Field Experience

Trinity Christian College Field Experience Form

Context for Learning

Description of School and Students

About the School Where You Are Observing or doing Field Experience

School Name and City: Triple R Child Care, New Lenox

Type of School: Elementary school, Middle School, High School, or Other:   Preschool/Kindergarten & 1^st grade

Setting: Urban, Suburban, or Rural:  Suburban

Write your responses to the three questions below in paragraph form.

1.       List any special features of the school or classroom setting (e.g., themed magnet, classroom aide, bilingual, co-taught with a special education teacher, pull-out program). 

They have an indoor playground as well are 3 different outdoor playgrounds for the different age groups.  They do have cameras all over the building and one iPad per class for the teachers.  If a child has a therapist, they may come in and work with the child while in their class, as early as 12-month-old.  

2.       Describe any district, school, or cooperating teacher requirements or expectations that affects the planning or delivery of instruction, such as required curricula, pacing plan, use of specific instructional strategies, or standardized tests.

Since this school only goes up to 1^st grade there is no standardized tests. They do have a company come in to provide each student with free hearing and seeing screen tests.  For the classrooms employees are even a binder with a curriculum that they must follow.  Each room even in the infant rooms the teacher creates lesson plans and does artwork based on the curriculum.

3.    For special education only: List any educators with specialized expertise in the school/district (e.g., specific disabilities, subject-specific pedagogy, English language development, speech therapists).

About the Students in this Class [Give a brief or one word response]

1.    Estimated percentage of students eligible for free/reduced lunch: ESCO? 28%

2.    Grade level(s): pre-k – 1^st grade

3.    Number of

a.    students in the class: 15

b.    males: 9

females: 6

c.     English language learners: None

d.    students identified as gifted and talented: unknown

e.    students with Individualized Education Programs (IEPs) or 504 plans: 3

4.    Complete the chart below to summarize required accommodations or modifications for students receiving special education services and/or students who are gifted and talented as they will affect instruction. As needed, consult with your cooperating teacher to complete the chart. The first row has been completed in italics as an example. Use as many rows as you need.

Special Education Category	Number of Students	Accommodations, Modifications, and/or Pertinent IEP Goals
Autistic	2	Close Monitoring, extra time on work, need certain way of communications
Behavioral Plan	1	Sticker chart, every 30 minutes of good behavior, consistent reminders

About the Class You Observed

1.       How much time is devoted each day to instruction in the classroom? Describe the class periods (if applicable)? Choose a content area of your specialty or major. How much time is devoted to teaching that subject?  

I would say about 20 % of the day is instruction in the classroom. There are no class periods, but halfway through the day, the students switch classrooms from a specific learning environment to an open exploration environment.  My content area is physical education, which this school does not offer.  They do require each class to include gross motor activities 2 times a day for 30 minutes, which is normally in the indoor or outdoor playgrounds.

2.       Is there any ability grouping or tracking? If so, please describe how it affects your class.

Since this is such a small school there is no grouping or tracking.

3.    Identify any textbook or instructional program you primarily use for instruction. If a textbook, please provide the title, publisher, and date of publication.

Like mentioned before, the administration gives each teacher a set curriculum that they have to use to create their lesson plans.

3.       List other resources (e.g., SMARTBoard, manipulatives, online resources) used for instruction in this class.

In the kindergarten and 1st-grade rooms there is a whiteboard, one desktop computer, and two iPads.  Every other room has one iPad that is for the teachers use only.  The teachers use the iPad to update the student’s days, using the Brightwheel app. This app allows the parents to see exactly what their child is doing while at school.

5. What do you know about what your students know, what can they do, and what are they learning to do? What do you know about your students’ everyday experiences, cultural backgrounds and practices, and interests?

  

                        Most of these students come from wealthy families.  There are only three families that are African-American, and a few Asian families. The rest of the building is primarily Caucasians.  The students in the kindergarten class were learning about butterflies and how they change from a caterpillar going through all the stages.  I noticed that there was rarely a day where all the students stayed on green, meaning they were not given any warnings to move to yellow, or red.  

6. Describe one teaching event. What best practices in teaching were used?

        I like that the teacher had ordered some caterpillars for the students to be able to watch and observe how it goes through all the stage and then they were able to release them as a class outside.