Shadows of a First Grade Teacher
Before I shadowed a first grade teacher for 40 hours I had a preconceived idea about what teaching grade school would be like. I knew that grade school teachers were responsible for teaching children to read, starting them off on the path to arithmetic and opening the world of Geography to them. In addition I knew that they were the only teachers who provided spelling tests and spelling knowledge for their students. I realized all of these things because of my own experience as a grade school student, years ago. What I didn't realize, when looking at it as a former student, is how much the teacher invests in launching the students for a lifetime love of learning. It was after shadowing the grade school teacher that I came to understand that it is those teachers who are largely responsible for causing a student to love learning or hate it. I realized after my experience that teachers at the grade school level are setting the stage for lifetime learning I learned that grade school teachers are expected to recognize the first signs of learning disabilities such as dyslexia (McNulty, 2003).
In that 30 minutes I watched her check her lesson plan, then return calls. Seeing the first graders blossom under the watchful care of the teacher I shadowed made me realize that I want to be part of creating a lifetime love of learning for those small children, who will someday run the world. Another aspect of a teacher's life that I had not realized before was the mandatory reporting situation. For the week that I shadowed her the topic was whales. This is different than a teacher at the middle school or high school level when students don't necessarily want to be noticed by the teacher. The teacher told me that she spends most evenings cutting out shapes for upcoming art projects, or talking to parents on the phone. This meant that everything was taught in units. During the time I shadowed the teacher I changed my view of grade school teaching. The teacher does entire units on conflict resolution to enforce the skill sets needed. She preferred to keep their routine as consistent as possible. As the children entered the classroom the teacher greeted each student. This meant that every subject was somehow tied to whales. The teacher believed that was the most highly focused skill to learn and she preferred to teach it when the children's minds were fresh. I was lucky because there was a field trip planned during the week I was there. During my week shadowing the teacher I found that organization is the key to success in a grade school classroom.
Common topics in this essay:
,
Wednesdays Fridays,
grade school,
school teachers,
grade school teachers,
school level,
teacher shadowed,
love learning,
week shadowed,
shadowed teacher,
teaching grade school,
grade school level,
topic whales,
lifetime love,
week shadowed teacher,
shadowing teacher,
lifetime love learning,
|
Acceptance Essays
