Samantha Shannon
November 24, 2006
Reflection Paper 1
Ellen Hand
Plymouth Elementary School
Before observing Ellen Hand, I had never thought about teaching Spanish at the Elementary level. I thought that in order to teach Spanish, I would have to teach high school or college courses; however I have always been more interested in teaching young children. I was also engaged by the way that Ellen Hand taught her classes. She incorporated many different activities into her lessons, making the majority of her lessons hands on, and very interesting for the students. I was very impressed with what I saw at Plymouth Elementary School, and because of that, my decision to make teaching my career has strengthened.
For as long as I can recall, I have always wanted to be a teacher. Having 8 siblings was a large factor in this decision. As a young child, I can remember pretending to be the teacher to all my siblings and cousins. Because of this, I have gained more patience and understanding. Throughout my life, I have taught preschoolers, and have been a ski instructor. These experiences have also assisted in my ability to teach, giving me enthusiasm, communication skills and most importantly, the passion to be a teacher.
I do, however, feel as though I could use more confidence. I think that if my self-assurance was strengthened, I could become a more successful teacher.
Because there were a variety of levels that Mrs. Ellen Hand taught at Plymouth Elementary School, there were also a variety of ways she began the class. With the younger students, she usually started the class with a “warm-up”, usually with the children sitting on the rug in front of her. She would ask “¿Como estás hoy?” to each student, and they would respond in Spanish to how they were feeling (today). I think the students really enjoyed this. Most of the students would go on about how they were hungry, sick and hyper all at the same time. I thought it was a great way to let the students express themselves in the target language, as well as making them feel very important by including them in the lesson. This is something I plan on employing in my classroom. Even as a supplementary instructor, I ask my students how they are feeling. I think this allows a better connection between students and teachers. Mrs. Ellen Hand would continue the warm-up on the rug with an activity such as Simon dice (Simon says), where the students would practice basic Spanish verbs, such as stand up, touch, sit down, turn around. In this activity, they also learned the body parts in Spanish. This is always a great activity. I can remember playing all these games in English throughout Elementary school, and again in Spanish in High school. It is a very basic game, which gives the students a lot of Spanish vocabulary. The students seemed to really enjoy these types of activities where they could learn Spanish, play a game, and act silly with their friends. It was also great for the teacher, because most of the time, the students got all their energy out during the warm-up, so they were better able to focus on the lesson. These activities work for all age groups, and I do plan on using them in my Spanish classes. For the older students, Mrs. Ellen Hand usually began by asking how everyone was (in Spanish), and asking them to take out their homework or their “carpetas” or folders. She normally got right to the lesson plan for that day. This was something I had not seen before, although it did seem very effective in keeping the students organized. I think it could potentially be something that I would use as a teacher, depending on which level I teach.
During the time that I observed Mrs. Ellen Hand, I noticed that some of the very young students were learning animals, numbers and body parts. The students learned this information in a number of ways. Some classes worked in groups with card games (with numbers); others were taught a song (about body parts). In the 1st grade class that I observed, Mrs. Ellen Hand used a felt board with felt animals to reinforce colors and animals. In this activity, she also introduced “ito/ita” which is used in the Spanish language to address the little form of the subject, for example: oso (bear) and osito (little bear). I really enjoyed watching the students eagerly participate, showing off their knowledge in the target language. I thought it was another great activity, where the students were able to listen and see the props as reinforcement. It was interesting to see as the “light bulb went on” when they began to understand “ito and ita”. Some of the middle age students were learning location, transportation and verbs, such as to go, to eat and to be. Mrs. Ellen Hand used a couple different activities to teach this information. In the fourth grade class, she used props to introduce the vocabulary. She then passed out markers and a worksheet with pictures of animals, locations and modes of transportation to each student. She would say a phrase in Spanish and the students had to use the markers to illustrate what she had said. She would say “El perro va a la escuela en avión.” The students drew lines in the specific color to indicate that the dog goes to the school in a plane. Not only was this an interesting activity, but it could also be used as an assessment to see if the students correctly understood the Spanish vocabulary. Using much of the same vocabulary, the fifth grade class did another interactive activity, using lots of props and gestures. Mrs. Ellen Hand said a number of phrases in Spanish, such as “El perro esta en la cocina. El perro come la ensalada.” Taking turns, each student had to go to the front of the class and reveal what the teacher was saying, using gestures and the props that were given. I thought this was a very effective and interesting activity. The students had to use their listening skills to comprehend the sentence, as well as using the props to show they understood the sentence. The only thing I noticed that there were a number of students that became board, because it was a one on one activity with the teacher and each student. Although some students were focusing on the student at the front of the class, there were others that seemed to daze off, and others who became disruptive. I think it was a great activity, but should possibly be altered to accommodate those that don’t have long enough attention spans. In the seventh grade class that I observed, the students watched a video in Spanish on students en Mexico City. The students were given a worksheet, and had to fill out the answers during the movie. On occasion, Mrs. Ellen Hand would rewind and pause during the hard parts of the video. IN the 8th grade class that I observed, the students played a card game that was similar to “Memory”. There was card that had the Spanish phrase, and another that had the English phrase. The students had to flip over the two matching phrases. The purpose of this activity was to review verbs and verb conjugations. The students seemed excited to do this activity. They were able to pick a partner and work with them at their desk or on the floor. Most of the students were competitive while playing the game. The majority of the students seemed very knowledgeable about the subject. Most of the activities that I saw Mrs. Ellen Hand use in her lessons were very interactive and interesting. She incorporated a lot of group activities into her lessons, which I thought worked very well at all levels. I was very impressed with all the activities that I saw, and how the students responded to them. Because I had never imagined teaching at the elementary level, I was surprised to so many activities and how they were used to teach young students. I learned a lot from observing Mrs. Ellen Hand. I am hoping to remember the majority of these activities so I can possibly use them when I become a teacher.
As far as I could see, there were not very many students that had learning differences in Mrs. Ellen Hand’s Spanish class. In the second grade class that I observed, I remember specifically that there was a young boy with Down syndrome. I noticed that he did not have an aid with him, and that Mrs. Ellen Hand treated him exactly the same as the other students. As far as I could see, she did not change her lesson to accommodate the young boy; however, she could have made the lesson plan according to his needs. During this period, the class did a warm-up activity, where they went along with a song. The song incorporates vocabulary pertaining to the body parts. For the most part, he kept up with the class, and enjoyed it very much. The second part of the lesson contained a card game. Each card had a picture of a body part. Mrs. Ellen Hand said the body part and the students had to hold up the correct card. The young boy struggled with this activity, but with the help of a partner, he played the game along with the class. I think that this situation was handled very well. In a twenty minute class it must be very hard to accommodate all types of learners. There isn’t really enough time to assist the slower learners. I also think that in that case, it is best for him to try his hardest to keep up with the class, receiving the most he can from each lesson. He also received a lot of help from his peers, which was undirected by the teacher. This was great, because he was learning with the other students and not with solely with a teacher or an aid.
Every class that I observed contained some sort of visual aid. There were books, pictures, cards, toys, a felt board, and an easel full of laminated documents that contained numerous stories, lyrics to songs, and written activities. I was very amazed to see the use of all her visual aids. Mrs. Ellen Hand seemed to accommodate all types of learners with her visual aids as well as her stories, songs and hands on activities.
There were a number of different ways that Mrs. Ellen Hand closed the lessons. Once again, this depended on which age group she was teaching. For the younger students, she often ended the lesson with a quick counting game in Spanish. The students stood up in a circle and counted one to five, and the fifth person went to the door until all the students were lined up at the door. She also had a song that was song by the younger students, “¡Adios mis amigos, adios! ¡Adiós mis amigos, adiós! ¡Adiós mis amigos, adiós mis amigos, adiós mis amigos adiós!” As far as I could see the students loved singing this little tune as they left for their primary class. With the older students, it seemed as though Mrs. Ellen Hand made sure they knew their homework assignments and sent them off to their primary class.
There were a few different ways that Mrs. Ellen Hand made sure the students had acquired the objective of the lesson. The majority of the lessons that Mrs. Ellen Hand used were almost like self-assessments, proving the students had gained knowledge of the subject matter. In many of the activities, the students had to display what they had learned using props or by stating phrases in Spanish. There were also certain activities that contained worksheets that could be used as an assessment. I also observed that quizzes were handed out as an evaluation in a few different classes, normally the middle and older aged students. I really thought it was very fascinating how the majority of the activities not only taught information, but also tested the students on what they had learned. If they did not test the students, the teacher normally asked questions about the lesson, forcing the students to reiterate what they had previously learned. This method of teaching is definitely something I plan on employing as a teacher.
The layout of the classroom was rather simple. The teacher’s desk was at the front of the rooms. The desks were in a cluster on the right side of the room, in front of the white board. The computer station was on the left side of the classroom. The rug area was directly in front of the teacher’s desk. The one thing I did not like was the fact that the desks were made for three students, who all faced different angles of the classroom. I think I would rather single desks all facing one way, so that the students were better able to pay attention to the teacher.
Mrs. Ellen Hand had a very challenging schedule that did not allow her time to reorganize after each class. This seemed to be the only problem I encountered while observing Mrs. Ellen Hand. I, however, completely understand her disorganization. I am sure it must be very hard to keep organized when you do a number of activities throughout the day, with only a few minutes between classes, especially with such a wide variety of age groups. Although the room was disorganized, she did have each lesson very well organized, with all the necessary materials for each class.
The attendance was taken at the beginning of each class. When students were not present, they were asked about. In the higher level classes, there was usually a homework check at the beginning of the class. When any interruptions took place, such as P.A. announcements, they were ignored for the most part. I noticed that it was normal for the primary teachers to observe their students in Mrs. Ellen Hand’s class. I saw this happen three times, all in which the teachers arrived in the middle or at the end of the class. Mrs. Ellen Hand would politely take notice of them, but continue on with her lesson. From what I noticed, she ignored as many disruptions as possibly, focusing on her lesson at all times. This is definitely an important part of teaching, especially in her situation, where there really was no time to waste.
Because the Spanish classes are not primary classes, I did not get to see very many transitions. The only transitions I could see where those in between exercises. Because the classes were so short, she really got right to the point. After one activity, she would direct the students to the next.
As far as I could see, there were never any specific rules. Each person had to respect each other and follow all standard rules. Mrs. Ellen Hand instructed them what to do at the beginning of class by telling them to sit on the rug or at their desks. She also directed them in each activity, giving them directions that contained some Spanish vocabulary.
I noticed students misbehaving on several occasions. I also noticed that Mrs. Ellen Hand would ignore the behaviors until they went to the point where they could no longer be ignored. After I noticed this, I talked to her about it. She said that she did this to maintain time spent on the lessons rather than disciplining. The majority of the time, the students that were misbehaving were the younger students in the twenty or thirty minute classes. I agreed that it would be a waste of time to correct every child’s misbehavior, losing most of the class. When she did step in, she never yelled. She politely told them how to act, or redirected them. On several occasions, she relocated the students. On another occasion, she had a student take a time out. One thing I remember, which I really liked, was when she told her young students, “I had a game for us to play today, but unfortunately we could not play this because of certain behaviors. Maybe next time behavior will be better!” I really like the approach she took in disciplining her students. She never let the students ruin her lesson. Also, when she found it necessary to discipline, she treated the students with respect by addressing them in a normal voice and telling them what they needed to do at that moment. I believe that each class was run extraordinarily well.
I had two complete lesson plans that I shared with three classes. The first lesson was a story that I created for another class. The story was about an imaginary trip to South America. I taught this lesson to a 6th grade of approximately 12 students. I put the story on power point, so all the students were able to see what I was saying. The main point of the lesson was to introduce the Spanish expressions. I told the story in a “PACE story-telling” fashion that I had previously learned in Foreign Language Methodologies. I included three extension activities for the students to do. One of the activities included holding up the correct picture, and acting out the corresponding expression when the right slide was displayed on the projector during the story. The students also had a fill in the blank worksheet, where they were could reiterate the expressions learned during the story. The last part of the activity was a game of charades, where two students would participate in acting out a certain expression while their teammates guessed the correct answer. All the students seemed to enjoy this activity. Some were a little nervous and held back at first, but after a while, gave in and participated with the rest of the class. I was really amazed with how well the lesson went. I enjoyed teaching them something different, and I thought they enjoyed learning as well. I think the best part of the entire lesson was realizing that on their way out, the students were still chanting “¡Que chulo!” (How cool!) with their thumbs up, and “¡Que lastima!” (How sad!) with a pout on their faces. That showed me that they not only took interest in the lesson, but had also learned exactly what I intended on teaching. The second activity I participated in was reading a story to two third grade classes. I took the story, “Goldilocks and The Three Bears” and I recreated an English story with a lot of Spanish vocabulary. For the most part, they knew the Spanish words. I did, however have to review the vocabulary, as well as teach a couple words before reading the story. As I read the story, I used props to reinforce the learning. I also allowed the students to chime in if they were able. Some children became antsy, but I think the majority of the students were very interested, and participated as I read. The second group of third graders was a little less attentive, which I did not worry about. There were still at least 10 students that were very involved and eager to shout out the new and reviewed Spanish vocabulary. I thought the second activity was pretty interesting. I worked with Mrs. Ellen Hand to produce this activity. I originally asked if I could read “Goldilocks and the Three Bears” in the Spanish version. She preferred that I tell the story in English with Spanish vocabulary, which I ended up doing. She said that the students were more used to hearing stories told in that fashion. Although I think it worked well, I think it would have worked just the same, if not better if the whole story were in Spanish. I think the students would have been able to grasp the idea of the story and been able to pick out some extra vocabulary if I had read the story completely in Spanish. Other than these lessons, I helped supervise during the small group activities.