First Grade Reading Practicum Report

1. READ 3473 Practicum By Nicole Hudson, Monica Hernandez, Peggy Cook, Shannon Pogue

2. Olivia Marie Parham Student Report: Olivia was a first grade student who had transferred from Oklahoma to Texas the beginning of first grade. Olivia has a twin brother that she said was very annoying as well as an older sister. Reading Level: Instructionally, Olivia was exactly where she needed to be, which was on a first grade reading level. Reading Interests: Olivia enjoyed reading fiction books, for example “Thumbelina.” Strengths: Being able to pronounce difficult word selections by sounding them out, using context clues for understanding, and fluency. Challenges: Comprehension, being able to recall specific details from a reading selection. Personality: Vibrant, energetic, and dramatic characteristics. Interpersonal Interaction Skills: maintained positive interaction skills by helping, listening, and communicating with classmates.

3. Dnasia Mitchell Kindergartener Had 85% accuracy rate reading a 1st grade book Would have done well reading a book at her age level Is a very strong, confident reader yet has issues with the simpler mistakes. Has a very active, talkative and attentive personality Does well remembering events in story.

4. Lauren Ford Reading Level: Lauren was at an instructional reading level for 1st grade. The book that she read for me was level F. Reading interest: Lauren loved any Dr. Seuss books. Every practicum she would ask, “Did you bring me a Dr. Seuss book today?” Strengths: She was a strong reader. If she didn’t know a word, she would sound it out and then blend the letters until she formed the correct word. Challenges: She really didn’t care too much about focusing on any of the lessons. She loved to go into her own world which, at times, made it challenging for her to keep up with the overall purpose of the lessons we presented. Personality: Very vibrant and bubbly, Definitely a people’s person. Interpersonal Interaction: Lauren loved to help when it came to the lessons. When her group mates would have trouble spelling words, she would be the first one to offer suggestions.

5. Trinity Tassan Student Report: Trinity isin kindergarten. Reading Level: Trinity had 94% accuracy reading a first grade book. Reading Interests: Trinity enjoyed reading many books by Eric Carle. Strengths: Comprehension of the story being read. Challenges: Being able to sit and let other students express their ideas first. Personality: Very energetic. Interpersonal Interaction Skills: She worked with others, but she always wanted herself to be heard first.

6. Overview of Lessons Practicum Lesson Plan #2 Engaged in a read aloud with, “Don’t be Silly, Mrs. Millie.” Grand conversation Interactive writing assignment -------------------------------------------------------- Why? Student’s learned to use rhyming words using different animals in a classroom setting, which they all could relate to. We monitored comprehension break down with the rereading, and searching for clues in the story to help the students understand the rhyming word along with what it was related to in the classroom. For example: “Get your Penguins out.” When the teacher really meant, “Get your Pens out.”

7. Overview of Lessons Practicum Lesson #3 Shared reading with nonfiction book “Country Fair” by Gail Gibbons Grand conversation after shared reading Interactive Writing -------------------------------------------------------- Why? I wanted to engage in them in a nonfiction book so they could go over common reading patterns to figure out difficult words and then discuss various things we might see at a fair if we were to go. After this grand conversation, the students made up their own story about going to the fair. They all took turns to use correct capitalization and punctuation to convey a story to entertain.

8. Overview of Lessons Practicum Lesson #4 Tapped into prior knowledge with poetry. Engaged in a Choral Reading to practice fluency. Word Wall ------------------------------------------------------- Why? The poems, again, related to school. The poems were fun and helped to explained the difference between poetry and a story. This book was very motivational to the reluctant poetry writers. This book was made up of funny poems about school and homework. It showed kids that they would be able to express themselves freely in their poetry.

9. Overview of Lessons Practicum Lesson #5 Word Wall Vocabulary packet Understanding characteristics of a butterfly’s life and learning a life cycle Interactive writing ------------------------------------------------------- Why? To engage the children by learning in depth about something familiar to their lives. Also, I thought the cycle of a butterfly’s life would be interesting to know. And the interactive writing would give the children an opportunity to show they are able to grasp the concepts of a butterfly’s life by making sentences to recall facts in the story.

10. Overview of Lessons Practicum Lesson #6 Character Mapping Analyze characters, including their traits, feelings, relationships, and changes. --------------------------------------------- Why? This is one of my favorite books to use for lessons. It has good storylines and a great underlying theme in the book overall. I think students will get something out of these stories.

11. Most Effective Lesson How It Was Done… First, we read about a country fair, then discussed the different things we could do if we would go to out own State Fair of Texas. We then made up a story about taking a trip to the fair together as a group. Why It Was Done… To see where the students were at instructionally with their writing.

12. Most Effective Lesson Why It Went So Well… The students were really excited to come up to the writing pad and write their individual sentences. They all shared ideas and helped each other correct their sentences. They loved the interaction that they had together about talking about the different things they can do at the fair.

13. Least Effective Lesson What was done… Engaged in a read aloud with, “Don’t be Silly, Mrs. Millie.” Grand conversation Interactive writing assignment Why it was done… To have an environment that students could relate to which was school. To have fun using rhyming words. To have the students be able to make everyday occurrences in the classroom by rhyming with animals.

14. Least Effective Lesson Why did it go so poorly? The interactive writing assignment wasn’t age group appropriate. The students really didn’t get to interact at all. It wasn’t as effective as it could have been. For the age group that we had, we should have done something more hands on to conclude the lesson and to make connection with understanding instead of just a “pen and paper” or “worksheet” type of writing assignment. Having a word wall might have helped out a lot.

15. Personal Growth What I learned… About myself as a teacher: Make sure to set that expectation of my students on the “First Day.” Using and asking questions effectively. Be their friend, but their teacher and role model first. No matter how prepared you might think you are, things can always go a different way. Be prepared with alternative ways to teach a lesson that addresses children’s learning levels. Teaching in General: It isn’t easy… Takes lots of patience Preparing an effective lesson isn’t always easy. Know how to motivate children… How to deal with different behavioral issues.

16. Language Importance Teacher Language is ultimately critical to making a student feel safe, respected, appreciated, and interested in learning. General Guidelines: - Nicole said: “Sit criss-cross apple sauce, Olivia.” - “I see that you’re using your experiences to make up a sentence that relates to the book!” Open-ended Questions: - Monica said: “What do you see interesting on the cover of this book?” - next question said: “Why do you think that’s so interesting?” - Nicole says: “Can anybody tell me what a butterfly is?” - Nicole: “Does anyone know the stages a butterfly goes through?” Listening: - Trinity says: “I don’t know what to write!.” - Shannon response with: “You mean you don’t know what to write right now, take a minute to brainstorm and some ideas will come that you can write about.” -The next question Shannon asked, she paused, letting them think before they answered: “Hmm… so what did you all come up with, you first Trinity. ” Reinforcing: -”Did you notice how you closely paid attention to the lesson today,” Shannon - “You kept trying to pronounce this word until you got it!”, Nicole Redirecting: - “Trinity, it’s time to pay attention to the lesson right now.” Shannon - Nicole: “Help Lauren find the definition to this word.”