Preparing for the PPA
It's hard to believe that in ten days I will be on my way to see you! This week I'd like you to look over the PPA document and give me an idea of the focus of your formal (all the parts of the PPA) lesson. This is a chance to ask questions of me and each other as you work on your instructional plan. Also, read the Positive Impact on Student Learning (PISL) assignment so we can discuss this activity. The PISL doesn't have to be done while I am there but I will want to talk about it so you are clear about the expectations.
Remember you are continuing with a brief weekly overview in addition to addressing the PPA.
posted by Chris @ 9:27 PM
8 comments
8 Comments:
For my seventh period class, I am not entirely sure where we will be until this week is done. The students just had a test today. They are starting work on a fall project right now that will be due at the end of October. They are graphing scary faces (or fall scenes). Depending how the students do this week and the beginning of next, I will be able to tell more where they may be when you come.
My eighth graders are working on solving two step equations. They had a rough start to it so things got pushed back a day. By the time two weeks rolls around we should be getting close to the end of the unit. I assume they will probably have a hard time with inequalities, which is near the end of the unit and most likely what we will be working on when you visit.
1-5 of PPA:
The books that are chosen for both classes fit the DoDDS standards and we follow along with them. Lessons do not use specific examples from the book, but use the same methods explained. This way when students do their homework at home they will have more examples of what to do but it is still the same method of completing the task. Since a lot of students are busy, or may forget their books, the math books are also available online and homework/grades are posted online daily. A lot of students' parents are about to be deployed or coming back from down range. Students are still expected to turn in homework but we make sure it isn't overbearing and students are always welcome to re-do homework if they didn't understand/finish it. My mentor teacher and I have been in contact with several parents already. Some of the e-mails sent home are about behavioral issues with students but we have also written parents with good remarks. The assessments in our class that measure student learning are the homework students are to do, in class participation, and simply talking to students about their class work as they complete it.
6-10 of PPA:
The observation part of the PPA (6 - 10) fits in with the first 5 standards, except actually putting them in place. I know what I need to do in order to satisfy the first standards. If I follow what I set out to do then the observation standards should easily fall in to place. The one PPA observation standard that was not already mentioned in the sources of evidence is classroom management and discipline. Although on occasion the students tend to get a little rowdy, I feel like I am getting more of a hang on things when it comes to classroom management. I try to be flexible and reasonable with my students, yet try not to let them push me around. Talking with other interns it seems that a lot of my students do a lot better with managing themselves in my classrooms than they do in others. This makes me feel like maybe I'm doing something right.
As of right now, I do not have any questions regarding the actual instructional plan. I do, however, have a question about the PISL that I have been wondering about but have tried not to worry too much about. My question is this: When gathering student information for our portfolio, do we base everything off one class period (same students for all lesson plans) or can/should we gather information from several periods?
As for my week in review, I still love my students! I enjoy coming to school every day to teach. Today I was helping to sub in another teacher's classroom. When I returned to my class later my teacher told me he almost had a revolt from the students while I was gone. They refused to start without me and my mentor teacher bribed them with brownies I had made them for their test. It made me feel special and is my current high for the week. This week I unfortunately also have a low. A few students got in an argument with the teacher and me about showing their work on homework. Although we state everyday that they must show work, three students decided that the homework due did not need this. One student got really huffy and had to be sent out into the hall for the rest of the period for being disruptive. This is the first big problem we had where someone had to be sent out.
My Week
Overall, it has been a fantastic week in third grade! My lowlight was probably yesterday, when one of my students with a behavior IEP went completely ballistic in the afternoon. I felt pretty frustrated and helpless as he threw clipboards on the ground, kicked another students’ chair, and started running around the room. Naturally, while my cooperating teacher had been out of the classroom for the entire morning and half the afternoon, he had been extremely well behaved. Eventually, she stepped in to help me. I felt pretty frustrated that I couldn’t handle it well enough on my own. However, I learned a lot from this experience after talking it over with my cooperating teacher. I have to remember that he HAS already made a lot of progress this year and I have been a part of that.
My favorite part of this week was definitely our “Human Kindness” activity last Friday. We had some single soldiers come in to make bus and pencil shaped cakes with our students. The base commander even came in to join a group! Watching these soldiers help the students and seeing my kids so excited just melted my heart. The soldiers were each allowed to bring one cake back to their unit to share with friends, and the students kept one of the cakes in class to share. This activity taught students the value of being kind to others, and got them involved with the Bamberg community. I can’t wait to be in charge of October’s human kindness activity! ☺
For my PPA lesson, I will focus on one of my four reading groups. This is the reading group that is on grade level (my second highest), and they are usually reading books between AR levels 2.8-3.2. However, if there is a book that fits in with our theme but on a slightly higher level, I will assign it but will make sure to give extra guidance and support that week to ensure they comprehend the book. Because my theme for mid-October is Hispanic heritage month, I will likely have this group read the folk tale “Bourregita and the Coyote” while you are visiting.
PPA standards 1-5
My mentor teacher has had me identify which DODDs standards I’m addressing as I plan for reading groups and developmental learning centers. Also, I have a scope and sequence for which concepts in language arts I need to be covering in reading groups as I plan out the months. The materials and lessons, however, are up to me. I usually try to tie reading groups into a social studies or science theme the class is working on. I feel that I am very familiar with my students and the community they come from. I am very familiar with my students and their community because as I have mentioned in previous posts, the students share a lot of information with me about their personal lives and family situations. Living on post has given me additional insight into what my students’ lives are like. Exploring nearby Germany on the weekends has also introduced me to the culture that my students who live off-post are growing up in. My cooperating teacher works hard to involve the parents and community members in our classroom. Parents are always welcomed and encouraged to visit the class. If a parent stops in, I am encouraged to invite them to stay to work with a reading group or help with an activity. I have to admit, I was a little bit uncomfortable with this at first, but it really is extremely helpful and it is amazing how much some extra hands can help out! This also gives me a chance to interact with the parents and establish a positive working relationship with them. Students are assessed in many different ways for reading groups. With each book, students will do writing, grammar, vocabulary, an AR test (if available), and often an art activity at the end of the week if they have been responsible. These are all adapted for the different reading/writing levels so that for example, the difficulty of a writing assignment will not affect a students’ ability to express their understanding of a particular book.
PPA 6-10
I feel that PPA standards 6-10 simply address taking your knowledge from standards 1-5 and putting them into action. Because I have taken on a heavy role in my classroom from day 1, I feel confident using all of this knowledge to plan my instruction. My classroom management skills are improves every day. I’m finding that it is mostly trial and error, because especially with young children, there is no “one size fits all” solution. We have a few very extreme behavior cases in my class, and I am even beginning to feel confident handling these students with my cooperating teacher out of the room. She has given me a lot of good strategies and advice. Most of my students have learned how to self-manage and complete work even if I am not there at that very moment to help them. This is such an important skill when the classroom is structured in the way ours is; because problem solving and working as team will help students get their work done more efficiently
Preparation for 1-5: While you are here next week, my freshmen English classes and I will be reading and studying the short story “The Scarlet Ibis.” Through this piece of literature and the lessons addressing it, I will be incorporating my scientific and mathematical reasoning as we learn about making inferences as well as comparing and contrasting. I know what I want to achieve for the lessons and have a rough outline of the lessons, so typing up the formal, detailed lesson plans and rationales won’t be too difficult. The learning targets for the lessons fit in very well with DoDEA English 9 standards, as well as the Continuous School Improvement goals for Heidelberg High School. We will be working on critically reading strategies and and I am incorporating different literacy strands in the lesson, to ensure that the instruction is research-based and will produce assessments that are aligned with the targets and objectives.
Questions on 1-5: For each PISL, scientific/ mathematical reasoning lesson, and the observed lesson, do we need to create new rationales, family interaction plans, and “Student Classroom Characteristics” forms. I know for the PISL assignment, I will be collecting assessments from my Period 4 class, so should I make a “Student Classroom Characteristics” form for my 2nd and 5th period classes as well, in case you observe during one of those periods? And does each lesson need its own rationale and family interactions plan? For the 3consecutive lessons/ unit for the PISL, can we use a unit rationale, rather than individual lessons?
Preparation for 6-10: Once having completed all the necessary preparation steps for 1-5, implementing them for 6-10 shouldn’t be too difficult. Since I will be using a variety of activities and research-based instruction methods, everything will be aligned and students will be engaged in a learning community. We will start out with whole group instruction and activity, then move to small group/ partner work. The students will be given both formative and summative forms of assessment during these lessons. The standard that I feel I am practicing for the most would be #9 about classroom management and discipline. While I have never had any major disciplinary problems in any of my classes, my students can be very talkative and distracted at times, so keeping them on task and engaged has been an area of growth for me so far this semester.
Questions 6-10: In regards to Standard 10 about student learning assessments, will you be observing just to see that we are using appropriate and aligned assessment methods, or will you also be collecting samples of student assessments for this lesson, as are required for the PISL?
Week in Review: This week has been very busy, but my favorite week thus far. While unfortunately my cooperating teacher has been ill, I’ve had the opportunity to completely take over the freshmen classes and I’ve loved it!! The high of the week definitely occurred when we were reading the short story “Harrison Bergeron” in class, in response to the novel Animal Farm. We were reading and discussing aloud, and when the class came to and end, students complained that we had to stop reading, since they had become so engrossed in the plot and the class’s commentary! I think the low this week would be some of my experiences with substitute teachers while my teacher was out. In some cases they referred to me as “this lady, who I guess is in charge…” or viewed me more as an aide, rather than a teacher with lesson plans and responsible for teaching the students.
Response: I loved Laura’s story about her students refusing to start class without her. I think we all know how special it feels when you know your students love working with and respect you! While one of the substitutes was in class, and referring to me as this lady, even after I had told him my name (he didn’t understand why I wanted to be called Ms. Fischer and not Amanda), my role in the classroom, and my lesson plans for the day, one of my sassier freshman girls raised her hand to say “Um, sir, ‘that lady’ has a name; it’s Ms. Fischer!” It definitely made my morning! :)
Questions Overall: How long will you be formally observing us? For the length of just one lesson? What happens if not all 10 standards are observed in a single lesson? And when is the PISL assignment due? Thanks Chris, see you soon!
I'll observe the length of your formally planned lesson and look for additional standards as I observe informally. I don't expect to see all standards while I am therewhich is why I am going to ask Allie to observe a formal lesson too.
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