This narrative takes a look at a class of kindergarten students from a rural farming community. The class demographics and contextual factors will be discussed. The class is made up of ten girls and thirteen boys making a total of twenty-three students in all. The ages range from five to six years old. These ages are typical for kindergarten students. At this particular district, students attend school from nine to three thirty, Monday through Friday. Many different contextual factors affect the day to day operations of the classroom. In this particular setting, being considered a rural community is considered a contextual factor that impacts the teaching and learning of the class. When reading a story involving city living or talking about …show more content…
In the school I have been working at the air conditioning has been broken. Some classrooms are too hot while others are too cold. I have been unfortunate being placed in one of the rooms that get too hot. I watch the students in this classroom struggle with paying attention and focusing on the lesson. Many students complain throughout the day, but all that can be done is cracking open the windows a little. The room around us plays a role in the way we learn. When we are uncomfortable, it is hard to think about anything but …show more content…
I had the female student read a story to the class that talked about all the things that started with the letter L. She loves to be the teacher’s helper so giving her the chance to help teach her friends made her very excited. The rest of the class sat on the rug for circle time. The male student is very antsy and never stays seated. It was recommended that he start sitting in a chair instead of on the floor to help settle him down. In addition to giving him a chair, I planned on teaching the class the letter L song that had movements to teach it. The male student absolutely loved this! He was able to get out of his seat and move around the rug. Instead of being a behavioral challenge, he was participating with the class. From that day one I have tried to incorporate hands on learning and activities that get the class moving so that maybe the behaviors can be less of a
Kozol addresses the horrific conditions of the institution, student’s feelings and emotions toward the lack of opportunity they feel that are not available to them, inconsistent staffing of teachers and lack of college preparation classes available to them. Students voiced their thoughts in regards to the lack of courses available, horrific school conditions with lack of bathrooms available to them. The large campus that could take up to fifteen minutes to arrive at the next class, inconsistent staff which hinder learning. Beverly Hills High School, a technical arts requirement, could be met by taking classes such as broadcast journalism, advanced computer graphics, carving and sculpture to name a few (709) compared to Fremont High offering sewing, hair dressing and life skills. It is quite apparent that the same opportunity is not available due to socioeconomic class and location of Fremont High School. The opportunities that even I was offered in small, country school are absent from Fremont High School and that in fact is distressing. One’s educational possibilities should not be limited due to socioeconomic class. All Americans should have educational opportunities readily available to
Another thing that I observed and recorded with an a frequency count was Jamie doing several work sheets. One of theses worksheets was a math specifically counting and the other worked on identifying objects that started with the letter R. After the teacher gave instructions on both the papers Jamie started to work on her worksheets. With in the time it took her to finish these worksheets (less then 15 minute) Jamie ask on of the adults if she was doing the work correctly about seven times. One thing that I would modify in the future is the instructions that were given at the beginning. I would make sure that the students understood what they were support to be doing before they started the assignment. I would also be very specific with
The Child Development Center of College of San Mateo provides early care and educational programs for children between the ages of 3 to 5 years old. Children are divided into classrooms with a “master” teacher, a “regular” teacher, and two or three “associate” teachers. Klara attended Classroom, “A,” a stimulating and well-resourced classroom. Klara was observed for two hours on Monday from 9 am to 11 am and for two hours on Wednesday from 9 am to 11 am. During these two hours, classroom activities consisted of “free time,” “story time,” and an outside “play time.” A “master” teacher, a “regular” teacher, and two “associate” teachers were present during observations. Additionally, a total of eighteen children were in attendance during the observed days.
This mixing of inner-city and suburban cultures creates new challenges for students and teachers alike. Children from the inner city characteristically have lower GPAs, attend very few AP classes and have a dropout rate that is much higher than their suburban counterparts. This has been an area for much exploration and study throughout the years, but yet the trend of a knowledge gap among children seems to continue. Perhaps one area that needs to be further explored is the differences in cultural identity in these two groups of students and its impact on the education these students wish to achieve.
Berns, Roberta. Child, family, school, community: socialization and support. 9th ed. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth/Cengage Learning, 2013. Print.
Berns, R., (2010), Child, Family, School, Community: Socialization and Support; Belmont CA. Wadsworth Cengage Learning.
Cook, G., & Cook, J. L. (2010). The world of children. (2nd ed.). Boston, MA: Pearson Education Inc.
In my future classroom, I will be sure to know which of my students are living in poverty. I will do so to ensure that I create assignment which all of my students have the resources to complete. For instance, I will not assign a computer based assignment if I know that a number of my students do not have a computer in their homes. While this may be the case, my school district could have mobile technology available for my students to use. Ultimately, these readings taught me that I must be aware of an extent of my students’ history and home life when creating and assigning
Kindergarten is a time of exploration and adventure in which an individual begins their educational journey. This first year sets the stage for the academic success and social status of a student for years to come, and a blunder during this time can be detrimental to an individual, especially in regards to the social aspect. If deemed an outcast during this time, especially by a student who has been assigned to the upper caste, it is likely that they will be unable to move up in their system; however, it can be done.
... air conditioning and they need to do to keep these children cool," Stams (Fitzpatrick). The students complained about over the heat of 90 degrees in the classroom and difficult to focusing and learning in awful environment. In fact, these are 12 of the 255 public schools in the states have air conditioning (“Hawaii”).
Schmitt-Wilson, Sarah (2013). Social Class and Expectations of Rural Adolescents: The Role of Parental Expectations, Career Development Quarterly. Volume 61, pages 226-239.
There are different ways that a teacher can deal with a student’s undesirable behavior. Some of these strategies are: positive reinforcement, negative reinforcement, punishment or extinction. The type of r...
Children are unique individuals with different desires and needs. They provide challenges for teachers to meet and conquer. Some of these many differences stem from the diversity of the students in the classroom. Ultimately, much of this diversity comes from the many special family situations in which students live. Cultural factors, prior experience with education, family structure, and socioeconomic factors all have effects on children’s education.
• Lessons should be kinesthetic and experiential. Use a variety of manipulatives. Be aware of ambient temperature—try to keep the boys from warmer areas in the classroom. Males do not hear as well as girls, so move them closer to the instruction.
As I started out researching for the paper, I realized that most importantly, data would need to be collected comparing the educational opportunities and achievement of the rural youth and those of urban youth. For instance, high school grades and SAT scores could be compared, as well as college applications and attendance. Beyond this, the actual school systems of rural and urban areas would be compared - the differences in funding, ideology, resources, etc., would grant insight into the students’ experiences and goals there.