1 Classroom Observation Summary

Classroom Observation Summary Christie Guite EDU/305 April 9, 2012 Kristen Parker

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Classroom Observation Summary My classroom observation took place at Belgrade Central Elementary School in small rural community. I observed Jill Mackenzies Kindergarten class. The class consisted 18 five and six years students. I joined there class for the afternoon. There were only two adults present, myself and Mrs. Mackenzie. During my observation I sat on the other side of the room, so I would not distract the student or disrupt their lesson. I wanted to focus on Mrs. Mackenzies teaching style, her interaction with the students, class arrangement and the developmental stages of each child. My first observation was that there were that the students just came in from lunch recess. Mrs. Mackenzie met them with a smile at the door. They were excited and hot from playing outside. They quickly put their lunch boxes away, took their coats off and then lined up for bathroom and drinks; like it was all second nature to them. After returning from bathroom and drinks, the students quickly came to the mat for rest or read. Mrs. McKenzie put on classical music for the students for 10 minutes. Each student had a choice to rest or read quietly on the mat. This is a fantastic way to allow them to unwind from lunch and recess. Since this an individual task the student they are encouraged to work quietly. Mrs. Mackenzie had to give a couple of reminders of their behavior and how to be safe while on the mat. Overall, I was quite impressed at how quickly they all settled up. During my observation I enjoyed the flow of the classroom. It seemed very organized. There were four circle tables; each had a different colored bin which held their crayons, pencils and scissors. Each table had laminated name tags, that were decorated by the students.

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At Mrs. Mackenzies table there were four colored bins, each bin had different student names. These bins were split up by reading groups and reading levels. Each student had their own bag of books to read during reading groups. Mrs. Mackenzie would call up reading teams to work as a group. In the back of the room, a pretend microwave and kitchen set for house area and a sand box for the science station. Mrs. McKenzies classroom also had a restroom that accommodates boys and girls, so the students do not have to leave the classroom when needing to go to the restroom. On the walls and even on the ceiling were several words, letters, and numbers. My favorite part of the room was a board of Really Ribbiting work! This is the wall that the children are very proud of because it contains all of their own work. Mrs. Mackenzie had a white rocking chair that was in front of the mat. She sat in this during read aloud or explaining a lesson to the students. During the observation I observed Mrs. Mackenzie sitting in the chair teaching the students math and calendar. When the students transitioned to from the mat to their tables, they did so quietly and waited for their next direction. The children reviewed their math goals and the rubric and practiced their goals in pairs. While Mrs. Mackenzie reviewed goals, another teacher came into to get a student for Title 1 reading. During math I noticed that each goal had there set of goals that they were working on. Many of them were goals such as count to 100, count by 10s or count by 5s. Although many met their goals at this point in time, others have not. They continue to work on their goals until they become successful. At all times the students seemed to be interested in the work and listened very well when Mrs. Mackenzie spoke. This indicates to me that the students are engaged in learning and truly enjoy having her as their teacher.

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I couldnt help but notice how caring and sincere Mrs. Mackenzie was with all her students even the few she had to give reminders to. Whenever she had explained a project or problem she asked the children to give to do a thumbs up or thumps down. If the children were unclear of the direction they would give a thumbs down, and Mrs. Mackenzie would sit on the mat to provide an explanation. She didnt leave the mat until she knew they understood what they needed to do. Once math ended the students were called upon to pick up and pack up, to get ready for thank yous and hopes. The students in Mrs. Mackenzies class worked as a team and independently on projects. Throughout the whole class Mrs. Mackenzie was always nurturing, warm and loving and stern when she needed to be. I did get the impression that the students felt distracted, I got the impression that this is how the class flows daily. Mrs. Mackenzie did a fabulous job with all of her students, she interacted with all of them. I felt that the flow and set up of the classroom was sufficient for the grade level. This set up, I would consider in my own classroom someday. It was very organized, the students had only labels on everything in the class but also pictures to go with it. I learned that it takes a lot of patience to become a kindergarten teacher, and I can only wish that someday to become half the teacher Mrs. Mackenzie is.

CLASSROOM OBSERVATIO SUMMARY