in the 4th grade

Part of my teaching program involves student teaching in two different classroom settings.  The two practicums are different lengths and vary in our teaching contribution to the classroom.  I spent November and the first half of December teaching in a fantastic Portland Public fourth grade classroom.  I had an exemplary cooperating teacher (CT) to guide me as I learned classroom management and eventually took over a unit of math.  I knew from the first time I stepped into her classroom that she would have much to teach me.  That was only solidified with her response to the question, "what is your philosophy of teaching?"  Empathy.

I wanted to share some of the great adventures the six weeks in fourth grade brought into my life.

As one of my own courses had just wrapped up extolling the importance of project-based instruction, I walked into a full-blow unit on the Native Americans.  I remember being taught about state history in the fourth grade and there was a bit of Native American history but the depth that these students were learning was great.

The second week I was part of the class we took a field trip to Lelooska Lodge up in Washington.  The students experienced all the legends they had heard in read aloud every day and were able to see a great selection of artifacts.

 On the way home, we stopped to eat lunch at a state park with this being our view.

Part of the social studies unit involved students working in groups to build their own villages.  At the onset of the project, the whole class went over together what would be important to include in their village and they were given guidelines for participation and contribution.  It was very interesting to se them working together and to be witness to the bumps along the way.  I was grateful to glean conflict resolution strategies from my CT.  One of the most challenging lessons to learn was to facilitate the students idea growth and their own work without telling them how to do it.  Guiding and letting them come to their own conclusions was really difficult for this bossy older sister.  I'm so glad to have learned that now.

Each group was given a wooden board and the class shared a supply of: tempera paints, clay, toothpicks, leather scraps, tissue paper, wire, popsicle sticks, and miscellaneous this and that.

 Whale harpooning.

 Decorated totem pole and long house with figure.

 Fish being cooked over the fire.

 "Dog fur" clothing.

 Villager fishing.

 Doomed canoe-load of fishers.

 Hand-drawn totem and excellent trees.

The start of this practicum also coincided with the start of new classes.  The MAT program I am in gives us one class at a time.  We generally have class one evening a week and one Saturday per month.  Our evening classes being from six to ten and the Saturdays from 8am to 5pm.  November brought a new and more intense schedule.  We spent five days in the classroom, following school hours, and on Tuesdays I would leave school at lunch, go to campus, conference with my supervisor from 1-2 (which varied), have a classroom management class from 2 to 5 and then a second math pedagogy class from 6 to 10.  Tuesdays meant leaving home by 7:30 in the morning and returning around 10:30 that evening.  I was very grateful to only have six Tuesdays like that.  I was (and am) grateful to living with Josh and Rachel, who would take care of my pup and have a plate of dinner waiting when I returned home on all those crazy nights.  

Having that math pedagogy class really was fantastic.  It was aimed for the Elementary/Middle school endorsed students.  We are a rare group and there were three of us in the class.  The professor took us from basic mathematics up through Geometry, guiding us with hands-on practical lessons the whole way.  The best part was that I was teaching my work sample unit in Math.  For this practicum each teaching candidate has to write a work sample that includes a ten lesson unit.  We were highly encouraged to teach our units in either math of reading.  Being that math was a daily occurrence and reading varied, my CT suggested I focus on Math.  The district has an adopted curriculum for math so it ended up that I was able to take the curriculum and pick it apart for my own lessons.  It was really helpful to have a guiding path but it was still challenging to bring that path to were the students were each day.  

 It all involved me setting down with the curriculum, standards and all of my unit building knowledge.

 Each math class involved us exploring and learning through math manipulative.  I was grateful for the experience when I discovered the curriculum I was using would be based in manipulatives.

 One highlight along the way was a lesson in basket-weaving.  The students all learned how to weave ivy into vessels.

Following the Native American unit, the class dove into science with a skeleton unit.  The introduction brought the a member of the Audubon society to share a presentation on owls.  From that presentation each students paired up and began dissecting owl pellets (solid, regurgitated balls of fur/feathers/bones).  Inside the pellets were the owl prey and a very hands-on introduction to skeletons.  

 When a partner was absent I stepped in to help a student pick apart her pellet.  I wasn't a fan of all the fine fur flying everywhere but it was such a great way to explore bones that I was eager to complete it.

 A skull.

 Upon my visit back to the classroom I found this chart hanging in the hallway (along with everyone else's).  The students had added my name to theirs.  [I erased their names for privacy.]

Fourth grade was a whole lot of fun.  I had never thought that I would enjoy an inclusive classroom setting so much, but I really liked having multiple subjects a day.  I also really liked getting to know and being able to build relationships with each student.  The experience taught me so much and I am very grateful to have had it.

Now, to finish up that work sample and prepare for the second practicum next week.