The three attached files are scanned copies of comments made by my supervisor during an observation of a dental health lesson. There are 3 pages of comments and suggestions. I taught this lesson on 2/26/09. The lesson involved a read-aloud, a science experiment, and a discussion all involving dental health and the danger of cavities. I used 2 apples to represent teeth with the skin representing enamel. I poked holes in one apple representing cavities which are holes in enamel. They were able to observe what happened with both apples and why the one with the holes rotted.

The comments from my supervisor show that my lesson was engaging to my learners. They were engaged in the story as they were able to participate and use prior knowledge. They had read the story before, so they could remember the funny parts and repeating parts. I also engaged the students as I "related content of lesson to previous learning." I connected the information I was teaching to lessons learned earlier in the week about healthy food choices and healthy teeth maintenance.  The hook of my lesson was a letter from Toby the Tooth and captured students' attention. It is important to get learners' attention at the beginning of the lesson so they will be motivated to listen and learn. The apple analogy made the idea of cavities more concrete and easier to relate to. "Students were interested and anxious to share predictions." This showed that the students were genuinely interested in the lesson and wanted to participate.

This attachment is a photograph of the center sign in our classroom. At the beginning of the year, Mifflin County School District implemented a language arts initiative. One aspect of this initiative was using centers in our classroom. We were supposed to have at least thirty minutes of daily center time in addition to our ninety minute language arts block. We began our centers with three groups. We have thirteen students, so three groups was an appropriate division. The three centers we developed were buddy reading, vocabulary study, and word work. I grouped students, and we rotated groups daily.

Centers are something I will plan on using in my classroom for years to come. I think they are so important to give students independent and group work. It also breaks up the monotony of other language arts lessons.  In small groups, every student is able to have a voice and is engaged.  When I grouped students for centers, I did so heterogeneously.  I paired some of the more advanced learners with some of the struggling readers.  The advanced learners were able to help the others with difficult vocabulary.  It gave them a sense of responsibility.  The struggling readers really seemed to respond well to their peers. When implementing centers, I learned that setting expectations and rules beforehand is essential.  Management of centers can be challenging without known rules and expectations.

This attachment is a photograph of my students during the Thanksgiving play my students performed the Wednesday before Thanksgiving. Every year, my mentor's class performs this play for the rest of the school. We began working on it about a week ahead of time. We chose and assigned parts and began to read the play. Every single student had a line to recite. Eventually, students memorized their lines and learned who they came before and after. After students had a good start on their lines, we constructed costumes and scenery for the play.

The unique aspect of this play is that every student gets one or two lines to recite. The parts are fairly equal in length, so each student is of equal importance. Students practiced their fluency and speaking skills with the verbal aspect of the play. Visual and artistic learners then flourished as we designed and created costumes and scenery. Kinesthetic learners added movements to their lines if they chose to do so. Every member of the class was engaged in this production. Not only did they learn a lot from the play as they told the story of the first Thanksgiving, but they also gained a sense of community. This became their play, and they were responsible for it. They wanted to do a good job to impress the other students in the school.

Attached are 4 lesson plans that I have written and taught during my preservice teaching experience. For this domain, I am focusing on the assessment sections of the lessons. In the butterfly lesson, I chose to organize a group summative assessment where we listed characteristics of butterflies as a class. I called on multiple students, so I could see evidence of learning. In the leprechaun map lesson, I applied the learned skills to real-life. As a class, we described objects' positions in the room in respect to each other using cardinal directions. For the seeds lesson, students sang a song I taught them and copied for their reference. At the end of a solids and liquids unit, students completed a picture sort individually that allowed me to see evidence of learning the differences between solids and liquids.

Throughout my own schooling experience, I have witnessed repetetive, laborious assessments. The general pattern I have experienced is learning from a textbook, completing worksheets, and taking a test. This is a boring cycle that does not promote unique ways of thinking. During my experience thus far, I have tried to design a variety of assessments that address different ways of thinking and learning. In this selection of lesson plans, I have assessed the students both as a group and individually. I have also used different methods such as music, words, and pictures. A wide variety of assessment allows a wide variety of students to succeed. To report student progress I have used some rubrics as well as my own comments. My students have enjoyed breaking out of the monotony of textbook tests with these activities and assessments.

Attached is a picture of my handwriting on the chalkboard.  These are directions I gave for a punctuation activity involving turkeys.  My writing is clear and large enough for students in the back to see.  The sentences are short but informative.  I also use language and words they will be able to recognize on their own if they forget the directions.

An elementary teacher must have neat and correct handwriting.  Students learn how to write and form letters in the primary grades, so teachers must have appropriate handwriting to model for the students.  Writing down directions has also been helpful.  No matter how many times I repeat steps, there is always at least one student who forgets what I said or forgets what comes next.  Writing the directions on the board allows them to just look up to see what they forgot rather than have to ask.  Multiple students asking the directions over and over is a distraction and takes away learning time.  Appropriate writing on the board eliminates this possible interruption.

Attached are two observation forms written by my supervisor. They were written at the end of September and beginning of November. Both observations include comments on my voice and demeanor. The first quotes my voice as having "proper volume and meaningful expression." The other comments on how "varying the volume of [my] voice while giving directions" was effective. These two observations demonstrate the fact that I can vary my voice inflection to motivate and spark interest in my students.

First grade teachers need to adjust their mannerisms and speaking to relate to their students. I have learned that, at times, I need to change how I speak and sound. In the afternoon, students become tired and are not as interested in my lessons. At that time, I have to act excited and show that in my voice to motivate them. If my students are talking a lot and I need to say something, I have found that talking more quietly is more effective than raising my voice. These are things that can only be learned in the classroom, and I think I have demonstrated that I do show the proper attitude and demeanor for a first grade classroom.