Lesson #2 Reflection

Standard 4: Professional Growth and Responsibilities

Component 4.1: Reflecting on Practice

Performance Indicators: RIPTS 3,9,10, INTASC 9, CEC 6

WHAT?

This lesson went much smoother than last week. We had all of the supplies we needed and the students seemed to enjoy the activities we had planned. This week, we found it difficult to keep the students engaged and on task throughout the lesson. Out of the four students we were assigned to have, one has been absent from both lessons. This week, one of the students wasn’t feeling well and was not feeling up to participating. Next week, I hope to think of different ways to keep the students engaged and interested in the material, even when it’s not the most exciting content. One idea could be to incorporate more student-led activities, such as the timeline activity in this lesson. The students enjoyed being historians by using the book to build a timeline of important events in Maine’s history. They strategized on the most effective ways to organize the timeline and look for dates in the book. They also worked together to find important information and accurately build the timeline.

     Although both participating students were engaged throughout the lesson, bathroom breaks resulted in missed information. Next lesson, we may need to save bathroom breaks until the end, unless it is an emergency. When completing the Blooket, only one of the participating students met expectations, by getting 81% of questions correct. The other student got 52% of the questions correct. The average between the two students was 68%. The Blooket consisted of 20 questions, 14 relating to that day’s lesson, and 6 relating to the previous lesson. While watching the students answer the questions, it seemed like they were going through the questions as fast as they could, instead of thoughtfully reading the questions and choosing the correct answer. The students also had access to their folders, which have resources from both lessons taught so far, the vocabulary word wall, and the timeline they worked together to build. Next time, we should emphasize the importance of reading through each question and answering the questions thoughtfully. We should also emphasize the importance of using their resources when completing the Blooket review game.

Student Blooket Scores:

Vocabulary Word Wall:

Finished Timeline:

Other pictures from the lesson:

SO WHAT?

From this experience, I learned the importance of keeping the students engaged and reviewing the expectations throughout the lesson, if needed. Additionally, we should explicitly show the students how to use their resources and explain that the answers to the questions can be found in their folders or on the activities completed during the lesson. This will ensure that they know they will be successful when referring back to the information in their folders. I found that encouraging students to read information out loud or demonstrate how to do something keeps them actively engaged. The timeline activity allowed the students to work together to complete the activity, with teacher guidance only when needed. Incorporating more hands-on and creative activities will keep the students engaged.

NOW WHAT?

From this experience, I gained valuable experience and knowledge regarding keeping students engaged and actively participating. I noticed that this group of students enjoy working together on hands-on and creative activities. This has shown me that every group of students is different and the key to student engagement is figuring out what your students enjoy. This lesson also enforced the importance of setting behavior expectations and sticking to them throughout the lesson. Next time, I plan on having the students repeat back the behavior expectations at the beginning of the lesson to ensure they understand what is expected of them.