Block Experience

Recently, we started the field experience portion of our Senior Block experience; this is by far the best part of this program! I have enjoyed being in a real classroom, interacting with students and other colleagues. I have been able to teach almost daily (prior lessons) and have learned classroom management skills that only come from on the job training. I feel a connection with my students and cannot wait to plan and implement my unit during my time here! Since my first day in the classroom, I have noticed the teacher's difficulty to get the students motivated to read. The school district took away AR testing, so the students are expected to read without any accountability. After talking with the mentor teacher, I sugges0ed Flashlight reading. She loved the idea and the students were extremely excited to hear about the idea. I explained the rules to the students: 1) If you are caught off-task (playing with the flashlight, talking) I will take the flashlight away. 2) I purchased the flashlights personally, so they belong to me (must leave in the classroom, do not destroy them). I agreed to a 1 minute play with the flashlights prior to starting the reading session. The students are allowed to get out of their desks and we turn off the lights for the reading session. The students were so excited, they decided this is their secret assignment and they voted to keep the strategy a secret from other students. After implementing the flashlight reading 2 days, it is a success! The students actually sit and read for 20 minutes without protesting! I'm sure once the novelty wears off the students will gradually get off task, but this is a fun strategy I would implement 1-2 times per weekin my classroom.

                                                             Mrs. J