself and maintain the lesson
at hand.
Once my advising teacher
returned she just stood and watched me with the students. She did not make any comments on the lesson when she came in or
when I finished. I was pleased that she seemed to be pleased.
January 11, 2008
Fridays are crazy in that
we have to test all day. On Fridays the students come into our class and test on the skills that have been presented for that
week. They come with their test material and any materials that are needed. We test all grade levels in the classroom mostly
at different times. We try to complete testing if the students are able to before 11:30 so that in the evening we can try
to have meetings or finish any paperwork.
In the afternoon many students
try to come back for computer time or just because it is a habit. If there is a substitute in the class, who is unfamiliar
with the schedule then my advising teacher may let the students stay depending on if they have been a behavior problem.
January 14, 2008
Every Monday we have to
pick our lesson plans up from the mailbox. After receiving them we have to find the skills for each grade level and make sure
that we have some worksheets for the students to work on. The worksheets had to address the skill at hand, and follow the
same format that the teacher may be using. Teachers have to make sure that they just do not jump into the lesson but have
a good introduction.
January 15, 2008
Make sure the lesson plans
are still aligned with the plans that the teachers are going over in class. Make sure that our students are not ahead of the
other students in the class. This will cause the students to be bored in the classroom when the teacher gets to the part of
the lesson that they have already been introduced to.
January 16, 2008
This is the middle of the
week and we are almost at the end. I think now the most important thing is that Friday is yet to come. Wednesday is hump day.
All of the same things happen on Wednesday that happen every other day. Children are still rowdy and they continue to misbehave.
January 17, 2008
Thursday are good days.
I have one day left and the children seemed to be winding down a little. On Thursdays the students are getting ready for the
weekend and sometimes struggle with staying on task. They tend to be dreamier than usual and less willing to participate in
class.
January 18, 2008
We are testing all day.
Children come in at 8:00 and should be through testing by 11:30. We test students on all grade levels like Math, Reading,
and Language Arts. They bring in their own materials and we make sure they are able to read the information and understand
what the questions are asking as well as what the passage is saying.
January 21, 2008
Martin Luther King Jr. Holiday- No school for teachers or students.
January 22, 2008
Today we had a field trip
to Thalia Mara Hall to watch a symphony. By the time that we returned it was time to go to lunch. In the afternoon the students
seemed to be calming down from all of the excitement of not going to school. They seemed to be more focused on their work
and understand the importance and privilege of being able to go on trips during school hours.
January 23, 2008
Today we gather all lesson
plans and make the appropriate copies that are needed to travel to the classes with. We walk around to the classes and distribute
the worksheets to the students that need them to work with that day. I also have to make sure that we have any manipulatives
that the students may need to work with along with the worksheets.
January 24, 2008
Today we are trying to
cram the information on the students and allow them extra time to catch up with the lessons that they missed Monday and Tuesday.
Some understand the need to rush but others are having difficulty focusing on the assignment. Those that we feel are not following
along on task are able to work with tutors, other students or get additional one on one help in the afternoon.
January 25, 2008
Testing today is the skills tests for second through fifth grades. Testing today is different in that we are unable
to read the passages to them or aid them in the test in any way possible. It seems to take them longer today than any other
day before. Many of them are confused as to why we are not allowed to read to them or make sure they understand what the question
is saying.
January 28, 2008
Upon arrival to the school I sign and make sure that I check the mailbox to retrieve the lesson plans. Next, I have
to examine the plans to find the specific skills that they are working on that week. Then, I need to find any supplemental
materials that I can to take around and allow the students to work on. We are working on reference materials, area, mean,
median, mode and measurements. Also in reading and language arts we are working on synonyms, antonyms, context clues and parts
of a book.
January 29, 2008
We realized today that the time is approaching to begin updating IEP’s. We are having
a visit on the 25th of February therefore we can not begin until the visit is over. Today in the class we went
over mean, median, mode and range in math. In reading we went over fact and opinion. In second grade we went over syllabication
with the students and did an activity that helped them count the number of syllables in a word.
January
30, 2008
Today we modified the block since one of the homeroom teachers was absent. We brought all students
from 8:00 to 9:45 back to our classroom and did whole group instruction so that all students would be on the same level. We
worked on tools of persuasion with the fourth graders. With the third graders we worked on affixes. With the second graders
we worked on syllabication.
January 31, 2008
We are now short of help
since the assistant has been moved to work with pre-kindergarten and kindergarten students in the morning. As of right now
the problem has not been resolved as to how her students will be accommodated since she has been placed somewhere else. In
any event, we worked on anchor writing with the students in the morning and continued with mean, median and mode.
