Oct. 25, 2006

Today I went to normal west community high school to observe Jill during her lunch, homeroom, and algrbra class. When I arrived at the HS, Jill's father was expecting me (He is an officer at the school). He directed me to Jill who was waiting in the atrium for me, smiling, wearing white socks with nike flip flops, jeans, and a grey fleece zip-up hoodie. Her tshirt underneath had a religious saying, something like "Got Jesus?" (I think).

I followed Jill into the lunch room full of students. We sat down down at a table of girls. They seemed a little intimidated or unsure of how to react to my being there. Im not sure if Jill told them beforehand that I was coming, but she did not introduce me. We were only seated for a few minutes when Jill asked the girl across from her if she was ready to leave. She girl nodded and we got up. Jill turned and said goodbye to the other girls, walked down the aisle over backpacks. As she passed her brother she said hi and playfully pushed him. Jill threw out her garbage and went back out to the atrium. She explained that the students have to wait there until the bell rings. Jill and her friend kept saying that they were really early.

I asked Jill if they usually come out this early or if they wait at the table. She said no, they were just really early today, and she didnt feel like talking to those people today. I asked her why, and before she could respond, her friend said, "Because Ben's not here." (Ben is Jill's boyfriend). Jill laughed then made a sad face. Hurridly she said, "He makes fun of everyone! Thats all he does, and its so funny." She said he was at the doctor for most of the day, and would probably be back right after I left. I asked her if he walked her to every class, and she smiled and said, "Yeaaaah." Her friend made a comment and Jill responded with "You know its cute."

Jill then kept saying she was hyper. "I'm never this hyper. Never this hyper." Her friend said, "No, youre usually not." Jill had Mountain Dew in the morning, which is unusual for her. As we waited, Jill explained the layout of the school to me-- which hallway was for each class, etc.

The bell rang and I followed Jill to her locker. As we walked down the hall, she said hi to a few people. We stopped at her locker to get her books then headed for homeroom. Once we got to homeroom, Jill introduced me to the teacher and I took a seat. I realized that it wasnt JILL's homeroom, rather she was somewhat of a leader for the freshman. Jill, along with 2 other older students, led the class in a discussion. She was very confident, and although the class was roudy, she was able to ask questions and get them involved. She took on a similar attitude that she had when I observed her at work. Jill wants to be an elementary school teacher, and watching her interact with this group of freshman helped me see her characteristics that would make her a great teacher.

Next we headed to algebra. I got to sit right behind Jill in this class. Several times she turned around and mouthed to me how much she hates this teacher. She later explained that she is a really good student and used to like math a lot, but she is getting an 85% in this class and it is only getting harder. Most of the class was spent going over the previous night's homework and taking notes. Jill did not take notes on the homework, which led me to believe that she understood it fairly well. She tried to pay attention, but I could see her staring off and flipping through her binder. During the lesson, Jill did take notes, but looked bored. At the end of the lesson, the class was given time to start the hw. Jill turned around and talked to me about the class and the teacher. She did a little bit of the homework, then decided to finish it at home. At the end of class, Jill walked me back to the office. She was in good spirits and was happy that I came to school that day. I told her I would email her and let her know the next time we could meet up. She smiled and went off to her next class.