Teacher Observation Journal #2

Today I went to the elementary school again. I was so happy to see my new friends again and they all seemed happy to see me too! The morning started with working with one student on sentences from his spelling words. He thought up the sentences and then I wrote them down. After that he copied what I had written. I am unsure what the student actually gets from this activity.
Next, I helped another student with his spelling words. When he was finished he read me part of a story book he was reading. He got sidetracked and told me that he was only reading at a 2.2 level. I was not quite sure what that meant but I inferred that others in his class were at a higher reading level. He then showed me a sticker that was on the back of the book that said "2.6" He said he switched the stickers because he was sick of being made fun of. I felt so very bad for him and I am curious why there are the stickers on the books in the first place. I would hope the library could find a different system that is more anonymous for the students.
This student got bored of what he was reading so I asked him to find what he liked. He brought me his reading book about bats. We had so much fun looking up the different bats and how long their wing spans were. I asked Mrs. Becker for a ruler so we could look at just how long certain bats wings measured to be. I found it interesting that one species has a length of 5 feet while the smalled bat called the hog nosed bat has wings that are only 5 inches long! It was great to see this student actually want to read something and not just sit there and redundantly read because he has to.

After the 'boys club' (as Mrs. Becker calls them) came in we went and got the kindergartners. We reviewed the letters we went over yesterday and started a new letter "c". I got a drawing of a cat out of the deal which I love! I also got a drawing of me and one of the students together. I love children's artwork. I am a little puzzled with the kindergartners and I am going to ask Mrs. Becker how she assesses each individual child's needs. It is clear that there are some that struggle more than others.

I love being with the students and the funny thing is THEY have taught me so much already.