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S. Myland-Observation of Essentials of English

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S. Myland-Observation of Essentials of English

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Peter and Nick have great balance in their co-teaching partnership. They both have their obvious, planned roles, and they respect each other in those roles. They also have solid procedures set up. They work a lot on executive functioning in this class. Each student has their own binder organized into the specified sections. They earn points for maintaining this binder. Each day, Nick checks their binder for organization and provides them a stamp if they have met expectations. Each student has a stamp card for executive functioning and one for homework completion. Homework is also checked by Nick at the beginning of each class. Students begin each class with silent sustained writing for about 5 minutes. They then have the opportunity to share out afterwards. Again, I really enjoyed seeing Nick and Peter work together. It gave me a good example of a co-teaching partnership and procedures that I can use in my own classroom space.

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S. Myland -observation of Financial Literacy 

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S. Myland -observation of Financial Literacy 

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These observations were so beneficial. Matt Prebble has solid procedures in his class that students know do not question. Everything ran really smoothly with no questions of expectations. I love how students place their phone in a numbered pocket chart as they walk in the door. This is part of their participation points, so they are more inclined to follow that rule. Also, kids have a bell ringer each day to get them engaged right away. Matt has a nice balance of whole group lecturing and discussion and partner/small group/individual work. This way kids stay actively engaged throughout. Since I'm teaching financial lit for the first time this year, it was great to see Matt in action.

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S. Gierhahn- Observation of Mr. Tarshish's Psychology class

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S. Gierhahn- Observation of Mr. Tarshish's Psychology class

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Evan was engaging and energetic. He encouraged students to participate and interact. I was able to join a class one of my student attends. He took time at the start of class to check in with my student because she had been absent for a few days. Students made "brain tweets" which was creative and fun for students. The class watched a video on the brain and Evan did a good job of pausing the video to note important points. It was helpful to see the teaching style of one of my student's teachers in order to have a better understanding of how I can help her be successful.

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N. Kaminski Observation of Models Bio Class

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N. Kaminski Observation of Models Bio Class

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I was interested in observing another lab class as I was curious to see how their labs and procedures compared to mine in a culinary class. I was able to observe how the labs were set up, how the groups worked together and how clean-up looked in a 48 minute period. I was also able to speak with Kelsey Kaiser about how lab make-ups look in class when a student is not present.

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S. Gierhahn-Observation of Tom Tarrant CITE

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S. Gierhahn-Observation of Tom Tarrant CITE

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I observed the CITE 2 program which includes more independent students than CITE 1. Mr. Tarrant was discussing how to complete a resume and interview for a job. Tom was very energetic and engaging throughout his discussion. Students gave him their full attention and were eager to participate. Tom gave personal examples of his job experiences to connect with students. After the lesson, I was able to talk with Tom and learn more about CITE 2. He explained the supports the program can offer students from 18-22 years old. It was very helpful to meet the CITE staff and see the program. I have a better understanding of the type of students I would refer.

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W. Kuenster - Observation of CITE Transition Program

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W. Kuenster - Observation of CITE Transition Program

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The TEAM Program is in the process of planning for a new transition program for our 18-21 year old students who have severe/profound disabilities.  Currently, the majority of our students "graduate" after 4 years of high school in the TEAM Program, then move on to complete 1-3 years in the off-campus CITE Transition Program, where the focus is to prepare the young adult students for their postschool lives.  Although the new program will be located here at OPRF, we feel it is important to provide the transition components to all of our 18-21 year old students, regardless of ability level.  As the teacher projected to teach in this new transition program, I thought it would be most beneficial to  begin observing transition programs (starting with our own CITE Program) to see what ideas/strategies I might be able to incorporate into my class.  The time spent at CITE was immensely helpful - Meghan Kennedy shared many resources, schedules, forms, ideas, etc. and will be a great asset moving forward as this program takes shape.  The visit was also very motivating for me...it was great to see the self-determination and self-advocacy skills the students possessed, and the successful outcomes the students were creating!  Meghan was very organized, yet flexible enough to deal with the day to day changes that are inevitable in a transition setting.  She communicated well with both her staff and the students in her program.  It was a very respectful environment.  I am also planning to visit LT and HC transition programs.

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K. Callaghan Observation of Mr. Curtis' Reading class.     

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K. Callaghan Observation of Mr. Curtis' Reading class.     

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Mr. Curtis gave a detailed description of what the students would be doing in class that day by providing a written list on the board to guide the day's lesson. I would like to incorporate this approach by displaying a list of activities at the beginning of lcass on the white board (maybe even google classroom). He then held a class discussion regarding the story they were reading. I was most impressed by the way the students all seemed to take advantage of their silent reading time. It means that Mr. Curtis must have established clear expectations.

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K. Callaghan- Observation of Mr. Collins' Drawing Class

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K. Callaghan- Observation of Mr. Collins' Drawing Class

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It was clear that Mr. Collins spent a great deal of time preparing for the lesson, as he incorporated technology and displayed many examples of the shadowing technique that he was preparing students to incorporate into their own work. I felt the format of the class was appropriate for an art class as he spent the first half showing them examples and discussing important terminology and then allowed the students time to practice the skill on their own at their own easel.

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W. Kuenster - Observation of CITE Transition Program

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W. Kuenster - Observation of CITE Transition Program

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The TEAM Program is in the process of planning for a new transition program for our students who are 18-21 years old

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P. Woytek Observation of D. Cohen (Experiments in Reading Literature and the World)

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P. Woytek Observation of D. Cohen (Experiments in Reading Literature and the World)

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I have been interested for some time about how teachers are integrating social/emotional learning into the classroom. Dan Cohen's (and Avi Lessing's) "Feelings" class is, on the surface, constructed similar to a social work group. Chairs are arranged in a large circle, and students sit facing each other for a large portion of the class period. Following an introduction about the lesson, they are challenged to share specific personal things about themselves. Students who are initially uncomfortable or unready to share are given another opportunity during a second round. Where the class differs from a social work group is that after sharing, students break off individually to write an essay about the experience and its larger meaning. As I understand it, the class is designed to get students thinking, and writing, about how their experiences, thoughts, family, outside life, relationships in the classroom, etc., matter to them, influence the decisions they make and their lives overall. It was great for me to see how Dan motivates his students and encourages their participation, and it gave me some useful ideas for my own groups.

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P. Woytek Observation of M. McGuire (Treble Choir)

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P. Woytek Observation of M. McGuire (Treble Choir)

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Meredith does an amazing job with bringing this new music class to the TEAM students. Students participate in rhythm activities, musical greetings in various languages, singing, use of musical instruments, and body awareness as it relates to music, and they view computer graphics which enhance the musical experience. Despite the large class size, Meredith is able to connect with each student individually, and she demonstrates a strong understanding of their individual abilities and needs. Observing her interactions with the students will be useful to me as I work with my weekly TEAM social work group.

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1. The students go through the same routine each day for the warm up so students know what to expect.
2. This is a really neat class because special education students are paired with regular education students and with the lead of Mr. Singletary, give one-on-one attention and instruction to their partner.
3.This type of environment leads to so much more than just being active in PE class. All of the students learn from each other in ways that cannot be taught--so it is really just a cool experience!

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I really liked the ease at which the content was presented to the students. The material was simplified and almost presented as though they were just telling a story. They would read a section out loud from their packet while it was projected. They would then stop, students would answer the question, and then they discussed as a class. They also typed the answer on computer which was projected for students to write in their packets.

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Kaiser Observations of various Models classes

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Kaiser Observations of various Models classes

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Models of Chemistry - Amy McGrail

1. Amy has a super laid back style with her students which seems to put them at ease.
2. She uses lots of analogies in her one on one interactions with students to help them understand the material.  She doesn't just tell them what to do, she pushes them to think about what strategy to use that would work for each situation.
3. She also compliments the kind of behavior she wants to see (students reviewing old quizzes she has passed back) to help inform their preparation for tan upcoming test.
4. I played Kahoot with them....I won...oops.

Models of Physics - Sara Fisher (Aaron Podolner's student teacher)

1. I got to see a white boarding session in this class which was great because we do this a lot in my class too.
2. Students are asked to present their whiteboards and the teacher asks questions as they present.
3. She asks students to describe why they're asked to answer the questions the way they are - they seem to understand the purpose of what they're doing clearly which seems to show how well they understand the material.
4. Students are also asking questions during the presentations so it seems they are comfortable with the way the class is structured.  I wonder what they've done in the past to encourage this behavior or if these are the kinds of students that feel comfortable talking in front of their peers in all classrooms.

Adapted Music - Meredith

1. Meredith uses routine and tries to make a connection with all the students. It's really neat to see how they all react to her.

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D. Martin Observation of D. Limberg (U.S. History A)

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D. Martin Observation of D. Limberg (U.S. History A)

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1. It's very clear that Dana has a very strong rapport and relationship with her students. She is able to get an 8th period class to work hard throughout the period, all while maintaining a very positive atmosphere.

2. I really liked how clearly Dana was able to explain the rationale for, and benefit of, entertaining opposing views in your writing. She also used a very effective collaborative strategy to help students organize their thinking before creating an outline. It is definitely something that I want to bring into my classes.

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D. Martin Observation of L. Burns (CP World History)

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D. Martin Observation of L. Burns (CP World History)

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1. Linda has a very dynamic classroom presence. Her class has a ton of positive energy and very strong Socratic questioning techniques.

2. Linda did a great job doing think-alouds as she worked through the different DBQ documents.  She wasn't afraid to slow veer from her original agenda when student questions pushed her to reach the objective in a different order. I really appreciate this flexibility.

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D. Martin Observation of M. McMurray (U.S. History A)

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D. Martin Observation of M. McMurray (U.S. History A)

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1. Matt's class structure was very organized and planned out. I really like his seamless integration of technology and printed work. He uses a ton of really good primary and secondary sources.

2. I really like using as many primary and secondary sources to guide instruction as possible, and Matt is a great resource with his very well developed coursepacks. I spoke with him after class and he was able to share a ton of great resources with me.

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D. Martin Observation of M. Stephen (U.S. History A)

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D. Martin Observation of M. Stephen (U.S. History A)

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1. A lot of great student-student academic talk. Students brought in a ton of great information from outside sources (their reading, English classes, media, etc.)

2. Mike and I have talked about this idea before, and I really liked how he structured the "team debates." I want to find out more about how student performance is assessed so I can use this strategy in my own classes.