Department of Teacher Education & Learning Sciences

Elementary Education Program

Formal Observation Reflection

Directions: Complete the reflection questions and submit your response to your observer prior to having a post-
conference to discuss the observation. If a conference is held immediately after the observation you will submit
your responses to the observer the following day via email.

Name: Steven Lemmons Date:4/12/17

1. To what extent were learning outcomes appropriate and achievable to your students?
Overall the students did really well making connections and understanding the mood of an illustration.
Most of the students were able to make a clear connection between the image and an event without
extra assistance. Others were able to make a connection when I explained the instructions again and
gave an example. I wanted the students to take the message of the story with them but this is hard to
gauge. I believe that all the students enjoyed the lesson.
2. How effective were your instructional strategies? What changes would you make in
your instructional approaches if you taught this lesson again? Why?
During the lesson, the students responded very well to class calls and worked well together in groups. I
used the if you can hear me. Strategy and the students responded very well. Along with the class
call, the students stayed on task when working in groups. When I allowed the students to talk about their
pictures they drew, the discussions were very good. If I did this lesson again, I would allow the students
to talk to others when thinking of their life event to connect to the illustration from Oh the Places Youll
Go. Students could have bounced ideas off each other and cleared up confusion by talking to their
classmates.
3. Evaluate the effectiveness of your oral and written communication with students.
(Consider how well you communicated learning objectives, clarity of directions, use of standard English, quality of
questions and effectiveness of discussion techniques.)
Out of 10, I would give me a 7. Since most of the students understand what I expected of them, I think I
did okay. Some students did not originally understand the task after our read aloud but fortunately I
responded well and one on one cleared up their confusion
4. Evaluate the level of student engagement in your lesson . (Consider how you presented the
content/skills, the activities and assignments for students, grouping of students, and structure and pacing of the
lesson.)
The students were very engaged. When I asked students to share their connections to the illustration,
more than half the class raised their hand. One reason I did this lesson was to promote motivation and
persistence. I questioned if the students would complete their work and participate and I was glad to say
that all but one student gave 100% participation. I noticed that during the read aloud, some students lost
interest during the end of the story. I would include more turn and talks if I did this lesson again.
5. How effectively did you use instructional materials, resources, and/or technology?
I used Dr. Seusss Oh the Places Youll Go, the document camera, and pencil and paper. The document
camera allowed me to project the illustration so that the whole room could see. I wish I used a
worksheet that had a box for illustration and lines for an explanation. This would have been organized
and maybe clear up some of the students mis-understandings.
6. To what extent were your assessment strategies effective? What changes would you
make in your assessment approach if you taught this lesson again? Why?
While walking around the class, I was able to observe the students work in order to see if they were
connecting the illustration to a real life event. I did well creating conversations with students making
them explain their connections. If I would teach this lesson again I would monitor the conversations
going on. I would also assess students knowledge on the mood or theme. The mood and theme are
very important in the story. Since I wanted the students to be motivated and persistent, I would assess
the students on their understanding of the mood.
7. To what extent was your feedback to students accurate, substantive, constructive,
specific, and/or timely?
During the lesson I gave a lot of feedback when I was circulating the room. I would ask students about
their drawing and explanation of their connections. If the students made a good connection, I would
praise them and motivate them to keep making connections when working. If students did not make a
clear connection, I would help them get back on track and praise their thinking and hard work. When
sharing I wish I would have given students more praise and repeated the students responses.
8. To what extent did the classroom management and environment contribute to student
learning? (Consider your classroom procedures, your use of physical space, and the students conduct.)
I used classroom management really well. I took advantage of resources and materials, space and used
strategies to keep the students on task. When I implemented the read aloud, I moved the class to the
carpet. The change of environment helped the students stay focused. When the students worked at
their desks, they were able to work silently and discuss with their students. Overall I was pleased with
my classroom management during lessons. Obviously not perfect but the lesson ran smoothly.
9. Did you make modifications to your lesson plan during the lesson? If so, what were
they and what motivated these changes?
During the read aloud I added a few turn and talk questions that I did not plan to ask. I noticed that
some of the students were losing interest in the story so in order to keep them on their toes, I asked 2
turn and talk questions. I wish I would have asked one more because the students were engged when
talking to their classmates.
10. Was your Teaching Behavior Focus goal met?
Overall, I believe that my teaching behavior focus goal of maintaining classroom management and
creating opportunity for student discourse was met. The lesson was great and the students had
wonderful conversations with each other. There were a few improvements I could have made but I am
very pleased with how the lesson went.