Blog # 2
Observation and Problem Identification
School: Flintville Elementary
Primary Language: English and Spanish (2 students)
Age of Students: 5-6 years old
Grade Level: Kindergarten
Time of Observation : 50 minutes
Date: 9-17-09
Mrs. Cagle was using picture cards for a phonemic awareness activity. She was using the picture cards to categorize beginning sounds. She would place three cards on the pocket chart. Two of the pictures begin with the same sound. For example, one set of pictures contained a bear, boy, and a skunk. As a group, the children identified the two pictures that begin with the same sound. After practicing the routine several times, the teacher let the students have individual practice.
There are two ESL students in this class. The female student choose between a hat, house, and a monkey. She provided the correct answer. The male ESL student choose between a mouse, a kite, and a kangaroo. He choose a mouse and a kangaroo. The teacher asked him if he was sure he wanted the mouse and kangaroo. The student asked, “What's a kangaroo?” The teacher showed him the picture. She handed him the kite and told him that kangaroo and kite both started with the /K/ sound.
After finishing activity on beginning sounds, she had the class participate in another listening activity. Mrs. Cagle read the story The Very Busy Spider by Eric Carle. In the story, different farm animals tried to get a spider to play instead of building his web. Mrs. Cagle did not show the pictures until after she read the page. Instead, she would read the first part of the page and have the children say the animal name after she said the sound. For example, she would say “Baa, Baa said the __________”
and the students would complete the sentence by naming the animal. The male ESL student asked another student to identify what animal said quack, whoo, and neigh. Without the visual clues, the student could not identify the animal.
The teacher was participating in activities to improve listening,. However, the male ESL student lacked the necessary vocabulary to benefit from the lesson. This student has a limited English vocabulary. Although he lives in a rural area, he may not have visited a farm and did not know the animal sounds. Also, it is difficult to match beginning sounds when a student does not know the English word. Even if the student knew the pictures in his native language, the word could begin with a different phoneme. With a limited English vocabulary, the male student struggled to answer the teacher's questions.
For lesson plans to help improve vocabulary for ESL students, please visit the following websites:
http://www.esl-galaxy.com/vocabularysheets.html, and http://a4esl.org/.
Saturday, September 19, 2009
Saturday, September 12, 2009
Observing in the field
Observing in the Field Jena Tabor
I observed Mrs. Cagles's kindergarten on Tuesday, September 8th from 11:30 am to 12:30 pm. There are two ESL students in the classroom. The female student is in the high reading group and speaks fluent English. The male student struggles because of his limited English proficiency.
At the beginning of the lesson, Mrs. Cagle read the book What Rhymes With Snake by Rick Brown. The students were sitting on a large rug listening to the story. The story illustrates different sets of rhyming words such as a snake eating a cake, etc. After reading the book, the teacher gave each student a picture card. On the large pocket chart, Mrs. Cagle placed the matching rhyming picture card. Each student would and identify the picture on his/her card. Next, the student would find the card that rhymes with the one he/she was holding. The teacher explained pictures that the children did not understand, such as shell, snail, and slug. As a class, the students would say the rhyming pairs. For example, the students would say that pig rhymes with wig, or clock rhymes with block.
After all the students completed the activity, they returned to their seats. The teacher passed out a cut and paste worksheet with rhyming words. The students colored and matched the words that rhyme. The teacher monitored the class and helped several students match the correct words together.
Teaching: I feel the purpose of this lesson was to help the students identify rhyming words. The lesson was appropriate for this age group. The story had colorful illustrations that made the students laugh.
By using the picture cards and having each student match a rhyming word, she was able to informally test the students' knowledge of rhyming words. The female ESL student was excited when it was her turn. She matched her rhyming picture on the first try. The male ESL did not understand the picture on the card. It was a picture of a slug. The teacher explained the words and narrowed the choices to a rug and a clock. He was then able to match the picture cards.
Community: There was evidence of “community”when the male ESL student choose the correct picture card. The other students cheered for him. When he returned to his spot on the rug, the little girl next to him leaned over and said, “Good job.”
There is no requirement for being in this classroom except the student must be five by September 30, 2009. The students must live in the Flintville/ Elora area, have proof of age, and an up to date shot record .
Ethnographic Perspective: During this lesson the teacher helped the students comprehend rhyming words. The teacher read a story about rhyming words. The students matched words that rhyme. Next, the students completed a worksheet matching rhyming words. Details of the lesson are given at the top of this entry.
If an observer entered the room, they would see a very organized classroom. The children are well trained to follow daily procedures, and the room itself is neat and orderly. The students are actively involved in learning, and participate in many hand's on activities. Behavior problems are kept to a minimum because the teacher is consistent in following the discipline plan.
I think a second language learner would be welcomed by the teacher and the other students. The students all play and work together, and the ESL students seem to have many friends. As a matter of fact, the students all try to help the male ESL learner with his work, and they often remind him when he forgets to turn in his paper or clean up his art supplies.
I observed Mrs. Cagles's kindergarten on Tuesday, September 8th from 11:30 am to 12:30 pm. There are two ESL students in the classroom. The female student is in the high reading group and speaks fluent English. The male student struggles because of his limited English proficiency.
At the beginning of the lesson, Mrs. Cagle read the book What Rhymes With Snake by Rick Brown. The students were sitting on a large rug listening to the story. The story illustrates different sets of rhyming words such as a snake eating a cake, etc. After reading the book, the teacher gave each student a picture card. On the large pocket chart, Mrs. Cagle placed the matching rhyming picture card. Each student would and identify the picture on his/her card. Next, the student would find the card that rhymes with the one he/she was holding. The teacher explained pictures that the children did not understand, such as shell, snail, and slug. As a class, the students would say the rhyming pairs. For example, the students would say that pig rhymes with wig, or clock rhymes with block.
After all the students completed the activity, they returned to their seats. The teacher passed out a cut and paste worksheet with rhyming words. The students colored and matched the words that rhyme. The teacher monitored the class and helped several students match the correct words together.
Teaching: I feel the purpose of this lesson was to help the students identify rhyming words. The lesson was appropriate for this age group. The story had colorful illustrations that made the students laugh.
By using the picture cards and having each student match a rhyming word, she was able to informally test the students' knowledge of rhyming words. The female ESL student was excited when it was her turn. She matched her rhyming picture on the first try. The male ESL did not understand the picture on the card. It was a picture of a slug. The teacher explained the words and narrowed the choices to a rug and a clock. He was then able to match the picture cards.
Community: There was evidence of “community”when the male ESL student choose the correct picture card. The other students cheered for him. When he returned to his spot on the rug, the little girl next to him leaned over and said, “Good job.”
There is no requirement for being in this classroom except the student must be five by September 30, 2009. The students must live in the Flintville/ Elora area, have proof of age, and an up to date shot record .
Ethnographic Perspective: During this lesson the teacher helped the students comprehend rhyming words. The teacher read a story about rhyming words. The students matched words that rhyme. Next, the students completed a worksheet matching rhyming words. Details of the lesson are given at the top of this entry.
If an observer entered the room, they would see a very organized classroom. The children are well trained to follow daily procedures, and the room itself is neat and orderly. The students are actively involved in learning, and participate in many hand's on activities. Behavior problems are kept to a minimum because the teacher is consistent in following the discipline plan.
I think a second language learner would be welcomed by the teacher and the other students. The students all play and work together, and the ESL students seem to have many friends. As a matter of fact, the students all try to help the male ESL learner with his work, and they often remind him when he forgets to turn in his paper or clean up his art supplies.
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