It’s the second week in Mrs. Wheeler’s room, and I already feel at home. Most of the kids know my name, and they are always excited to see me when I come in. The students are all unique, but that’s what makes them so fun to be around. Many of these students struggle to remain immersed in their classrooms for a long time, but also struggle to retain the information. Because there are so many students, many of Mrs. Wheeler’s children are placed in the same class if they are in the same grade, so a teacher aide can be with them at all necessary times, but that means when I am working with the fifth graders, there are four students in one class, and that can get difficult. In the fifth grade classroom, the teacher will be teaching a class and the students will be listening, but one of Mrs. Wheeler’s students will be sitting on the floor refusing to work, one will be shoving pencils up his or her nose, and another will sprint out in the hallway with no permission. How does a teacher handle that? That’s a question I’ve been asking for a while because in a behavior unit situations like this are always occurring. This situation is a challenge because the teacher expects the behavior teacher to handle all of this at one time. Slowly, from experiencing these situations and handling them myself it’s starting to become second nature! One day, when I become a behavior teacher, I wonder how I will set up my system of rewards and punishments, and whether or not I will give the students a chance for breaks when they need them, or a set of defined breaks when they deserve it. But, I’m learning so much about how to have patience with these students, and I can’t wait until the day that I have a class of these wonderful children myself!
On another note, there is a college student who comes into observe with Mrs. Wheeler, and I feel bad for her because this is her first real observation experience in an elementary school, and she is a junior in college! I am so fortunate because I already have eighty or more observation hours and I am in High School, so I know I have a wonderful future ahead of me. My only question is how do you student-teach in a behavior classroom? A professor won’t always be there to grade the college student when a child has a rough moment, so how does the professor assess the college student? This will be a question to ask Mrs. Wheeler!
On another note, there is a college student who comes into observe with Mrs. Wheeler, and I feel bad for her because this is her first real observation experience in an elementary school, and she is a junior in college! I am so fortunate because I already have eighty or more observation hours and I am in High School, so I know I have a wonderful future ahead of me. My only question is how do you student-teach in a behavior classroom? A professor won’t always be there to grade the college student when a child has a rough moment, so how does the professor assess the college student? This will be a question to ask Mrs. Wheeler!