My Field Experience

My Field Experience

1.       How many hours did you complete?

a.       I completed 6 hours or 360 minutes of field experience for this class.

2.       In a short paragraph or bulleted list, how did you spend your time?

a.       I spent 1 hour of my time observing a fellow teacher teach a synthesizing lesson using the book The Great Kapok Tree.

b.      I spent 2 hours of my time collaborating with my SMLS, Reading Coach and one representative from each grade level planning an in-house reading training for our staff and creating a grade level book list for each grade level to use for standards/skills and thinking strategies.

c.       I spent 4 hours going to three different story times at my local public library. I went to two short story times for younger kids and then I went to one Waggin’ Tales story time (Which was my favorite!) I also got to talk during this time with the children’s librarian there and just what kinds of things they have to help classroom teachers and what they offer to student’s to get them involved.

3.       How did the experience help you to strengthen at least one Kentucky Teacher Standard? (Be sure to name the standard)

a.       I think these field experience hours definitely helped me improve on Kentucky Teacher Standard 8: The teacher collaborates with colleagues, parents, and others.  Working on planning that training and collaborating to create that booklist was an awesome experience. We had to decide as a group what was most important and how to go about conveying that information to our staff. I am truly blessed to work in a great school and we definitely work as a team. When creating the booklists, we took ideas from the SLMS, Reading Coach and books that we as teachers had used and love, and we had to then sit down and figure which grade levels could use which books and if there was overlap. Also, if there was, we had to decide which books could be used for what skills and so forth. We were having a lot of overlap in trade books at various levels and teachers were planning lessons with books to find the kids had read them the previous year and done almost the same lesson on schema and text connections. So we sat down and hashed it all out! Not only did I get exposed to even more great literature through this, I was very proud to be part of that group that was given the trust to put that all together.  Also, I didn’t really count this as part of my field hours, but I talk and collaborate with my librarian all the time. I totally understood when you were talking about being friends with the librarian, using their resources and collaborating with them and they will be more likely to get you what you need! I am that person! Last year, I collaborated with my librarian and we got the SLMS/Teacher grant for the KBA books (a whole set of last year’s KBA books sit in my room J ) I always have at least 50 books checked out to me I swear, I’m always going in there for help and I work with her ALL the time! I know her job goes far beyond checking out books and I love collaborating with her. She is an invaluable resource.

4.       Talk a little about one thing you learned because of this field experience.

a.       When going to the public library for story times, I talked with the children’s librarian there. She talked to me about different ways the public library can help me as a classroom teacher! One thing that I had NO idea about was the fact that I can e-mail her a topic, say, life cycles, about a week before I begin my unit. She will pull up to 50 books about life cycles, check them out to me, put them in a basket, and then all I have to do is come pick them up! I was just sitting there going, “Think of all the time I will save not on the computer catalog!!!” I wanted to seriously hug her! If I would have never talked to her because of these field hours, I would have never known! I can’t wait to use this starting in the fall! I already told her our first unit and she put it in the calendar to pull the books for me! What a great and handy tool for teachers! I’m tempted not to tell anyone so I can take full advantage (haha) but I am sure I’ll share the tip!

My Reading Log

Reading Log for 30 books (to paste into your blog in at the end of the term)

• Instructions: List the titles and authors you read under each Genre, and use checklist below for Wiki posts. Then, highlight this material and paste it into a final blog post. I have already included (in the 30) the ones we read for discussion.

Genre / Titles you read

          I.    Non-fiction/Informational (1 reflection required on blog)

1)   Secrets of the Sphinx by James Cross Giblin    

2)  So You Want to be President?  By Judith St. George

3)  Sir Cumference and the Sword in the Cone by Cindy Neuschwander

4)  Almost Gone: The World’s Rarest Animals by Steve Jenkins

5)  The Aquarium Book by George Ancona

         II.    Poetry (1 reflection required on blog)

1)   Who Killed Mr. Chippendale? By Mel Glenn. (required for discussion)

2)  Dinothesaurus By Douglas Florian

3)  Where the Sidewalk Ends By Shel Silverstein

4)  Marvelous Math: A Book of Poems  Selected by Lee Bennett Hopkins

       III.    Modern Fantasy (1 reflection required on blog)     

1)   A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L’Engle. (required for discussion)

2)  Ella Enchanted by Gail Carson Levine

3)  The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe by C. S. Lewis

       IV.    Historical Fiction (1 reflection required on blog –can be a picture book)    

1)   Moon Over Manifest by Clare Vanderpool. (required for discussion)

2)  Johnny Tremain by Esther Forbes

3)  Henry’s Freedom Box by Ellen Levine

4)  And The What Happened Paul Revere?  by Jean Fritz

         V.    Multicultural/Traditional (2 reflections required on blog – one can be a picture book)     

1)   The Girl Who Loved Wild Horses by Paul Goble

2)  Why Mosquitoes Buzz in People’s Ears By Verna Aardema

3)  Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry  By Mildred Taylor

4)  Pecos Bill  By Steven Kellogg

5)  Lon Po Po By Ed Young

       VI.    Realistic Fiction (1 reflection required on blog)

1)   Bucking the Sarge by Christopher Paul Curtis. (required for discussion)

2)  Hatchet  by Gary Paulson

3)  Mr. Lincoln’s Way by Patricia Polacco

      VII.    Picture Books (6 reflections required on blog)

1)   Seven  Blind Mice by Ed Young. (required for discussion)

2)  The Garden of Abdul Gasazi by Chris Van Allsburg

3)  Hooray for Wodney Wat by Helen Lester

4)  Duck for President by Doreen Cronin

5)  Mr. Putter and Tabby by Cynthia Rylant

6)   The Relatives Came by Cynthia Rylant

Wiki Checklist

Instructions: Write the number of entries for each category you posted into on the Course Wiki (requirement is four total posts, in four different categories)

_x___ Social Studies—Completed Week 4 (Why Mosquitoes Buzz in People’s Ears)

_x___ Science—Completed Week 5 (Dinothesaurus)

____ Math

____ Music

_x___ Art—Completed Week 4 (Lon Po Po)

_x___ Reading/Language Arts—Completed Week 2 (The Relatives Came)

____ Physical Education

____ Other

The Aquarium Book

Ancona, G. (1991). The aquarium book. New York: Clarion Books. 

 

This photo essay book was really interesting to read and look through. While it was made quite a few years ago, about 20 years, the pictures of the animals and the ocean habitats will lure children into reading it. Giving you a closer look at aquariums around the United States and the animals living inside them, students will eat up this photo essay book looking through it time and time again. 

The photo essay begins with the sentence, “Below the surface of the seas is a marvelous living world, a world most of us never see…” And that pulls you in after one page. Here on the pages you are brought spectacular views of the architecture of various aquariums like The National Aquarium in Boston and the New York Aquarium in Coney Island, as well as unique and intriguing sea creatures that live there. While looking through all of the breath-taking photos, Ancona describes through the text how each of the four aquariums displayed in this photo essay recreate various aquatic environments that allow for all of their species to survive and flourish in captivity. Also, as you read, you are given a glimpse into the working of these aquatic environments. For example, on page 20-21,there is a beautiful picture of clown fish swimming in a giant anemone and then on the page is describes the symbiotic relationship that these two species have. While you are looking at all the phenomenal photographs, you are also learning crucial information about water environments around the world. After various animals and habitats are explored, the book then shifts to aquariums role in animal survival. You are exposed to how the habitats in which they live in captivity are as close to the real world as they can be, with temperatures and light and dark cycles closely monitored. If animals feel safe in captivity, they will breed and reproduce, which allows aquariums to help repopulate endangered species. I love how he closed the book, by saying that water covers so much of our planet and “the living wonders to be found there invite us to come exploring again and again.” (p. 45)

This book is a photo essay book where all of the information given throughout the book is shown in the photographs as well in the written text. This definitely is a photo essay for upper grade levels. While the pictures are the most dominant things on the page, the text that is featured is definitely a higher level. I looked up the lexile level and it was 1070, so definitely for the older readers, but it could be a great read aloud trade book for younger readers. It is a description photo essay, taking the topic of aquariums, showing examples of popular ones, exhibiting and displaying the animals that live in them, and how these aquariums help protect and enrich aquatic environments around the world. The theme of the books describes to students how important aquariums are and how they are used a research stations to learn how about marine animals grow, interact with each other and their environment, and how we can use these discoveries to protect aquatic communities and make even more discoveries. 

The pictures that are displayed of all of the aquatic animals feature captions of what the animals name is in both English and Latin. This exposes students to a different language, and I can just almost hear the wonder in their voice as they would read the book and go what is that? One thing I really liked was Ancona chose to do some of the pages where the animals were displayed on a black background, with white captions, and extremely colorful pictures. They made the animals almost pop off the page. Also, it gave you sort-of that aquarium feel: it’s usually dark, light by small lights, and the animals seem to pop right in their tanks. While flipping through, the photo essay evoked the feeling of being in a real aquarium.  

 

When trying to use the Mark the Bold strategy, it was impossible because there are NO bold words in this text. If I were going to bold words in this book, however, I would have bolded the following:

p. 2 marine; p. 8 specimens; p.13 habitats; p. 13 captivity; p. 17 tidal marsh; p. 20 symbiotic; p. 23 tide pool; p. 42 docents; 

These words would need some explanation and some detail, maybe having students look them up in a reference book, look at a specific picture and define them

.

BIG QUESTIONS: Why are aquariums so important? What might happen if we didn’t know the marine information learned in aquariums? Why is it crucial that we protect marine environments? What marine environment would you like most to visit and why? Which aquatic environment do you think is most important and why? How do you think the animals in captivity feel?

Johnny Tremain

Hoskins, E. F. (1943). Johnny Tremain. New York: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing.

Can you imagine yourself working hand in hand with the likes of Sam Adams and Paul Revere to help with the Boston Tea Party? What about sending secret messages between the rebels in Boston and investigating British soldiers? Well this is where young Johnny Tremain has found himself! Johnny Tremain is a prideful young boy who has been taken in as a silversmith apprentice after the tragic passing of his mother. However, after a "not so 'accident' accident" occurs, he is left wounded, broken and his ego badly battered. With his dreams of being a silversmith crushed, Johnny sets off to find new work. Johnny seems to be doomed! But in time, he makes friends with the an older boy named Rab who works at the local newspaper, The Boston Observer. Here with Rab, over time, he gets sworn into the secrecy of the Sons of Liberty, working with them to help plan their rebellion against England and all the redcoats piling into Boston. He uses his smarts, connections, and another boy named Dove, who is working for the British and whom Johnny knows well from his silversmith apprenticeship, to gain information and aid the rebels cause. When spring time rolls around and war is upon them, Johnny faces it head on. Rab sets out for war, but Johnny does not. He says he can't go because of his injury but is it really his injury that is holding him back? Or was the "bold Johnny Tremain really a coward at heart?" (p. 270) What happens as the tension between Tories and Whigs finally comes to a head? What will become of Johnny, Rab, and all of the other Sons of Liberty as the first shots of Revolutionary War are made?

Read the heart-stopping and suspense filled novel, Johnny Tremain to find out!