Learning Log

What?

It has been interesting these past few weeks to be in a classroom. It has opened my eyes to a lot of things that I would have never thought about before. One thing I noticed in the classroom this week especially was the student inability to focus on the task at hand. I think in large part it is because they are only in 6th grade. I did notice though that when higher expectations were set for our students, that they were able to perform at a higher level. They just had to understand that something was expected of them and then they could usually complete that task quicker and correctly.

So What?

I think this was something huge for me to realize because in my own classroom if I have high expectations for my students and they know that they will be able to achieve higher than if they think I don't have high expectations for them. I think that I need to develop a sense for when students really don't understand a problem or a concept or when they are just being a little lazy and don't want to put forth the effort to do it. That was one of the hardest things for me to discern.

Now What?

I am excited and looking forward to the next time when I will be in a classroom and can practice on these skills a little bit more and develop other skills and areas where I am not as strong as a teacher. I think as you teach a class for a whole year and you get to know them it is easier to have that feel for a student to know when they truly are struggling, and what you can do to help that student understand those concepts they are struggling with a little bit more.