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Today, I had a meeting with my supervisor and my cooperating teacher. We decided that my first observation will be on February 8th at 1:30pm. I am happy that the meeting went well. February 8th seems like it is so nearby. I am hoping that I will have some experience with teaching by then. I will talk to my cooperating teacher about what I will teach that day soon.

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I will be teaching my observation lesson during my students' reading period. During reading, we have been focusing on nonfiction texts and their features. My cooperating teacher gave me a packet of nonfiction readings to copy. She said she would like to have the class read one of the readings during the day of my observation lesson. I can plan my lesson using one of the readings from the packet. She suggested a couple that were on level for the students. I made sure to copy all of them so I could start thinking of my observation lesson.  With these materials, I had what I needed to start planning my observation.

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I met with my supervisor today. This meeting helped clear any questions I had about lesson planning and my observation. At first, I was a little confused about what was expected during the observation. However, this meeting made me feel more ready to start lesson planning.

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I picked the text that I want to focus on during my observation lesson. This is the first main step in planning my observation. Now that I have the text I want to focus on, I can figure out what I wanted to do with the text. The reading I chose is a short informational text about skunks. The reading is grade-level appropriate and not too challenging for my class. There is a wide range of readers in my class so I wanted to pick a text that everyone could understand. I decided I would use this reading to teach the main idea in my lesson. This is the second main step of planning my observation. Since my class was going over nonfiction texts and reviewing for the state tests, I thought that the main idea would be a good focus for the lesson. I ran this by my CT and she agreed. I told her I would take time over the weekend to fully plan the lesson so we could go over it on Monday.

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I left time on Sunday to dedicate to lesson planning for my observation. After sending in my weekly lesson plans, I started taking notes on how I wanted my lesson to go. This was the third main step in planning my observation. I figured that I would start my lesson by asking a question to the students to have them activate their prior knowledge on skunks. After this, I planned on having the students read the reading to themselves quietly. Then, I could ask them to find the main idea and supporting details with a partner. I decided to hold off on completing the SOLAMP Long template until I went over my lesson with my CT the following day. I felt better knowing I had an idea of what I wanted to do with my lesson.

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At this point, my observation is two days from now. I am starting to get nervous about it. However, today I went over my lesson plan with my CT and she was really helpful. This was the fourth main step I took to plan my observation lesson. My CT helped me expand on my lesson and make it more well-rounded. She also made me aware of some difficulties with students that may arise at different points in the lesson. For example, if I have my students work with partners, I need to figure out how I want the class to choose their partners. Do I want to choose their partners? If so, with who? If I let them work with peers sitting next to them, I then need to plan to move some desks for certain students. Making me aware of these potential problems made it easier for me to fully plan my lesson. When I returned home that night, I spent a lot of time working on my SOLAMP Long format. It took a lot less time than I expected since I had everything planned out! I used the video and the model of SOLAMP Long on Brightspace to guide me through creating the lesson. One thing I can improve on with SOLAMP Long Format is the language demands section. I struggle to fill this part out. I think that with more practice this part will come easier to me.

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Tomorrow is my observation. Today, I went over the final details with my CT and finished my SOLAMP Long Lesson. I handed it in to my supervisor on time. I spent the rest of the night preparing my SOLAMP Short lessons for the following day and relaxing. I had to go to the school campus library to print some necessary materials for my lesson. I created my own worksheet for students to fill in the main idea and supporting details for a text of their choice. This was my fifth main step in planning my observation lesson: gathering all the materials I need. I printed everything I needed and returned home. I decided to go to sleep at good time that night to make sure I was well rested for my observation.

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Today, I had my observation. I was stressed during the hours leading up to when my supervisor came in. Once 1:30 hit, it was time to do my lesson. I think that overall my lesson went well. I was happy at how much student engagement there was. Many students were raising their hands to participate. It was a great thing to see. I responded to this success by trying to call on all the students who wanted to participate.
After my lesson ended, I debriefed with my supervisor. One thing I learned about myself and my teaching is that I am very calm and polite with the students. Rather than yelling at them when they aren't paying attention, I try to politely redirect them. I try to respect my students so that they will respect me back. I think my manners and my calm tone of voice helped keep my students on track throughout the lesson.
I think my observation supported my ongoing transition from student teacher to NYS-certified novice teacher by showing me what I need to improve on. For example, I think that pacing during the lesson is an essential part of teaching. I know that is something I need to work on. Now that I recognized this, I can work towards this goal and become a better teacher.