My first week in Elliott - 4th grade inclusion classroom

            It felt strange walking up those unfamiliar school steps and approaching the security desk first thing Monday morning. Thanks to our summer program placement and training days, Ridge Street – the facility and faculty – were already very familiar by my first day of school.  However Mrs. Diaz and Ms. Gennaro immediately welcomed me into the classroom. The students were sweet and curious. The room looked huge to me with three loooong rows of students (We’ve thankfully changed back to groups.) After the pledge of allegiance, Mrs. Diaz told the students I was going to do an activity with them, and I was on. I took a deep breath as I stepped to the front of the class. There seemed to be SO many of them, but the teacher instinct kicked in, and I conducted a little True/False activity for the kids to get to know me better. They had fun getting to know the less obvious facts about me – jumped out of a plane, etc…- and I them, as I had them all introduce themselves and share their favorite activity.

            My class is a fourth grade inclusion classroom. There are 24 students with 10 students who are either classified, in the process of being classified, or have a 504 plan. There is one personal aide in the classroom, and she is actually a new addition. She was brought in for Aiden (diagnosed with autism) about a month ago, but the teachers tell me that Aiden’s behavior seems to have worsened with her presence rather than improved. I think she was previously an aide for younger grades and has expressed that she doesn’t feel comfortable redirecting (which often includes confronting Aiden). She refused, for example, to take responsibility for him on our trip to the Liberty Science Center. They are trying to work with her to give her more guidance for how she should be working with Aiden.

            With so many kids with needs (well beyond the 10% Dr. Lalyvani’s research suggests), there is always something for me to do and someone for me to help. The more open-nature of the instruction (reader/ writer’s workshop and small group work) also facilitates my assistance. My efforts to assist students 1-on-1 often annoyed Lisa because she believed they undermined efforts to make the students more independent. Mrs. Diaz and Ms. Gennaro don’t share this view. So, I have conducted small-guided reading groups as well as assisted students 1-on-1 during writing, reading, and math. I’ve worked a lot with  Issac, who has only just been classified through Mrs. Diaz and Ms. Gennaro’s efforts, but came in to the classroom reading at around a Kindergarten level.  I conducted my first “official” whole group lesson on Friday.

            I’ve witnessed the need to be flexible my first week as I’ve seen administrative decisions and other matters change quickly. We were informed Monday that we’d be taking a field trip on Wednesday to the Liberty Science Center. At the LSC, our school’s lunches were never deliverd, and so our student sat there for over an hour as the Ridge Street School group ate their lunches and then left. Finally, we got the OK to buy the cheapest item available for the kids to eat.  Sadly, all the confusion took up a great deal of the day at LSC, but otherwise the students had a great time, and it was a great way for me to get to know them almost immediately in a different way. As I left on Wednesday evening, both the teachers and the students said that they would miss me the next day.

            The biggest difference I noticed during my first week in special ed was in myself. I noticed I laughed more and joked more. I sang. I was myself. It was the first time I truly realized how much I was not myself in my previous placement. It makes a huge difference in my own personal sense of satisfaction, but I believe it will also make a difference in my ability to teach as well. 

My Week at Roberto Clemente

Reflection for my first week at Roberto Clemente Elementary School:  2/4/13 - 2/8/13

Class:  3rd and 4th Grade Language and/or Learning Disability Mild

My week began immediately on a theme of community.  I met Mrs. Pino on Monday morning, and she introduced me to her daughter, Riley.  Riley goes to kindergarten here, and loves making colorful sketches on the whiteboard in our classroom while she waits to be taken down to her class.  She is escorted by Angel, a student in our who is excited to have a special task and with a lot of responsibility.  Though I haven't seen his IEP, I believe this task is connected it.  

Before class began, I was given a tour of the school.  Along our walk, we'd pause at different classrooms or in the hallway where Mrs. Pino would introduce me to other teachers, security guards, the nurse, and other members of the Roberto Clemente community.  Though it will take me some time to learn them all, I felt really welcomed and appreciated the tour.

Mrs. Pino had told the students, on the Friday before my arrival, that they would be having another teacher come into the classroom community.  Perhaps this is why many students were eager to engage in varied interactions.  There were stories, questions, and calls for me to look at their work.

Mrs. Pino is very organized and her general presence is a balance of being warm, poised, direct, and fierce in a way that conveys and demands respect.  She has experience with the residency and immediately created a space for me to fully engage with the students.  At first I took notes on observations of the morning routine that involved the classroom aids doing a homework check, a do now of division problems and fact families that had to be copied from the Smart Board into their morning work journals, supplemental worksheets of the same skills, and a morning written entry including message highlighting the special class for the day and the weather.

After the morning routine, I formally introduced myself to the students with a PowerPoint presentation called, The Story of Me.  I had made this for an assignment at Seminar with the purpose of introducing myself to the students at Bragaw.  It had worked so well there, that I updated it and used it at Roberto Clemente.  The students loved it!

After the PowerPoint, I told the students that I was happy to share my story and would also like to know about their story.  The only parameters I gave them were that I wanted some form of writing along with illustrations that tells me about who they are.  I offered a few prompts connected to what I shared, e.g. their name, birthday, members in their family, and their dream.

I also told them that they would have all week to work on them.  We would give them time in class, and they could also take their story home to finish it.  On Friday, we would all have a chance to present our stories.

By Wednesday, I marveled at how quickly I had melded into the classroom community.  The students, whom the teacher noted were one of the best classes she's taught in her 14 year career, were respectful and open to my role as an additional teacher.  As I led shared readings in literacy, health, and social studies; introduced an inquiry lesson on the snails, fiddler crabs, and frogs in our classroom; and played a few games all of the students participated with enthusiasm.  At the end of the day, Wednesday, I told the students that I'd be gone every Thursday but that I would be returning Friday.  I  told them this would be the schedule until the end of the year, and it was a joy to hear the students express happiness that we'd be together for so long.

On Friday morning, I stopped by Bragaw to deliver movies I made for the students.  They highlighted our time from September through January.  Ms. Wise was caught in morning traffic, and unfortunately, I didn't get to see her.  I did, however, get a warm greeting from the head custodian and the security guards who told me I could leave the videos with them to pass on to Ms. Wise.  Here's my video:

After dropping off the videos, I went to Roberto Clemente with excitement stirring within.  It felt really nice to maintain my connections to Bragaw and have the opportunity to grow in a classroom at a different school.  I looked forward to seeing and hearing the presentations from the students.  Also, I had an overall feeling of satisfaction at how my placement was going and for all that I'd learned in the first week.

The presentations went really well.  12 out of 16 students presented, with two being absent, one forgetting the story at home, and the other, a student who has issues with completing tasks, who had not done one.  He is a student that I will have to encourage and understand with tenacity because I can tell he has so many ideas to share.  It seemed that after hearing and seeing everyone's presentations, the students were regretful in not having one to present to the class.  I filmed the presentations and will incorporate them into a movie for my time at Roberto Clemente.  

Now that they've had practice at telling their stories, I would like to have the students create a PowerPoint for their Story of Me.  So, I will be designing lessons for them to do during part of their time at their weekly computer lab session.  It will reinforce literacy skills in writing and speaking; teach them how to use PowerPoint and it's creative features such as accessing it, creating a layout, font settings, inserting pictures, and being ready for a formal presentation of their PowerPoint on the Smart Board.  

With my time here at Roberto Clemente, I want to continue encouraging community building.  As was noted in our class, Partnerships with Families...everyone has a story to tell and given an opportunity, most often they love to tell it.  With these stories, I aim for our class to gain a better understanding of ourselves, each other, and our community.  I see it happening, and it is satisfying.

First Week at Peshine

After having had such an amazing placement as I did at Ridge Street, I was both nervous and enthusiastic about starting a new placement in a new environment with a new mentor, and most importantly with new students. I also had many questions about what things would look like in a "Renew" school. After just one day, I could see things would definitely be different! However, after one week, although I know there will still be many more changes to which I will have to adjust, I recognize that my learning goals continue in this placement and there is so much more I can and will learn in this new placement.

The first focus I took going into the week was to learn about my students. I introduced myself to each of them individually on the first day and spent the week learning more about them and letting them know things about me, especially interests we share like playing music or liking basketball and video games. I also spent a lot of time asking questions about the resources used in the classroom to teach. There is a new ELA program (Read180, Making Meaning) and a new Math program (Go Math!) to accompany a slew of new technological resources (Smart boards, Smart Response, Kickboard, Dreambox, and several others). I'm still processing how this more basal-oriented style of teaching will go along with my more organic lesson planning style, but I've already adapted some Making Meaning lessons to go along with skills we are teaching in Read180 in order to start experimenting with a small group model for literacy instruction. One thing that has helped me acclimate to the new Math resources is that my new students are basically in the same place as my former students (division), so I have some lessons and strategies that I can use right away.

I've also begun wrestling with the idea of a self-contained BD classroom. So far, I've found that the "disabling condition" for our students does not seem to be their particular emotional or behavioral issues, but rather the model that places them all in the same classroom. I know that I have a lot more to learn about students with BD, but I do know that I prefer the small group model of instruction, which leads me to believe that either a smaller class size, near-exclusive small group work, and preferably inclusion would all be more effective models than the environment that Newark currently considers the "model" for BD. Thankfully, my mentor is open to questions and suggestions, and Ms. O'Neill has stated repeatedly that she is willing to try any ideas I come up with that might aid in the instruction of our students.

I know this placement is very different from my last one, but I have already discovered that I will enjoy learning here just as much. I do find some of the days long and some of the moments draining (such as watching students restrained), but all the adults in the room care deeply for our students and handle the kids and themselves professionally and respectfully. I look forward to learning more from our aides- Ms. Spears, Ms. Washington, and Ms. Armstrong- as well as from Ms. O'Neill as I continue getting to know my students and how to best use the resources available at Peshine to make myself a better teacher and make a positive difference in the lives of my students.

New Jersey Regional Day..... February 19, j

My first day at my special education placement will not be until Tuesday, February 19, 2013.  In preparation for this placement,  on Wednesday, February 6, 2013, I went to visit the school and to meet the students.  Since I did not call ahead of time, I was not aware that my assigned class was on a field trip to Rutgers.  The visit to the school was not a total waste as I had an opportunity to meet the school principal Michelle Adubato.

My meeting with Michelle (all staff are referred to by their first name even the students call staff by their first name) was interesting.  She and I met for what I have referred to as an impromptu interview.  She asked me about my professional background, my definition of teaching, and my experience in my current placement.  She even wanted to know what I new about her school (glad I had been doing some research on the school).

Our 15 minute meeting concluded with a discussion about clarity from our text The Skillful Teacher.  Michelle stated that she is great fan of the book and that she often refers to the book when working with her staff.  She explained that she is a very hands on principal and that she always expects excellence from her staff.

I am glad that I stopped by the school but the impromptu interview/visit did nothing to quiet my nerves or the anxiety I am feeling.  I am confident that I will learn a great deal about working with such a fragile population but I have many questions.

I will be working with students who are in grades 7 and 8 but are developmentally on a pre-school/kindergarten level. I can not help but wonder what were the children like before coming to Regional Day?  Did the children receive early intervention services?  Did the children fall through the cracks?  Is a self-contained class in a self contained school the best educational environment for this population?  What will the future hold for this population?  Will I be able to assist in their growth and development?

These are just a few of my questions I hope to have answered over the next five months.  I am looking forward to adding additional tools to my toolbox and I am looking forward to the challenge of working with the label of PDD.  A label what is in a label??????????????????????????????

New Placement, New Learning

I was not looking forward to leaving my classroom at Ridge Street School. I developed a wonderful professional and personal relationship with my mentor, and I grew to love the students in my classroom. I believe that they know how much I care about them, and are confident that I valued each of them for who they are as individuals for the time I was with them. I wasn't sure I would be able to walk into a completely different placement in the middle of the year and feel as part of the classroom. Especially since there would also be three aides whose presence would surely alter the dynamic of my relationship with both my new mentor and students.

When I started my new placement last Monday, I did not know what to expect. Sure, I had spent time getting to know my mentor when I observed her class last year, but my purposes for being there would be very different this time around. I wouldn't just be observing and helping out, I would be taking on all the responsibilities of a teacher for the remainder of the school year. I wondered how well my sudden presence would be received.

After spending 4 days in my new placement, I have come to realize a few things. First, I will have to make some adjustments. I have to develop a different kind of relationship with my new mentor because she is a different person, and the needs of the students in her classroom are different than in my previous placement. Change is good, and I am at the point in the residency where I do not need as much support as I did 5 months ago. The timing is just right for me. I know I have a steep learning curve. There are new strategies, materials, techniques, websites and procedures I will have to learn about and use on a daily basis. Perhaps most important of all, I know I will grow to love this new group of students just like I did at my old school. Every day that I come back, I sense them opening up to me more and growing aware that I am going to be a permanent fixture in the classroom. It will take time to develop these relationships, and I just have to remind myself that everything did not fall into place instantly in my last placement.

I am excited about what the next 5 months will bring. I know I will learn a great deal and push my practice to new levels. I am also someone who will bring new ideas and ways of doing things that I have gathered during my time in the residency. I am confident that I will a well-rounded resident who is ready to become an effective teacher of record.

First week in PreK

Walking into McKinley for my new SPED placement was familiar and exciting. Ms Guzman has been wonderful at introducing me to their routines and procedures, while allowing me to explore the classroom and the students on my own as well. It is a vastly different environment from my last placement. Nieves's 3rd grade class at Abington was home to 28 students with one full time aid. My new class consists of 10 students...9 boys and 1 girl, all ranging between the ages of 3 and 5. There are 2 aids that are in the classroom full time.

The variance in student ability is astounding, with several students reading, communicating and questioning, while others are competely non verbal and have yet to be potty trained. It has become quite evident that while there is certainly time carve out for group lessons and shared learning experiences, the majority of instruction happens on a one on one level. As we all learned in our previous Pre K placements, the Creative Curriculum is designed to offer instruction through play time. During that time is when most of the teaching happens. Ms. Guzman is fabulous at circling the room and scaffolding each childs playtime experience with prompting and questioning that meets them each at their own level.

There is also a large discrepancy between the invovement levels of the students parents. Some are in the classroom regularly, and bringn classroom treats and goodies for all. Others have a hard time remembering to pick their children up, and refraining from arriving (I believe) under the influence of narcotics. What the children share is their excitement for being in the classroom. As a mom of toddlers, I can appreciate the wonder that the PreK classrooms in Newark hold for young minds. There is so much to do and for them to explore. Shelves and shelves of puzzles and blocks, pretend areas and science discoveries. There is enough in the classroom to keep them busy all day long, and yet I find that they all find comfort in one or two areas alone.

I am interested to see how the remainder of the year unfolds for me in my new placement. Several of the students have already taken a strong connection with me, and Ms. Guzman feels that I have already progressed some of their learning in the short time that I have been there. It will be an adjustment for me coming from the third grade. While chatting with Evan at Seminar, I told him that I hadnt really taught a lesson yet. He replied..."Theres always time for a read aloud!", to which I responded that I had probably done more than a dozen in the three days that I was there. This got me thinking. In addition to the read alouds, I had colored, played pretend, built with blocks, painted, sang songs, and led a dancing congo line through the classroom, all while asking questions, responding to inquiry and modeling social interaction. Now, again, as a mom, this is just a typical Saturday afternoon for me. But to a Prek aged child, this is indeed the way they acquire information. I guess I did teach a few lessons after all :-) 

Reflection: First Week of Sped Placement

I did not really know what to expect going into this new placement.  I was extremely sad to be leaving the Abington community, my mentor and my students in a place where I felt completely comfortable and essentially being dropped into a new setting in the middle of the year. I was also pretty nervous and anxious after hearing some not so great things about the area from numerous people. Even though I had met my mentor last Thursday, I didn't exactly know how to read her which left me rather apprehensive about approaching her. When meeting her, she told me that her aides are somewhat territorial, which definitely didn't help my case of nerves.

When I walked in on Monday, I kind of just sat back and got my bearings. It was busy from the moment that the students walked into the room. Since they are in Pre-k, the first thing that they did was go to the bathroom. As a matter of fact, we spend a lot of time going to the bathroom throughout the day. We have 9 students (8 boys and 1 girl), 4 of which are nonverbal and a set of twins. There are also 3 aides in the room along with my mentor. Two are personal aides and the other is the standard classroom aide. I actually get along well with all of them, which is helpful. There are just a lot of people in one room with only 9 students which takes a lot of getting used to.

By Tuesday and Wednesday, some of the children were saying my name, laughing with me and actually acknowledging my presence which definitely eased some of my nerves and concerns about fitting into the classroom. My mentor explained to me that she had just gotten about half of the students 3 weeks ago so we're all learning together, which is very reassuring.

I taught my first small group lesson on Wednesday. I worked with the verbal students on writing the letter B. They are able to identify it and tell me things that start with the letter B but have not mastered writing it yet. We used instant jello POWDER on wax paper and the students traced it over and over again using their fingers. We repeated "straight line, fat belly, another fat belly" over and over. It was very interesting to watch them use their little fingers to make the letter.

I'm looking forward to the next couple of months in this placement. I think that there is a lot that I can learn especially in the areas of differentiation and the importance of documentation. I'm also going to be working on implementing PECs into the classroom so that is something that I am definitely excited about. Coming from 3rd grade to pre-k and going from teaching fractions to the letter B will take some getting used to, but I'm ready for it.

First Week SPED

It's difficult to put into writing my thoughts about my new placements, especially after only being there for four days. We are all in a transition period; we have said goodbye to our old placement and students and have embarked on the final placement of our 18 month journey. I'm sure everyone has had to make adjustments this week and will continue to do so throughout our SPED placements.

After hearing about my placement, I was looking forward to the next five months. I was thrilled to be working alongside a resource teacher with a wonderful reputation that pushed into two rooms. I was going to get to see two different inclusion classrooms, participate in IEP meetings for a variety of students K-5, and be part of joint-planning sessions for different grade levels. I thought my placement was a dream come true... Fast forward a few hours and my mentor quit the program and a replacement mentor was found. I'm not ashamed to say that I was extremely disappointed and broken-hearted. Even while I write this I'm am upset. In the short 44ish hours I had my initial placement, I was able to vividly envision an awesome learning environment, jam-packed with quality teaching and learning opportunities for me and my new students.

Despite my disappointment I went into my first day (Monday) with an open mind. (I guess I had to since I never got to meet my teacher before walking in that day.) The classroom consists of four students (1 girl, 3 boys), a "classroom aide," and my teacher. In the four days I have been there one day one student was absent, and another day two students were out. It is interesting to be in a classroom fro an entire day with a teacher, an aide, a resident, and two students (one of which is non-verbal). It's even more interesting when one of the students gets pulled to do Wilson... 

I have concerns about my placement, but I'm trying to look on the bright side of things. I'm unsure what the rest of the semester will be like, but it will be an experience.

           PARENT TEACHER CONFERENCES AT BRANCH BROOK ELEMENTARY

       Parent Teacher Conferences in Ms. Forfa's class are warm, to the point, and compassionate. Fortunately, the parents in this community obviously care for and are concerned about their children, and may not be troubled by the burdens that affect other communities. Out of a class of 26 students, 26 parents/caregivers were present! Not only was my mentor Dana  Forfa's 2nd grade class replete with eagerly anticipatory parents, from the "staff room" conversations I held during the week, practically every teacher in the building was busy meeting with his or her classroom parents. (I make a point of this because, in stark contrast, the parent turnout at Maple Ave. School, earlier this year, was disappointing to say the least.)

        Anthony P's mom arrived with her usual warmth and smiling face, yet, she always seems to be waiting for the bad news...which NEVER comes! Her son is a delight and works exceptionally hard on each and every assignment.  Earlier in the school year, I had the opportunity to sit in on a Child Study Team meeting about Anthony. His mother was extremely worried because she was informed by the professional staff at at his previous school, that he would probably need an intervention of some type. Neither Ms. Forfa nor I felt that there was any type of behavior, academic or otherwise, that would warrant an intervention. Ms. Forfa stressed, "You just let him read at home, to you and to anyone else, and we'll take care of the rest!" Anthony is progressing well...

        Joselyn G.'s mom came in and was immediately informed how well her daughter was doing. (Something she is well aware of because every time I see her coming into the school or leaving, I give her an update on her daughter's progress. She is an energetic, bright and respectful young lady (actually all of our students are) who wants to do well and continues to make every attempt to do so. Because I have established a wonderful rapport with all of the parents I have met, Joselyn's mom felt comfortable enough to ask ME to make sure her hair was "in place" for picture day.

       Nicolas R's mother appeared, as she usually does, to pick her sons up (he has a younger brother in kindergarten) and was more than amenable to engage in a conversation about Nicolas' progress. Nicholas is a quick-witted, intelligent young man with a penchant for conversation with his table mates, especially Jaelyn, who sits alongside him. His reading level is a 16, which is the independent level for a second grader. Unfortunately,  Nicolas' parents recently separated and it is obvious that his frustration thresh hold is becoming lower.  For instance, if he is made aware that he has responded incorrectly to a math homework answer, he becomes easily agitated; Recognizing this, and utilizing the knowledge obtained regarding his family issues, I always begin by telling him how great he is doing and that he only made a couple of slight errors (which is the truth). Also, whenever he or any of the students respond correctly to all of their homework problems, I put the word PERFECT! on their paper. This seems to evoke a deep sense of pride in the students, as well as their parents. (Homework correction time has also become a time where I can implement expansion of vocabulary strategies. For instance, each week the word for really good or great papers changes: Excellent, Fantastic, Superb, etc. have all been relished by the students and can actually be seen appearing in their descriptive writings.)

       Leeah S, recently named student of the month waited outside while her parents came in and were given the wonderful news that their daughter is doing exceptionally well. This type of feedback ALWAYS makes a caregiver beam with pride. 

       Luis M. is the oldest of three boys, and his mom is now pregnant with, you guessed it, boy number 4! Luis is extremely bright, but would habitually fall asleep during class. Ms. Forfa addressed this area of serious concern with the principal, Mr. Cullen, previously, and apparently Luis' mom has been making a great effort to avert a serious problem. She stated that he would take long naps after school, then could not go back to sleep once he finished his extended nap. Ms. Forfa suggested that he not be allowed to nap after school or if so, only for an hour. His mom agreed, and apparently it has been working...He no longer falls asleep! Luis is a wealth of knowledge, something his mother attributes to the fact that he reads, reads, reads, all the time.  I know this is true, because at every given opportunity he wants to tell me about a book he is reading and is even utilizing words such as strategy and text-to-self connections without prompting!  He is a joy to have in class and his mother was proud to hear it...

       All in all, Parent Teacher Conferences at Branch Brook School were pretty much ideal. One can only hope that the parental turnout and level of concern in other areas of this fine city,  will reach Branch Brook's proportions. Perhaps, when we have our own classrooms, we will find inventive and persuasive ways to help those parents who have difficulties, become model parents as well.  A collaboration between teacher and parent (s) is crucial for the success of our children!

PT Conference Reflection

I had the nerve-wracking pleasure of participating in my first set of parent-teacher conferences at Ridge Street. Overall, the experience was a positive one, but there were definitely some important lessons that I learned about preparation and cultural awareness that I hadn't deeply considered prior to the conferences.

First, preparation is key. Mrs. Comesanas has a binder in which she keeps all her printed online assessment tool reports (DRA/Slosson scores, previous year reports, individual and group reports) so that she is ready to tell a parent where a student fell relative to his or her personal progress, progress relative to that of his or her peer's in this year's class, and progress relative to benchmark targets. She was comfortable with locating data on the students on command, so clearly she knows how to manage the online data. She also had anecdotal notes for each student and other comments prepared. These were all things I would want to emulate in my practice as a teacher.

I was able to participate in some of the preparation as well. In fact, Mrs. Comesanas entrusted me with recording detailed notes on each student's reading log, because my notes became a focal point of her conferences when she discussed literacy with her students. I took notes on the kinds of books our students were reading, whether there was a good variety, whether they seemed to be spending too much time on a particular book or repeating books frequently without additional insight in their notes, as well as the quality of their writing in the reading logs. As I wrote down the notes, I paused to consider what a wonderful assessment tool reading logs are for all the skills mentioned above, and more! I think that a reading log will be something I will try to incorporate as a daily homework assignment. In addition to motivating students to read, requiring parental signatures also creates an additional ability to dialogue with parents and feel like you're communicating with them, and ensuring that parents are forced to be interested in their students' learning and work.

One challenge that came up was with Spanish language. While I was able to understand the content of each conference, it was difficult for me to get heavily involved in them because my ability to speak Spanish has not caught up to my ability to understand it. I had let my Spanish studies fall off my radar for a while when I learned early in the year how  much Spanish my students actually spoke. Our one L2 student left the class at the end of October, so since then I've spoken very little Spanish to my students because our language of instruction is always English. What I didn't consider was that my students' English would be SO much stronger than that of their parents, which meant I did not prepare Spanish comments for the parents in advance. Knowing this might be a challenge even in a non-ELL classroom next year, I think one change I will make with my own conferences will be to write comments in Spanish ahead of time, because it will give me a crutch to lean on when making comments and will give parents something to refer to without having to rely on my broken or inadequate Spanish. A good lesson learned!

I also had a bit of an awkward moment with the one conference I was asked to hold on my own with the parent of the student whom I studied for my literacy child study. I looked over his scores and my log notes, but I didn't really know all of his grades off the top of my head. Unfortunately, this caused me to give serious pause when I moved to discuss the grades and saw that Angel was failing math. I did not remember that his grade was an "F" and thus was very nervous explaining to a parent that her son was having serious struggles in a major subject area. I did adapt well on the spot, because I do know Angel well and was able to explain that his math struggles were largely a result of his literacy struggles, and so to improve on his math grade I would focus heavily on his reading skills to enable him to read directions, solve word problems, and execute exemplars. The lesson I took from this was two-fold: have my own set of notes with my students' grades independent of his/her report card, and review them before each conference, even if that means asking the parent to wait while I gather my thoughts; and, it is a good thing I know my students well because it meant the difference between appearing a little nervous and appearing a lot incompetent.

Lastly, it was very interesting to see the difference between student behavior during class and behavior with a parent present. Our most jovial students looked nervous and stone-faced, and I felt really bad that a discussion that was aimed at helping them was causing them so much stress and anguish. We had a student break down and cry because she wasn't getting "A's" (Mrs. C told me that her father had probably set unreasonably high expectations of her and she hadn't met them). Other students looked really sad when their struggles were discussed, but we always included them in those discussions and let them know that our goal was to help them, not to let them keep earning bad grades. Once we calmed students down, set clear expectations and a plan of action to help them moving forward, their demeanor improved across the board.

In conclusion, there was a lot that I learned at each stage of the conference- preparation, execution with the parent, and including students in dialogue about their learning- that I hope to take with me when I prepare for my own set of conferences next year. It was much different from last year's conferences, where I sat across the room as a silent and for the most part invisible observer. There was no escaping the eyes or questions of concerned parents. Luckily, they seemed to have full confidence in both my and Mrs. Comesanas' insights and were willing to work with us to help their students continue learning. Also, I learned that bilingual classes always have perfect or near perfect parent attendance at these conferences, which speaks to the importance of education and parental involvement as a matter of home culture. We had at least one parent attend for each of our 14 students!

Reflection for Parent-Teacher Conference

Reflection for the parent-teacher conference night:

            When looking back on this event, I think about what went well, what could have gone better, and what connections were made.  It was really great to meet some of my students' parents, and I was surprised about how many showed up--nine out of thirteen.  Ideally one would want to see all of the parents, but this was a nice starting point.  

            One thing that was really useful was our student folder system.  Though it was time consuming and stressful to put folders together for the students--and the system can surely be refined so that it is less stressful by not letting papers pile up--they were the highlighted center of the conversations I had with parents that night.

            The student folders contain all of the classwork for literacy, health, and social studies.  There is also a folder for weekly assessments.  These were all helpful because they provided artifacts that told the story of how a student was learning and initiated talking points for conversations with the student and the parents.

            For every conference, I made sure that the students were a part of the conversation.  I felt that it gave them more ownership into their learning.  It also gave them a chance to respond to any questions that the parents had. 

            Conferencing with the parents and students came second nature to me.  I warmly greeted them and praised the things that I appreciated about the students.  If there was something immediate that came to mind as far as any issues we've been having in class, I brought it up in a way that didn't belittle or criticize the student.  Rather, I posed it as an issue that we were working on…and for every student struggling with behavior I saw marked improvement.  Having the parents there helped with reinforcing to the student that s/he had people who wanted them to succeed.

            Another highlight to the conference was being able to connect with other members of the students' families.  There was one student with whom I made a connection earlier in the year because her sister was having a baby.  She was excited for me to finally meet her nephew who was a month old.

            There were also two brothers whom I met, though they were not related to anyone in our class.  One was a former student of Ms. Wise and was in 3rd grade now.  The other one was in kindergarten.  Their mother was having a personal conversation with Ms. Wise.  This showed me how sometimes parents seek teachers for support.

            As the boys were getting into different things in the class, I engaged them so that they were less likely to get in trouble.  I ended doing all sorts of lessons with them with playing games using words from our word wall, using the whiteboard for writing exercises, and even doing some drumming exercises on a drum I had brought in for my Native American studies.  It was really fun to have a whole classroom with lightly structured learning and students that wanted to learn…and the mom appreciated having quality time with Ms. Wise.

           

            As the evening came to a close, I realized that I had done half of the conferences on my own.  This was helpful to Ms. Wise as she was able to have long conferences with some students and parents that really needed longer sessions.  I really appreciated the trust and respect that Ms. Wise had given to me from early on that allowed me to grow in a way that I felt confident, competent, and knowledgeable enough to speak with the parents.

            In thinking what I'd like to do differently in the future, I found two things.  One is that I would like to reach out to parents that didn't respond to the parent teacher conference letter.  I'd like to see if there was a way that I could help them make it to the school or find a suitable alternative to talk about their child's performance.  Something else I'd do is to have some kind snacks and drinks to simply make the conference even more fun and enjoyable.

Reflection on Parent Teacher Conference for Bragaw Elementary School

            On Thursday, November 29, 2012, the Newark Public School District held district wide parent-teacher conferences.  The purpose of the parent-teacher conferences is to offer parents an opportunity to meet with their child’s teacher.  There are a total of 34 kindergarten students at Bragaw.  The 34 students are divided between two classes; Ms. Jones and Mr. Smith.  Of the 34 students, 20 parents/guardians attended the parent-teacher conference. 

Due to illness, Mr. Smith was absent.  I observed Ms Jones conduct parent-teacher conferences with all the kindergarten parents.  Prior to the parent-teacher conference, folders were prepared for each student.  The folder contained student work, a copy of the student’s report card and explanation of grades.  This packet of information was given to each parent.  Each parent conference began with Ms. Jones offering warm feedback to the parents about their child.  Ms. Jones shared the child’s strengths, their areas of weakness, and suggestions for parents to help support their child academically.  Parents who attended the parent-teacher conference were receptive to the feedback from Ms. Jones and often agreed with Ms. Jones observations.  In between conferences, I asked Ms. Jones about delivering difficult information about a student’s progress or the lack of progress to parents.  Ms. Jones indicated that during the initial in person meeting, she does not bombard parents with a barrage of cool/negative feed back about their child.  Instead, Ms. Jones stated that she makes a habitat of following the parents lead regarding their child especially with respect to behavioral challenges.  During the parent-teacher conference, I observed Ms. Jones following the parents lead and then offering suggestions to the parent on how to support their child’s learning at home and in school.  Ms. Jones always closed by explaining that she and the other co-teachers are part of a team whose primary goal is to support the academic success of their child.

Observing parent-teacher conferences this year had greater meaning as I know the students being discussed intimately.  Parents who attended the conferences genuinely want to support their child but many parents do not know how and/or feel ill equipped to support their child academically.  One parent-teacher conference I observed involved the parent of the child discussed in my child study.  This parent is a young parent who appears to been genuinely overwhelmed and frustrated by parenting her daughter and the challenges of life.  Due to this frustration, the parent has been taking it out on her daughter.  During the parent-teacher conference, which not only included Ms. Jones and I but also the school guidance counselor, Mr. Meredith, we worked as a team to explain to the mother that we are here to support her and her daughter academically.  Mr. Meredith explained that her daughter has been referred to the Intervention and Referral Support team (I&RS) to assist in getting her daughter additional academic support.  Since I am working with the child one-on-one daily, Ms. Jones offered me an opportunity to be involved in the parent conference by explaining the work I had been doing with her daily.  I explained that 4 times a week, I work with her daughter one-on-one on indentifying the letters and sounds of the alphabet. I explained to the mother that her daughter is an eager learning and that she is making progress. I reminded the mother how the small change in calling her daughter by her full name has assisted her daughter in learning all the letters in her name and being able to write her name without the assistance of her name card.  I thanked her mother for helping me with her daughter and encouraged her to keep working with her daughter.  I concluded by  emphasizing the importance of having her intimately involved in the process of supporting her daughter academically stating that she is her daughter’s first teacher and that I (along with Ms. Jones and Mr. Meredith) are there to support and help.  The mother was receptive to the help and asked if I would make additional flash cards for her daughter to take home.  I left this parent/teacher conference optimistic but realistic that progress for this student will be slow.

By observing Ms. Jones interact with parents, I became more keenly aware of how crucial it is to have parental support and to empower parents to be a part of the process of educating their child.  Parents are the first teachers and the foundation for academic success for their child.  As an emerging teacher I intend to incorporate the practice of parental empowerment, parental engagement and the habit of providing truthful but appropriate feedback to parents by using the “sandwich method,” (warm-cool-warm) feedback.  By incorporating these three practices, I am confident that I will be able to effectively and honestly communicate the academic progress of my students.