Directions: A requirement to successfully complete Education 1100 is the completion of a minimum of 15 hours spent observing in a public

school K-12 classroom. While observing you are to look for the following indicators, provide examples, and reflect on your observations for each
indicator. You may or may not see all indicators listed below due to the limited amount of time you spend in your cooperating teachers
classroom. You are however required to learn more about each indicator. Therefore you must have a conversation with your cooperating teacher
to understand the indicators not observed.

Classroom Setting
Indicators

Examples

Reflection

Classroom Atmosphere:
Teacher- student and studentstudent interactions.

Teacher read a winter story to the class, then they

got to journal about their experience with the
snow. Before writing in their journal, students
were put into groups to talk about what they were
going to write, this got them thinking and prepared
for their writing assignment.
Also, the teacher cleaned out one of the students
desk because he is very unorganized and cannot
hold attention to very much (he has an IEP).

Classroom procedures:
Groups, materials, supplies,
transitions, and, routines.

The students desks are arranged in groups of 4 that

the teacher arranged. The teacher puts people into
pairs or groups when they need to discuss with
others. Their morning routine consists of putting
their backpacks and coats on their hooks, reciting
the pledge, doing calendar, learning a math lesson
and then doing a math activity, word study, then
lunch. Their afternoon routine consists of story
time, writers workshop, play a tumble book while
students eat snack.
When the teacher says hands on your head, kids
know to be quiet. She also counts down from 5.
She monitors students constantly when working
alone or in groups, she records data from tests
and/or quizzes. A teaching assistant is in the
classroom to help those with IEPs and there is a
student with Cerebral Palsy who needs help

This is a perfect balance between teacher-student interaction

and student-student interaction. In doing this, it allows the
teacher to connect the lesson/book to their own personal
stories and gave them time to think about what they were
going to write in their journals as well as discuss it with
peers.
In this scenario I feel like it was a good idea because you do
not want to allow a child to be disorganized or feel like that
is an okay thing. On the other hand, it might be difficult for
other students to understand why she cleaned his desk but
not theirs.
I like how she places the kids in groups, because it is a good
way to allow them to interact with other students (maybe
make new friends). It is also a good idea because while kids
do enjoy working with their friends, they tend to get off task
easily in doing so. So, by placing them into groups,
hopefully they can stay on topic.

Classroom behavior:
Expectations/rules,
monitoring, and response.

In counting down, children really take it almost as a mission

to be quiet, I feel like that is a really good technique. She
also uses the song Head, Shoulders, Knees, and Toes to
grab their attention. I like this one best because it involves
them too, not just you counting or shouting. I do think
though, if children are being really silly, a more firm action
(like counting down or clapping) should be done. As far as

getting in and out of her wheel chair along with

other things such as class activities, writing things
down, and communicating with teachers and
peers.
Classroom layout:
Arrangement of furniture,
resources for student use, and
technology integration.

In the classroom is they use a smartboard for most

of their lessons. The furniture is set up in a very
conducing way. The teachers desk is in the back
corner with her computer ontop of it. In another
corner there is a bookshelf with a lot of books to
choose from. There is the alphabet and numberline
across the top of the walls. Theres North, South,
East, and West on each of the walls. To enhance
the learning of counting theres a poster of the
number and the correct amount of a certain object
(example 2, with 2 pictures of flowers). Theres a
word wall where they put the different vocabulary
words from all of the lessons on. Calendar time is
in another corner, theres a stool that the teacher
sits on and reads stories to the children off of.

monitoring goes, I really like the way this teacher does it, I
had to give a student a math test because he was sick when
the other students had taken it. I had to ask him to count as
high as he could counting by 1s, 10s, 5s, and 2s. Then
check to see if he could count at the level that he should be.
I love the idea of a rocking chair in the corner of the
classroom and maybe a rug for the children to sit on.
Having calendar time in the corner is a good idea because
its a cozy and spacious place of the room. I have always
loved the idea of writing on a dry erase board, so the
smartboard would be a change for me, but I do think it is
beneficial for the teacher and the students to have one in the
class. It is easy and convient to pull up powerpoints and it
allows the children to interact just as well as a dry erase
board would. I like the word wall as well, I think it is a
good visual aid for students to keep past vocabulary words
fresh in their minds.

Teaching
Indicators

Examples

Reflection

Communication: Learning
outcomes, expectations,
directions, explanation of
content, use of vocabulary.

The Teacher asks questions using the vocab from class, to

create a better understanding of the meaning of the words and
how to use them. While teaching a math lesson (or any
lesson) the teacher uses connective visuals. A math lesson I
observed used dice, and the teacher showed dice on the Smart
Board and showed them how you add both of the numbers on

I think it is a really good idea to incorporate

the vocabulary for the units into lessons,
because it allows the students to understand
how the word would be used in context not just
the meaning of the word. I also really like the
idea of visuals, I think this enhances the

the dice.

Questioning and discussion:

Blooms Taxonomy and wait
time.

Student Participation
techniques

Activities and assignments

Grouping of students: Whole

class, small groups, pairs,
individual, etc.

Materials and resources:

Primary and secondary
sources

students understanding as well. Not all

students learn in the same exact way, so to
include visuals is really important. Especially
when connecting the lesson to the activity that
students are going to be doing after the lesson.
The teacher gives all of the children time to think about the
I feel like the wait time that this teacher
question being asked before calling on a student. Each time
incorporates is really balanced and fair. It
students raise their hand, she calls on different students each
allows the student to actually think about the
time.
questioning before throwing out an answer.
Also, it gives every child the opportunity to
answer, instead of the same child every time.
The teacher asks questions to kids while she is reading a book Its really important to be able to get children
so that it makes more sense to them. When teaching a lesson, to want to participate. I will use questioning to
she points out the important sections of the lesson while also
incorporate students in story time and teaching
asking and describing (usually with math). She often will ask lessons. I also would like to learn about new
the class What do you notice?
ways to make children want to answer
questions and participate, maybe by rewarding
them.
Math: One lesson I helped students with, was a worksheet
In observing this class, it was a moment of
with a bunch of single digit numbers on it. The student was
realization to me, that teachers all over teach in
asked to make the largest possible number, the lowest
a similar way. I realized that it is common of
possible number. Then she paired the students for an activity, all teachers (all grades) to teach a lesson and
this activity involved rolling dice and finding the sum of the
then use an activity to further understand the
two numbers that you roll, your partner then records & graphs lesson.
your data. Journaling is also done very often, the teacher will
assign a topic about something the children just learned or
talked about and then have them journal about it.
Whole Class: Storytime, Calendar, Lessons
Theres a perfect balance between the whole
Small Groups or Pairs: Games and Discussions
class, small group or pairs, and individual
Individual: Journaling and certain worksheets
work. I really like the way that this teacher
does it. When theres small groups or pairs, she
groups them so that they actually work
together.
Primary: Journaling alot, after reading they may have a
I think it is essential for students to journal as
worksheet that includes information about the book.
often as possible. In school writing, spelling,
Secondary: Math Workbook (Math boxes)
and sentence fluency is really important. So,
starting students off as young as possible is

Pacing: Gaining attention,

transitions, reflection, closure,
wait time, etc.
Improvisation: Making
adjustments, flexibility based
on the student needs

Student interests, culture, and

other diversity incorporated

The teacher counts down often to gain attention. When she is

busy helping another student, she will ignore children who
are disrupting her or she tells them to hold on.
All body listening means eye contact, quiet hands, no
talking (being a good listener).
For one student who has an IEP, they let him chew gum and
sit on a comfy seat over. For Badger book day (reading time)
she suprised the students with no Writers Workshop and with
a Badger book day (they were allowed to bring a stuffed
animal that day too).

beneficial to their education.

I will use All body listening in my
classroom, I think it is an easy way to tell
children to listen and not be disruptive in a
short, to the point, kind of way.

I think its a daily thing where teachers need to

make adjustments. Each day will not go as
perfectly planned as one might wish. There
will be problems that arrive each day that you
need to be flexible with and go with the flow.
This teacher daily makes arrangements,
somedays she has forgotten to print something
out or set a lesson up so she improvises on a
daily basis.
For Black History Month she read books about Rosa Parks
These are the kinds of things about teaching
and Ruby Bridges. On Valentines Day they all decorated
that makes me so excited! I love incorporating
bags for their valentines to go in. When they learned about the crafts and educational songs to lessons. I also
body, they sand songs and made paper vests for their organs
think it is really important to introduce
and a headband for their brain.
historical events in childrens lives while they
are young (Black History Month, Civil Rights
Movement)

Lesson Planning
Indicators

Examples

Concepts, skills,
prerequisites, and
pedagogy

After first grade you should know how to add

and subtract numbers. Vocabulary is
introduced to students, they learn how to
sound out the spelling of words. Teach students
to start trying to figure things out on their own.

Student abilities,
interests, learning
styles, level of
knowledge, culture,
background, and

Reflection

I think it is beneficial to teach children

how to develop a sense of
independence, because there isnt
always going to be someone there telling
you how to spell a word or how to do
something.
Children love tumble books at snack time.
I think it is awesome how the students
There is seven ELL students (one who moved
look forward to tumble books! At first I
here from Hawaii). There are a handful of
didnt even realize how many ELL
children with an IEP, who need little extra help. students there were, until the teacher
A child with Cerebral Palsy who is handicapped. told me. The few students with an IEP

needs.

She needs help getting in and out of her

wheelchair and taken to every place that the
class comes.

Learning outcomes
linked to standards
within and outside of
the discipline that are
able to be assessed
based on a diverse
population of
students.
Classroom Resources
to enhance the
teachers professional
knowledge and
appropriately
challenging student
materials that fit the
learning needs of all
students.

When doing lessons the teacher uses a paper

and types up the standard and what the
objective for the standard is. For each day or
lesson there is an objective that she focuses
on.

Learning activities
sequentially designed
to engage and
advances students
learning.

The teacher told a story about a wolf who had

100 pancakes, then had a writers workshop
for the students to write a poem about I wish I
had 100 _____, I wish I had 100 _______, but I
dont wish I had 100 _______.

Intentionally
organized student
groups created to
support learning.

The teacher didnt allow the children to pick

their own partners for their biographies. She
often makes their partners so that they
actually work on their assignment or activity.

Builta Elementary has Edline.net which is

where every student can login and can choose
a link of their liking. The teacher has links
already picked out on their class website to
challenge those who need it and other
appropriate levels on learning for each student.
There is also a lot of books in the classroom.

were pretty noticeable, but that may be

because I took Education 2201 last
semester. The child with Cerebral Palsy
has a great personality, it is so very sad
to me that people have to have
disorders, especially when they are so
severe and control your life in such a
strong way.
During a lunch break, the teacher and I
were sitting and talking about lesson
planning and it was really interesting to
look through the core curriculum with
her. It showed the standards and the
objectives for multiple subjects.
I like the idea of elementary schools
starting to introduce technology into
schools because the further people go
with their education the more
technology will be used and it is best to
introduce it as early as possible. Having
a lot of books in the classroom is really
helpful too, because it helps students
learn how to read and spell things and
pictures to explain what they are
reading.
I really enjoyed this activity! I thought it
was really fun for the kids to write a
poem about things they would want and
wouldnt want. They had a ton of fun,
and kept coming up to me to show me
what they had written.
Its a good idea to pick partners for
children, it creates a better working
environment for everyone as well as
promoting a better work environment.

Formative and
summative
assessments aligned
to learning outcomes
that drive planning
and instruction.

When checking over students work, she

makes mental notes of what needs to be
worked on. If a lot of students show an area of
struggle, then she will spend more time on it
until they improve.

This is extremely important when being

a teacher, teachers need to check over
students progress and monitor the
amount of children who are not
understanding. Overall, it reflects on how
well you are teaching the students.

Assessment
Indicators

Examples

Reflection

Criteria expectations

In math students should know how to count by ones, twos,

fives, and tens. Students should know the months, day of the
week, the alphabet, how to add and subtract.

Most students are good in the criteria area, but

some students clearly stuggle with math
mainly.

Monitoring student learning

There are various math tests and quizzes, to check for

understanding. The teacher checks over students work on
various occassions to see where they are and compare it to
where they should be.
The teacher gives an example of what the activity is that
theyll be doing. She then explains how the activity will be
done, and allows them to do it on their own or with a partner.

Feedback: Timely,
substantive, constructive,
teacher proximity, provides
guidance.
Student participation: Selfmonitoring.

Formative Assessment

Summative Assessment

The teacher allowed me to give a student a

formative test to see if he can count by ones,
twos, fives, and tens, and to see how high he
could count in each of them.
Examples are awesome! I know to this day,
that I will understand anything (even non
school related) better when I see an example
first. Not all people learn their best the same
way.
A student with an IEP has a velcro racetrack and racecar on the I think there should be a way of rewarding and
side of his desk. It moves up/down according to his behavior.
punishing students for their good/bad behavior.
Also, each student has a numbered clothes pin that clips to a
No matter what that way is, there should be
lamenated poster, which also moves up and down according to one. I like the clothes pin idea especially.
each individuals behaviors.
Pre-test for science and observation of her students who need
I think its a good idea to ask what they
help. Asks students What do you know about the previous
remember from the previous day because it
day?
reintroduces what they learned and keeps it
fresh in their head.
Quaterly summative assessments, Math tests and quizzes,
I have gotten the chance to look over tests that
spelling tests
students have taken and I think that it is really
important to be able to see where each student
is at.

Grading system: Traditional,

standards-based

A little bit of both. She has an excel sheet where she marks for
completion of homework. They still have the same report cars,
which have Beginning, Developing, or Secure.

It was really cool to see how the grading

system works in an elementary school setting,
I like the excel sheet idea and how she only
marks for completion of homework.

Teacher Interview
1. What ways do you find yourself reflecting on your teaching practices? For example do you think your conversations with your colleagues,
journal writing, examining student work, conversations with your students, or just thinking about your teaching for the day?
Mrs. Bruce said that she talks with her PLC often, she goes to every Institute Day. If something is not going well in the classroom, she tries to figure
out why it didnt work out well. She is constantly on the go, deciding what works. Something she said that was really motivational was that it
becomes apart of you meaning that once you are a teacher for long enough, learning how to improvise becomes a part of who you are.
2. How does reflecting on your teaching practices drive your future instruction?
If something works well then she will use it again for future lessons or future classes in the years to come. If something doesnt work as planned, she
might try it for a different lesson or not use it again at all.
3. What method do you use to keep track of grades and homework completion?
She keeps track of grades and homework completion with an excel spreadsheet. For ELA and math transfer tasks there are rubrics. Extended response
is a method of keeping track of grades as well.
4. What assessment does the district use to determine a students ability at the beginning of the year and what assessment is used to determine
progress? Do you use any other forms of classroom assessment to determine academic progress?
The district uses R-CBM fluency (how fast you can read). They progress monitor by utilizing checkpoint at the middle and end of the year. M-COMP
(math computation) at the middle and end of the year as well. First grade should be able to do addition and subtraction.
5. Can you tell me about the Rti process in your school district? What is the process to refer a student for special services?
They have a data review meeting (every 6 weeks), if a student has difficulty the teacher can fill out a student concern form and/or have a problem
solving meeting, where the teacher tries to pick new strategies. When a student is first noticed as maybe needing an IEP they set up a domain meeting
to ask parents if it would be okay for their child to take IQ tests.
6. What methods would you suggest for keeping yourself organized? For example what method do you use to keep track of parent contact,
when students turn in permission slips, lunch count, attendance or picture day money?
She uses lots and lots of binders! She has binders by the month and binders by the subject. She also numbers each students desk so that she can use
the students number as a way to communicate things instead of renewing everything each year (students mailbox, clothes pin, hot lunch magnet,
etc).
7. How do you keep your students families informed about what is going on in the classroom or with their individual student?

There is a monthly newsletter that gets emailed and sent to parents. They have edline where students and parents can go to see more about the childs
class and what they are working on, as well as links that Mrs. Bruce put on there. These links can not only inform the parents on what the student is
working on, but it can also be used as a tool for the parents to work with their children at home as well.
8. Do you encourage parental participation and volunteering in your classroom? Why or why not?
Yes she does, but in the recent years there has been problems with neighborhood moms gossiping about other students in the class. So now they only
allow parental participation for field trips, room parties, and art awareness. I guess this school in particular has been having a hard time getting
parents to volunteer for room parties. This is sad to me, because room parties used to be my favorite!
9. Do you meet with your grade level partners on a regular basis? Do you have collaborative plan time built in your schedules? What is
discussed at these meetings? Is this district or school mandated or do you find time to collaborate yourselves?
There is a grade level meeting every Wednesday. As to what is discussed at the meetings, it depends on the year the conversations change.
10. What clubs, coaching, or committees are you involves in beyond the school day? Does you district compensate employees for sponsoring,
coaching, or committee membership? Is there a minimal requirement?
She is apart of the ELA Champs Committee (no compensation), here it is a train the trainer kind of committee. The district trains the teacher and the
teacher will train other teachers. She is also apart of ILT which is an Instructional Leadership she does receive a stipen outside of school for being a
part of this.
11. Does your administrator solicit feedback from teachers on school initiatives? What kind of initiatives are taking place in your school right
now?
PARCC, leadership team: makes decisions, she receives feedback from her leadership team. The Principal may come out and give feedback as well.
12. How do you stay current on hot topics in education or best practices?
She doesnt like to read that much but she learned alot through her grad program, she looks on Pinterest, and she learns a lot from her professional
development trainings. She will go to teachers planning meetings, and always attends Institute days.
13. Do you attend workshops or participate in professional development activities? What are the most recent ones you have participated in?
Yes, all the time. She said every Wednesday which is why they have the late start.
14. Are you a member of any professional organizations? If so, which ones?
Yes, Illinois Education Association (the union), but no other ones.
15. Are you on any leadership teams or are you in charge of any committees? What are your roles on these committees?
Yes, the Instructional Leadership Team, which sets guidelines, planning, and what to do on certain days, they meet once a quarter. ELA Champ, train
the trainer she goes to meetings and brings info back to co-workers. Theres five people from each school.

16. If you knew then what you know now, what advice would you give me?
Always find teachers who seem like they know what is going on, learn from them. Ask questions and be involved. She said she wished she had
gotten her masters earlier on, because she would have made more money. She also said to wait to get my masters after having a job for a few years
because then I wont have a hard time getting a job but that around 3-4 years of being a teacher somewhere I should go back and get my masters so
that I can begin making money earlier.
17. What is the most rewarding thing about being a teacher?
The most rewarding part of being a teacher for Mrs. Bruce is seeing the growth of her students, especiall because they change and grow so much as
first graders.
18. What is the most challenging this about being a teacher?
The most challening things about being a teacher is the paperwork, evaluation changes, state and federal mandates, and dealing with parents.