Final+Reflection

While reading about teaching strategies and taking notes on lectures are beneficial practices, nothing compares to the value of observing an experienced teacher. Modeling is the strongest form of instruction a teacher can give towards their students because this allows them to develop independence as lifelong learners. Even for interns, like myself, I have learned that I gain a better understanding when observing my cooperating teacher and then being able to apply the knowledge that she has taught me in my version of a "guided practice." When Ms. Kamm models strategies for teaching students how to gain a better understanding of a concept I feel that my development as a teacher improves greatly. Throughout my teaching experiences and knowledge about mathematics I have learned several ways to improve student learning in my classroom. During class discussions, I have talked with my colleagues about what makes effective teaching and after working in this professional learning community I am now able to create connections between what I have experienced and what I have learned. Three main ideas that we have discussed are the following: ways to teach through problem solving while selecting appropriate tasks, creating appropriate learning environments, and finally using appropriate intervention. My experience this semester in a kindergarten classroom has helped me better understand the importance of these ideas as I connect them to lessons that I have taught in the subject of mathematics. As teachers it is important to understand the importance of teaching through problem solving and selecting appropriate tasks to support student learning. All of the lessons I teach to my students gives them the opportunity to utilize problem solving strategies. In a co-taught lesson on ways to make 4 and 5, students were given alternative strategies to create an addition sentence using counters. When developing this lesson, I selected tasks based on the students knowledge and their familiarity with technology. When teaching with the Smart Board this kindergarten class becomes very engaged in the topic being taught, therefore I selected tasks using the Smart Board to develop this lesson. Another lesson that I taught was developed using a book that Cambridge provides to all teachers but was modified by my cooperating teacher. Originally Ms. Kamm was going to teach the lesson herself because she thought that it would be too confusing for the teacher as well as the students. However, after Ms. Kamm explained the lesson and we modeled how the lesson would progress I asked if I could conduct this lesson. The lesson objective was for students to identify different parts of a story problem (word problem) by retelling what occurred in the story. As I read the story, students were to retell what happened in the story verbally and then we would continue to the next part of the lesson. As the lesson progressed, students were becoming more involved in the problem by acting out the story, and then using manipulatives to represent different numbers in story. After noticing that all students were understanding the concept I told them a story and asked them to create an addition sentence based on the story. This lesson is a great example of teaching through problem solving and selecting appropriate tasks because students were engaged by the creative essence of the format which helped them understand the content of the lesson. Teaching through problem solving is extremely important but selecting appropriate tasks based on the skill level of your students and any interests that they have will help them gain a better understanding of the content being taught, which is a main goal as a teacher. When teaching through problem solving it is also important to create appropriate learning environments to enhance student learning. The developmentally appropriate classroom is a carefully planned room where children can initiate learning. It is a place that meets the needs of the children and provides materials that are age appropriate, individually appropriate, and culturally appropriate. As teachers, we must provide our students with resources that will help them excel in their learning and developing an environment that will support this learning is extremely important. In Ms. Kamm's kindergarten classroom she has created an appropriate learning environment for all her students by developing routines, creating technology as a comfortable tool to utilize in their learning and creating strong relationships between their peers. During math lessons, direct instruction is given on the Smart Board at the carpet and then students are normally moved into two rounds where students sometimes will be doing math activities on the iPads or they will be using math manipulative for a worksheet. Creating an appropriate learning environment for students will give students a better learning experience giving teachers the motivation to make this basic idea a large focus when starting or improving a classroom environment. Developing good classroom management skills is also important in student learning because when students understand what is expected of them and how they should behave they will be able to understand the material being taught. However, when students mishave and cause problems in the classroom, using appropriate interventions is important. While teaching in a kindergarten classroom, I used several interventions to reduce misbehavior. If only one student is causing problems in the classroom, they will be sent to the "peace chair," which gives the students the chance take time to regroup themselves and when they are ready to join the class they will put their thumb up come back to the group using appropriate behavior. If the problem in the classroom is within the entire class, students will be sent to their desks to sit for a few minutes and come back to their previous activity. Using appropriate intervention in the classroom is important because it helps develop appropriate learning environments to teach through problem solving with appropriate tasks.