Week 7- September 27th-October 1st, 2010 and Inquiry

This week at my PDS, I took over the whole morning routine (8:00 a.m.-9:00a.m.). This routine includes the Calendar routine, Morning Message and Shared Reading. Next week, I will begin taking over Word Wall instruction after centers and Read Aloud after Writing in the afternoon. I was very nervous this week for some reason. My main concern was time management. I wanted to make sure that I could get through all the activities in the allotted time plus make sure that students understood everything. After the first few days, I felt more comfortable in my teaching. I also think that the students are becoming more comfortable with my teaching and beginning to see me as an authority figure in the classroom. Three days this week, my mentor teacher had to be out of the classroom in the afternoon which left me to cover for her and our aide to assist me. It was very different being in the classroom and taking over subjects that I had not taught yet. I learned that you have to stay very organized and keep the lesson running smoothly as well as add transitions between activities. The afternoon is always rough in Kindergarten because they are in the mode of getting ready to go home. I know that you have to think up very engaging lessons/activities that involve hands-on or else you will not keep Kindergarten students’ attention in the afternoons.


This week I am still working on pre-activities to help with missing number. I am doing a number before, number after activity with the students during Math center time. I hold up a number (1-10) and ask students, “What number comes before? What number comes after?’ This will help with the missing number concept because the students will understand how to fill in the missing number blank when they know understand what number comes before and what number comes after. Next week, I will begin my official missing number activities with the students. I am hoping that I do not have to go back again and do more beginning activities or I may have to re-evaluate the research that I have chosen and see where to go next.