Journal 1
For this reflection, I observed a third grade classroom on October 4, 2022, as they partook in their science lesson. The structure of the lesson started with a read-a-loud about the plant cycle. The students then filled out a booklet on the plant cycle, with instruction from the teacher and help from others. The notes below are from the 4th reflection and analysis assignment.
a part of the lesson that stood out to me and why:
A part of the lesson that stood out to me had to do with reading the pumpkin book. The use of the pumpkin book helped relate to the plant cycle, but was fitting with halloween coming up, as well as their field-trip to the pumpkin patch.
something I would do differently:
I would try to harness more independence in this lesson. Maybe through the use of pair work or group work with forming the sentences. This would allow more creativity and individuality.
noticing teacher and student tasks:
The teacher is writing sentences, but from the ideas of the students. The students are providing creative ideas, and also copying the sentence from the board. The students are also engaging with each other in conversation.
3 questions related to the observation:
How do you guide the students with writing without doing it for them?
How do you mediate noise volume with a whole-class lesson? Do side conversations add or subtract to this type of learning?
Do you feel that the science lesson is effective even if using language arts as a tool to teach it?
3 things I learned:
The subjects are easily molded together. Even though it was a science lesson, reading a book to the class was done. Also writing sentences to further the understanding of the science subject was done as a class.
With certain things, it is easier to give the students exactly word-for-word what they need to copy to their own papers.
It is better to guide a wrong answer than to dismiss it. A student answered “sprout” when the correct answer was “leaves”. The teacher said, “Yes, when it is a baby plant, it is a sprout. What do they become when they’re older?” This allowed the student to provide the correct answer even though they start with the wrong one.
Bloom’s taxonomy - Educational Objectives
Apply - The students have to look at pictures of the plant cycle and write out the name associated with that part of the cycle.
Remember - The teacher asks the students at the beginning of the lesson what they remember from science yesterday. Students were able to recall the difference between science fruits and science vegetables. When reading the pumpkin book, the teacher asks the students if they remember what a baby plant is called. One student recalled out loud that it is called a sprout.
learning theories:
There were some instances in the lesson that made it feel like behaviorism. The teacher was at the center of the lesson, providing information and what to copy/do. There was not much free will in the lesson, since the teacher had them copy exactly what she wanted for the story. There were also instances of Cognitive Learning Theories. The role of the learner was important in making observations and providing creative ideas to be put in the written story.