And We’re Off: Let the Fieldwork Begin

This Social Studies Methods class requires us all to complete fieldwork hours. The one thing that makes this class stand out from the rest of the classes we have taken thus far is we get the opportunity to teach in front of a fourth grade class. Our class works together in groups of four. Each group is responsible for writing and instructing three lesson plans during our time at Bishop Dunn Memorial School. We are to teach the students using direct instruction, inquiry, and cooperative learning lesson plans.

Group 1 included Stephen, Siobhan, Kelsey, and Alicia. Yesterday the fieldwork for this course began. The first group worked on instructing the students about the business world, using a direct instruction lesson plan. The group achieved the concept of direct instruction by having one goal. I enjoyed the fact that this group decided to include a movie clip trailer as their introduction to get the students focused and engaged about the topic. I also thought that using a word cloud was an excellent way to pre-assess the student’s knowledge on the topic. By doing this, it allowed the students to get involved and determine whether or not they have previously recognized any of the terms shown that deal with the topic of business that they were about to discuss. Another aspect I liked that Group One did was that they printed out the PowerPoint presentation to look on with as they were giving the lesson. I think this was smart because it allowed the teachers to be facing the students opposed to facing the board. Another part of this lesson that I thought was done well was the student-friendly definitions for the vocabulary terms. It is very important that when teaching the students new terms or concepts that the students have wording that can be easily understood at their level. Next time try to stress the importance of the students responding if they agree or disagree with something by having them show thumbs up or thumbs down. This will show you whether the students have gained an understanding or not. Overall you all did a great job!

Stephen- I liked how you made sure that when calling on the students for answers you used their names. I think it’s extremely important that the students receive this connection from their teachers. I also liked that you made sure the students knew the definitions for the vocabulary before moving on.

Siobhan- You interacted with the students professionally. I liked how you encouraged a variety of answers from the students. It’s important to not just take the first answer a student gives you. I think it’s important that for the next fieldwork session to relax. You did great teaching in front of the class there is no need to be nervous.

Kelsey- I thought it was excellent that you used the board during the lesson. I think it was smart to visually show the students how determine a business’ profit using their problem solving skills. I also liked that during the lesson you knew how to keep the students on task. When a student responded with a silly answer to one of the questions you knew how to properly guide the class back on track. I suggest that for the next lesson you speak up more.

Alicia- During your first lesson you did a great job of getting the children engaged. When you spoke throughout the lesson you were able to grab everyone’s attention. I thought it was great that you didn’t seem nervous up in front of the class. For the future, I think it’s important that you try to refrain from interrupting your classmates when they are speaking. I think it’s great that you want to help or add something in, maybe just try to wait until they are done speaking to do so.