3/10 Blog

Observations:

This week I realized how many incentives there are to work hard in elementary school, and it really works for them.  At Oak Point the students have the opportunity to earn "barrel bucks" for being quiet in the library or working hard in class, and in return can use them for a variety of things.  Soon they are bringing in a DJ for the kids to dance and eat lunch outside in exchange for 25 barrel bucks.  Whenever Mrs. Hartline tells the class that whoever is the most quiet during read-aloud or cleans up the fastest gets a barrel buck, everyone seems to try much harder.

Learning Experiences:

My biggest learning experience this week has been the amount of work it is to be a kindergarten teacher.  I have always wondered why there was two teachers in a kindergarten classroom, now I know why.  I got to have a taste of Mrs. Hartline's and Mrs. Martin's jobs this week and they both are very necessary to making the class run smoothly.  It has taken pretty much all week of preparation, with some of my help, to get a lesson for next week ready that Mrs. Martin has been working on.  Meanwhile Mrs. Hartline keeps everyone on task and learning.

Reflections:

My first few days I started off by working one-on-one with each student in the hall which I really enjoyed because I got to know each of them. The first time they were each so shy then the next day they all had something they couldn't wait to share with me. I loved getting to work with them individually first because now that I'm done with their assessments and working in the classroom, we all are comfortable with each other and I know all of their names!

Stories to Share:

On Fridays at Oak Point, they have a school-wide morning meeting and it may be the coolest thing I have ever seen. I walked in and literally the entire school was sitting in the middle and singing a song. They basically do their morning announcements and present little awards on Fridays but when the school first opened they did this everyday because they didn't have a PA system! It was a really cool way to bring the school together and the kids loved it. I could also tell how much the principal and assistant principal loved their jobs.