The biggest dilemma this year is going to be classroom management. The students like to talk a lot and do not stop even when I am talking. Using the attention grabbers does not work because they just continue to talk. I am concerned that this is going to take away from my learning how to teach because I am going to be so focused on getting the class's attention. I probably will not be able to implement many of the comprehension strategies that require students to work in pairs or groups because it will be too big a distraction for them. In Strategies That Work it states that teachers work with a small group while the rest of the class works on the same activity. But with my students they need the teacher to be constantly watching them and keeping everyone on track.
I am also nervous that since I have to constantly keep the students on track and tell them to be quiet I am going to build antagonistic relationship with some of the students. So I am going to have to work to stay positive and work one-on-one with students where I can work on making positive productive relationships with my students.
Even if my students were well behaved I am still new to teaching a class and balancing everything is a challenge. I have a hard time remembering to explain everything in detail because I am so preoccupied with making sure I get everything done. In Strategies That Work one of the teachers mentioned that when something went wrong with the students work is was because she did explain the instructions in enough detail. This is something that I am going to learn with practice and time.
In my class there is something called Making Meaning, where the teacher reads to the students a specific story and there a predetermined questions during the reading. The students have practiced turn and talk where they turn to a partner and discuss their answers, the class then comes together and a few students volunteer their partner's answers to share with the class. I like doing this with the class because the students are right in front of you so they behave more and most students actually participate. Having these lessons go well gives me more confidence to work with my students.
Unlike last year I am much more confident talking in front of the class. Talking to the class comes much more naturally, so that is one less thing I need to think about while teaching. This allows me to have more of my attention on showing and telling what I want the students to do and learn. I am fairly confident writing lesson plans because of the practice from last year. I am familiar with writing out each part and the reasoning behind each section.
I am connecting with your concern about classroom management. I see my mentor teacher dealing with classroom management so smoothly! I have tried a few times this year already and I just seem to become frustrated easily as my students talk over me or ignore my requests to focus back to me. While there are several comprehension strategies available for classroom instruction as a whole (visualization during a read aloud, modeling a read-aloud where you have inserted sticky notes on pages where you took notes in your head, etc.), there are also ways to work with students on an individual basis as you mentioned. If you are having trouble reigning your class in to a focused activity, perhaps that should be your go-to assessment for monitoring their understanding.
ReplyDeleteSometimes when I write out a lesson plan, I am so impressed with my attention to detail and very specific instructions for myself. When I go to teacher that lesson, it seems as though I’m skipping several things and excluding most of my preparation work. You say that you are going to try and explain instructions more clearly as a way to regain classroom understanding. What are some other ways to redirect a lesson plan gone wrong? Strategies That Work lists many tools for a teacher and one that stands out to me is activating background knowledge (pg. 47). This is something that I have seen in my classroom now that is a great go-to if my students seem confused. Relating back to what they already know reinforces the previous learning and puts the new topic or concept into perspective. It is important to model how we as teachers connect to background knowledge to our students, something that is mentioned in Strategies that Work and that I feel would show students the effectiveness of the strategy.
I love when lessons go well too, don’t get me wrong, but I try not to forget to take from the bad as well. As I’m sure you know, there is a lot to be learned from mistakes. In fact, I feel there is more to learn from mistakes and lessons that aren’t the best. Maybe something you can try is learning to be confident even when students are not listening or participating. I have made this goal for myself and am hoping it produces good results. Refer to the Accountable Talk document which provides examples of what participation looks like. Where do your students fit in? What of this are you seeing and if you aren’t seeing it, what can you implement to start seeing it? Work with what your students already do and build a foundation for classroom participation that both you and your students practice
I see how you have compared this year to last year. You have noticed the growth that you have undergone and what the result has been: more confidence talking in front of the class. What else have you noticed about your teaching? I have been trying to reflect on my first couple weeks of school and see what I should work on and what seems to work with my students. I feel once I become more confident, as you mentioned you were, teaching will come more smoothly. So I ask myself, how do I get to that point?
Sarah, you are not alone my friend. I have been feeling more overwhelmed in regards to classroom management than I anticipated. For me personally, I currently find it difficult to focus on things such the numerous approaches discussed in Strategies That Work. Not to discredit the text by any means, I just feel (and hope) that behaviors will settle down once day-to-day learning and activities become more routine to students. One of my early goals that I have set for myself is to build a literate community in my classroom similar to that discussed in the text (page 35-37.) Although I find some of the things that it recommends, such as discussions in pairs, to be out of reach at this time, I really enjoyed the text’s stress on fostering passion and curiosity. Our students enter the classroom with curiosity and interests as different as they are. I have made it a point to work on getting to know each student and having small side conversations to learn more about them other than their MEAP scores from the previous year or how well they scored on the diagnostic tests given on the second day of school. Just as you said you wanted to stay away from antagonist relationships, I think it would also be a great idea to work on those individual relationships.
ReplyDeleteIn response to Emily’s reflection of teaching this first week versus placement last year and I have also noticed many differences regarding my teaching. First and probably most obvious, spending an entire day in a classroom versus two or three hours is completely different. By spending more time in the classroom this year, I too feel more comfortable and confident. One thing that I did enjoy in my classroom last year that I have not experienced in my classroom this year, however, is guided reading. Being able to work with small groups on reading, writing, and comprehension was extremely productive for me last year and I would love to implement this same idea in my fourth grade classroom. Here comes the issue of management once again. I still feel that my students need time to mesh and build into a community of learners. I realize that this is not something that happens day one and takes time and I hope management does not frustrate you for too much longer!
Emily, I am curious to hear about these strategies that your MT uses that work so well. Clearly Sarah and I are in a similar boat and I would love to hear a little more about his/her strategies that could potentially work in our classrooms as well!