Saturday, October 16, 2010

The Power of Questions: List of "happenings" in the classroom

After completing the first three chapters in The Power of Questions, I kept a journal of the "happenings" in the classroom that bothered me, that interested me, and those that excited me.

Events that Bothered Me
  • A student with a significant speech and language disorder continues to struggle with simple directions, social situations, and most academic information, even after several attempts at various intervention strategies.  How can I really and truly help this student when her test scores are not quite low enough to qualify her for further special education services?
  • I am struggling with finding time to meet with each of my guided reading groups daily and would like to create a schedule so that my lower-level reading groups are getting the time that they need to make progress.
  • I have been working daily on implementing the Daily Five pieces for use in guided reading.  When we practice these pieces as a class, everything goes smoothly.  However, when we break into guided reading groups, I notice a significant number of behaviors occurring.  How can I enhance independence without interrupting each behavior?
  • When analyzing the weekly student surveys I give regarding feelings about certain parts of the school day, I notice a pattern of very low feelings happening on the bus.  I question how I can help to improve these feelings when I am not there.
Events that Interest Me
  • I notice that my lower readers are able to get 100% consistently on their spelling tests and am wondering how I can transfer these skills to reading and writing.
  • I have a Chinese ELL student who is very advanced academically.  However, she lacks the skills necessary for problem-solving academically when she does not know an answer, and also in social situations with other students.  I am wondering if and how I can take a step backwards to help her gain these skills.   
Events that Excite Me
  • I notice a particular group of students really trying hard to help others all the time, but not for recognition, just because they want to!
  • Our new reading series allows for all students to have a voice, as we are all reading books about the same topic. I have been impressed by the connections that students have made with each other and also connections with background experiences that they have had.  I wonder how I can help other students make connections who have less extensive background knowledge.
  • We practice handwriting through the introduction of our spelling words, and I've noticed that some students have really improved even just after a few times.  I question how I can help other students transfer these skills with a lack of time in our schedule to spend more time on handwriting.


**Please find my specific questions about these "happenings" underneath the applicable strands.**

1 comment:

  1. Paula,
    I like how you set up your blog site. I really enjoyed viewing how you laid out your resume and the wording you used in it to highlight many of the great things you are doing right now. Your students are lucky to have you as their teacher.
    Tony

    ReplyDelete