Place Value Reflection
I chose to do my lesson on place value based on the students’ needs and the needs of my cooperating teacher. While preparing my lesson my cooperating teacher and I agreed that I should use something visual and interactive to engage the students and motivate them. Although the math routine in P.S 76 is very structured, I was able to change it up because of the flexibility of my cooperating teacher. This was very helpful while I was planning. Overall, I felt that the lesson went very well and that the students really enjoyed the change in routine. Although there are some ways to improve this lesson, I definitely felt that this lesson was very successful and was very helpful to the students.
Going into my first lesson I felt that everything that I had done previously, related to teaching, had prepared me for this lesson. Originally, I was very nervous to teach 5th grade content but once I got started I felt like I was in my element. I made sure to maintain management throughout the lesson using different techniques. I used Ms. Pagan’s technique and got their attention using, “If you hear me clap once, if you hear me clap twice”. This is something that the students are familiar with and understand. I also made sure that if they were noisy that I told them that I would wait until I had their full attention, meaning eyes and ears on me. This seemed to work because they realized that they couldn’t play the game if they weren’t listening to me. Another strength about my lesson was the fact that I made sure to reiterate that they had several resources that they could use to help them with place value. This is important because these resources help them when they are doing work individually. These were just a few of the qualities that I liked about my lesson.
One of the best qualities about my lesson was the fact that it was very well prepared. The amount of preparation before the lesson really helped me explain the content in multiple ways and it also allowed me to easily give examples because I completely understood the material. Without preparation I probably would have had to refer to my lesson plan for example problems. Also, because I completed my lesson plan a week in advance I was able to constantly make changes and add different parts to make it better and to relate the content to the students’ real lives. This concept definitely benefitted them and allowed them to look at decimals in a new light.
P.S 76 is a teachers college (TC) school meaning they use they must use the workshop model in everything that they do. I tried to incorporate this model into my lesson. I used a very large place value chart to help model to the students how to read and place the numbers correctly on the chart. Then I guided the students using the board and they were able to practice reading and writing the decimals using the chart. This manipulative was very helpful to the students and really helped them put it into perspective. I knew that the concept of the large poster was working when one of my students, who really struggles in math, raised her hand and compared two decimals for me perfectly. I was so proud of her because she doesn’t really enjoy math and has a tough time with it. I was very excited to see her engaged and excited throughout the lesson. After the modeled and guided practice, using the poster board as a manipulative, I had the students return to their seats and use smaller versions of the place value chart as they participated in a group activity. This manipulative helped the students work collaboratively to reach a solution. The game with the smaller place value chart was very successful. However, I wish that I took this activity to the next level. I could have given a problem and they could have raised the charts when they had the answer. This would have shown me which groups were grasping the concepts and which ones were struggling. Another improvement with this activity is that I should have had several digits rather than just one of each. This would have allowed me to come up with more problems and also more complex problems. I was limited to which problems I could ask because they only had one of each digit. Also, although the students knew what I meant when I was writing decimals on the Smartboard, it was very messy and hard to read. I could have written the numbers on a dry erase board and then flipped the board over. This would have been a lot neater and easier for the students to read. The use of manipulatives and group work really allowed the students room to learn and grow. They practiced working together and also were engaged in the hands on game.
I felt that overall my directions throughout the lesson were clear and precise. I spoke clearly and slowly for the most part so they could understand what we were doing. The students definitely understood the directions because they did exactly what I asked them to do. There were no confused or puzzled looks and I could see that everyone was focused on playing the game. At times I could hear myself talking too rapidly but I was conscious of it and I slowed down to a regular talking pace. By gauging the students and watching them I was able to determine that they were following along. Another positive that I took away from the lesson was that I paced myself very well. Every piece transitioned smoothly into the next and the students were never bored or frustrated. My lesson filled the time period perfectly and every part of the lesson led into the next. The sequence of events was very meaningful because I scaffolded the lesson in a way that allowed the students to slowly work on place value on their own. I started with modeling, moved to guided practice, then to group work, and finally to an individual assignment. I felt that this was able to happen successfully due to the preparation.
Overall, I felt that there were a lot of positives to take from this lesson. My cooperating teacher loved the lesson and felt that it really helped to reiterate the topic of place value in a way that the students could relate to. Also I felt that this really benefitted the students because they were really struggling with this topic and needed it explained in a new way. I felt that by engaging them in a fun way allowed them to learn the material without simply completing problems out of their textbooks. This lesson went extremely well and I am excited to grow and learn from this one to take into my next one.
Going into my first lesson I felt that everything that I had done previously, related to teaching, had prepared me for this lesson. Originally, I was very nervous to teach 5th grade content but once I got started I felt like I was in my element. I made sure to maintain management throughout the lesson using different techniques. I used Ms. Pagan’s technique and got their attention using, “If you hear me clap once, if you hear me clap twice”. This is something that the students are familiar with and understand. I also made sure that if they were noisy that I told them that I would wait until I had their full attention, meaning eyes and ears on me. This seemed to work because they realized that they couldn’t play the game if they weren’t listening to me. Another strength about my lesson was the fact that I made sure to reiterate that they had several resources that they could use to help them with place value. This is important because these resources help them when they are doing work individually. These were just a few of the qualities that I liked about my lesson.
One of the best qualities about my lesson was the fact that it was very well prepared. The amount of preparation before the lesson really helped me explain the content in multiple ways and it also allowed me to easily give examples because I completely understood the material. Without preparation I probably would have had to refer to my lesson plan for example problems. Also, because I completed my lesson plan a week in advance I was able to constantly make changes and add different parts to make it better and to relate the content to the students’ real lives. This concept definitely benefitted them and allowed them to look at decimals in a new light.
P.S 76 is a teachers college (TC) school meaning they use they must use the workshop model in everything that they do. I tried to incorporate this model into my lesson. I used a very large place value chart to help model to the students how to read and place the numbers correctly on the chart. Then I guided the students using the board and they were able to practice reading and writing the decimals using the chart. This manipulative was very helpful to the students and really helped them put it into perspective. I knew that the concept of the large poster was working when one of my students, who really struggles in math, raised her hand and compared two decimals for me perfectly. I was so proud of her because she doesn’t really enjoy math and has a tough time with it. I was very excited to see her engaged and excited throughout the lesson. After the modeled and guided practice, using the poster board as a manipulative, I had the students return to their seats and use smaller versions of the place value chart as they participated in a group activity. This manipulative helped the students work collaboratively to reach a solution. The game with the smaller place value chart was very successful. However, I wish that I took this activity to the next level. I could have given a problem and they could have raised the charts when they had the answer. This would have shown me which groups were grasping the concepts and which ones were struggling. Another improvement with this activity is that I should have had several digits rather than just one of each. This would have allowed me to come up with more problems and also more complex problems. I was limited to which problems I could ask because they only had one of each digit. Also, although the students knew what I meant when I was writing decimals on the Smartboard, it was very messy and hard to read. I could have written the numbers on a dry erase board and then flipped the board over. This would have been a lot neater and easier for the students to read. The use of manipulatives and group work really allowed the students room to learn and grow. They practiced working together and also were engaged in the hands on game.
I felt that overall my directions throughout the lesson were clear and precise. I spoke clearly and slowly for the most part so they could understand what we were doing. The students definitely understood the directions because they did exactly what I asked them to do. There were no confused or puzzled looks and I could see that everyone was focused on playing the game. At times I could hear myself talking too rapidly but I was conscious of it and I slowed down to a regular talking pace. By gauging the students and watching them I was able to determine that they were following along. Another positive that I took away from the lesson was that I paced myself very well. Every piece transitioned smoothly into the next and the students were never bored or frustrated. My lesson filled the time period perfectly and every part of the lesson led into the next. The sequence of events was very meaningful because I scaffolded the lesson in a way that allowed the students to slowly work on place value on their own. I started with modeling, moved to guided practice, then to group work, and finally to an individual assignment. I felt that this was able to happen successfully due to the preparation.
Overall, I felt that there were a lot of positives to take from this lesson. My cooperating teacher loved the lesson and felt that it really helped to reiterate the topic of place value in a way that the students could relate to. Also I felt that this really benefitted the students because they were really struggling with this topic and needed it explained in a new way. I felt that by engaging them in a fun way allowed them to learn the material without simply completing problems out of their textbooks. This lesson went extremely well and I am excited to grow and learn from this one to take into my next one.