About the classroom

How do students act upon entering the classroom? How does the teacher act?

In the high school students enter and begin work right away.  The teacher seems to be doing his own thing for the first couple minutes and then goes on to remind the of what needs to be worked on for the day.

In the middle school students begin by sitting in their assigned seats. When the bell rings class begins promptly.  This means that the teacher will start giving the lesson at the front of the classroom.

How does the teacher get their attention to begin class? Is there a procedure for listening?

My cooperating teacher has a strong voice that he is able to lift over that of the students. It seems like the minute he lifts his voice the students bring down theirs. So typically all he needs to do is raise his voice in order to get things started.  This method seems to work in either class. In the middle school his also stands in the front, which implies he is ready to start.

What is current project?  What are the objectives? What are the materials used?

The current project in the high school is the sushi platters. The objective of this project is to hand build 3 sushi platters out of clay. 

In the 5^th grade they are making a still life. The objective of this project is that a student will create their own still life that involves a platter and 4 fruits. They will display the knowledge of highlights and shadows. They will also understand how to depth through the placement of their cut out images.  The students will use pastels and paper to create this project.

Comment on teacher’s instruction?

I only ever see workdays for the ceramics course, which basically just involves a short reminder of what needs to be done at the beginning of class. He also reminds them at the end when it is time to clean up.

In the 5^th and 6^th grade the demonstrations typically take place in the front of the classroom. They are generally a step-by-step approach that allows them to really see how they do certain skills. Other projects are a little more independent but today’s 5ht grade lesson is step by step. Through this he is able to make sure each student is on the right track.

In the past he has also introduced projects with a power point. During the power point he allows the students to sketch out their ideas. I am unsure whether I like this method or not. It keeps the students busy but it does make me wonder how much they are actually getting out of the power point.

How is classroom management?

The teacher manages the classroom by making the students aware of his expectations. When a student isn’t working in the high school he makes them work on something. He does raise his voice to makes points often but it does seem to make his students listen. In the middle school the students don’t really talk back to him at all if he tells them to stop the pretty much do it right away.  

Are the rules posted what are they?

I could not find the rules in the ceramics room besides reminders on the kiln shelves as to where certain items should go. For example if it’s a high fire or low fire item. This room is also not his typical room except for the ceramics classes.

His room does have rules posted.   They are to be safe. Which means no sink without permission and use materials and tools correctly.  Be responsible. Which was described as all regular school rules apply. Stay in seat and not talking if teacher is.  The last rule was to be respectful. This rule implied that you raise your hand, be patient, and arguing is not allowed.

How does the teacher address safety issues?

He addresses safety issues with each lesson. He gives special directions when different issues arise. For instance he limits who is allowed at the sink. He also engraves what the students need to know about each material so that it is used properly and many times that comes with safety too.

How dose the teacher handle breaks, radio or ipods, cell phones, cleanup, ect.

In the high school students are allowed to listen to ipods and the radio is always playing. They are also allowed to have their cell phones as I see them texting away in class. If they get their work done they are allowed those freedoms. It’s when they take advantage of them that they will be taken away.

In the middle school they are only allowed to listen to music during work times if my cooperating teacher feels like they are working hard. Cell phones and ipods are not permitted though.

In terms of cleanup there is a reminder during the last ten minutes of class where he tells the students what they need to do to clean up. In the highs school they just need to be told to start cleaning up as they know how to clean up the clay. In the middle school depending on the lesson he adjusts how he tells them to clean up. For instance today he simply told them to clean up and have one person put the pastels away nicely.

Does the teacher use a lesson plan, curriculum map, or a calendar to plan units?

In term of know what he is teaching he generally goes by the grade book from the year before and adjusts it as needed.  In terms of lesson plans he doesn’t actually have any on hand but he has some rubrics and power points that he uses with the lessons he planned in years past. With his years of experience he implied that he basically knows now what needs to be done so having the lesson plan is not as important.

Questions to the students:

What is their favorite project so far?

In the high school the students in the group I asked seemed to enjoy the current project the most. They liked the idea that they could use the sushi platters when they were done with them.

In the 5^th grade the students really enjoyed being able to work with clay. The students liked it since it wasn’t something that they didn’t always get to do.

What do you like about this project?

Again the students were working on sushi platters in the high school. The students were truly enjoying the project. They liked it because it was quick. This meant that they were able to spend a lot more time creating designs for their platters. They also liked that they were able to use different materials. They hadn’t been able to use the stamps until today.

In the 5^th grade the students enjoyed learning how to draw in 3d. They thought it was cool that they were able to make things not look flat anymore.

What do you like to draw?

In the high school I found a couple students that were interested in drawing people. They liked the challenges of drawing the face. I also found a few people that enjoyed doing things that were more nature based. This made a lot of sense when I noticed the flowers that I recalled seeing on their pieces a lot throughout the semester.

In the middle school I ran into all kinds of answers. The guys seemed to enjoy drawing action scenes where the girls where more interested in drawing a nature based project.