Observations before Spring Break

So the week before Spring Break was somewhat interesting. On Monday, the class was finishing the movie The Wizard of Oz. It tied in with their Great Depression chapter since it was made during that Era. The students had to write about why the movie was made during such a time. The students understood that the happy movie was made during a time when people were obviously not so happy. They needed something to brighten up their lives. I asked the students if they had ever seen the movie before, and, thankfully, all the students had. I like to check on things like that because I forget how much younger the students are then me.

After the movie, the students began taking notes on the next chapter. Some broke into groups, while others worked alone. I walked around to see what type of notes the students were taking. The next chapter is World War II. Most students said they had learned about WWII before, while others did not know much information about it. This was a little surprising. I noticed that the ESL students did not take notes out of the book. Instead, they had a seraprate packett with pictures that was easier to read. It seemed to help them out greatly.

That Monday I was observing by myself. I tried to communicate with my teacher more; she seemed a little less standoffish, but there wasnt a great improvement. I asked her if she received my email, but she hadnt yet. We talked a little bit, but it still felt forced.
The next observation day, I was with the other IWU student. The teacher didnt really communicate with us at all. She seemed to go back to her usual self. We both tried to be more involved with the class by giving out Cav Cash and trying to take more inititive. That day, the teacher was explaining to the students was a Japanese Internment camp was. She used a song by Mike Shinoda of Linkin Park to help the class relate. It was a great way to bring the past into the present, and LP is one of my FAVORITE bands =) I thought this was very creative.

The next time I came in, the school had ISAT testing. I was observing with the other IWU student again. The class was in the computer lab since they dont test for social studies. They were working on a web quest about the bombing of Pearl Habor. They were on the National Geograhpics website interacting with photos and actual video clips and stories from survivors. It was the most interesting site I have ever seen! The students were also very interested in it and worked quickly. Our communication with the teacher that day was minmal. We walked around constantly, helping the students if needed, but the teacher barely acknowledged us. This just keeps getting more and more frustrating. She still has not replied to my email. Right now I am remaining professional (as always); I can still learn much from this teacher, but I want to be an integral part of the classroom, and I dont feel like she wants to cooperate. After their spring break, hopefully something will change, if not I guess I will just have to keep trying.