My Lessons and Reflections Weeks 8-10

Week 8
Objective: The students will learn typical jobs within a community (doctor, teacher, police officer, cook, engineer, politician, banker, postal worker, musician). They will say what they want to be when they grow up and why.
Materials: 1/4 a sheet of paper for each student with the words “I want to be a _________ because ___________.”, Large poster board, one per class
Activity: Explain to students that choosing a job or career will be an important decision in their life. People have different jobs for different reasons: they are good at something, the job makes money, it is what they have to do, etc. Introduce the different jobs and their responsibilities. Write them on the board as they are described. Allow students to give more suggestions and add them to the list on the board. Hand out the paper to the students and instruct them to fill out the sentence of what they want to be and why. Then, tell them to draw a picture of themselves in that job. When students are finished with both the picture and the sentence, they can come up and hang their paper on the large poster board to create an “Our Future” classroom collage.
Reflection: Overall, the lesson went really well. I think the one of biggest markers of a good lesson is the behavior of the students, and all except one of my classes earned a square for the week! For three of my fourth grade classes, it was their fifth square, so they got their treat - chocolate! The students got really excited; they clapped and cheered :)
     Many of the students knew what some of the jobs were (as I expected) but within describing those jobs, I taught them new words, such as emergency and invent. I also had students tell me other jobs they knew and what they did. They really liked going up and putting their papers on the poster board. That encouraged many students to complete their papers instead of doing something else. I gave the posters to the classroom teachers. I saw many of the teachers hanging them up in the classroom.

Week 9
Objective: The students will learn the name and characteristics of animals (penguin, giraffe, buffalo, monkey, seal, gorilla, cat, crocodile, camel, donkey, and elephant).
Materials: From Head to Toe by Eric Carle, three different colored chalk
Activity: Read From Head to Toe by Eric Carle. Encourage the students to move their bodies along with the book. After reading the book, list the animals on the board and describe each one. Ask the students if they know any other animals, and describe them as well. Then play a game with the students. Break the class into two colored teams (based on two colors of chalk). Have an Animal Alphabet relay race where the teams have to come up, one at a time, and write the name of an animal, starting with the letter A all the way to Z. Have the teams line up in the aisle. If needed, write the alphabet down the middle in the third color chalk as a divider of space on the board and a reference for the teams. The team that has the most animals (they only get one point per letter) is the winner. If time permits, play charades with animals.
Reflection: I didn't do the Animal Alphabet Relay Race with the 3rd graders because most of the classes were too noisy and they would not be able to understand and follow the directions. Some of the 4th grade classes had a hard time. Instead, I played charades for longer. They had a great time :)

Week 10
I didn't really have a "lesson" planned for this week, since I was only going to teach two days and it was my last two days with some of my favorite classes. For the first 10-15 minutes, I organized the class so I could take a class photo. Then I did a short lesson on different types of transportation. After wards, I let the students look at the Ford car books I brought from home. They LOVED them! The pictures are very colorful and the books include things like pictures of the engine, wheels, GPS systems, etc. I went around and took more pictures, saying "goodbye" to my students. It was sad and I got many little trinkets from them as farewell presents.

First Last

Earlier this week, I had what begun the series of lasts - my last day with my Monday classes. Next week is our last week, but Monday is Labor Day in China so we have the day off. Unknowingly, I might have had my last Tuesday classes as well. Mr. An gave us Tuesday off because we are going to Xi'an for the three-day weekend, and he thought that we needed and extra day. He said he will see if he can reschedule those classes, but I'm not sure. The moment of saying goodbye to my classes was sad. On Monday I have two of my best classes. They were also so sad when I said this was my last day. Below is a picture of my best class, Class 1 Grade 4

Right now, I feel so torn. I am excited about returning home and seeing my loved ones. I've got many things planned, including graduation, my birthday, a friend's medical school graduation in Chicago, a trip to Vegas, and a trip to Jamaica for Henish's friend's wedding, not to mention wedding planning and job hunting. There are things I miss and I can't wait to return.

On the other hand, I feel like I haven't even begun to chip the tip of the iceberg in terms of learning about China. Everyday as I go out and explore, I see and learn something new. There are so many things I want to do and so little time left to accomplish them! I wish that I hadn't cooped myself up in my room those first few weeks - I missed out on so much! There are relationships with Chinese friends that started too late. I wish that I had met some of these people earlier, especially Maggie. Every time I hang out with her I realize how much more amazing she really is.

But now is not the time for regrets! It's time to soak up my last week and a half as much as I can. Sleep? I can do that on the plane and when I get home. On my to do list is shopping, dinners, and an amazing weekend getaway to Xi'an to see the Terra Cotta Army! At night time is when I will do my "chores" such as packing...

My Life as a Celebrity

As you all figured, having foreigners in Fuxin is not very common. Except for the student teachers that come here for a few months once a year, I don't think that the locals get much real-life exposure to non-Chinese. I am an even bigger rarity. They have never seen an Indian person. Although when asked, I always introduce myself as an American. Then I get a puzzling look and here the word, "Indu" as if they disagree. I nod my head in agreement, but continue to call myself an "American." If they speak English, I explain that while I am Indian, I live in America and they go, "ooohhh." Anyway, that's a little off topic for my blog this week.

Since I am so different, I get stares every where I go. The Chinese love my big eyes and can't seem to get enough of them. I walk through the hallways and playground of the school and the students all say, "Hello" as I pass them by. The first few weeks, I was bombarded with papers and pens, the students all wanting my signature. An air of mystery, wonder, and excitement follows me wherever I go. Whenever I walk into the classroom, the students get so happy. I get little gifts from them such as pictures, toys, and letters saying, "I love you."

I was on the Fuxin Local News. The reporters came to our school one day. The teachers and students all knew because the teachers were all in their matching suits and all the students were in the uniforms. I of course, did not know until I got to school that day. Fortunately, I was wearing my nice shirt and black pants that day. We went into the fancy conference room and the reporters taped the other English Teachers and I talking about my classroom reward chart. How bizarre! I don't know what actually showed up on TV because I haven't seen it, but the candy lady told me (thanks to the translation services of one of my students) that she saw me on TV!

I'm going to be on TV again for a Mother's Day Program. A few students and I are going to be reading an English poem as a part of the school's program, and it will be broadcast on TV. I was told I will get a copy of that. I hope I do.

All that is crazy, but there is one instance of my stardom that tops everything. Maggie (the woman I wrote about as the teacher I admire the most) told me that she wanted me to visit a friend, Autumn's school. It was another Power English School branch, and I agreed. Maggie had never been there before, so Autumn's husband picked us up. As we were driving, I saw this huge crowd of people around the corner and I said to Maggie, "I wonder what's going on over there." She asked Autumn's husband and he said, "They are waiting for you!" Surely enough, there was a crowd of about 150 students and their parents waiting for me to come. OMG! I see Autumn and her other teachers, who have on a headsets microphone and matching hoodies. It reminds me of pep rallies where people promote products. Autumn puts one on me and asks me to introduce myself to this huge crowd. It was crazy. Maggie looks as me as if to say, "I didn't know about this..."I play some games with the students and hand out prizes. It was so much fun! 

If my stardom hadn't been justified yet, I had students asking me for my "autograph" on their hands!

I feel like a star. It's great sometimes, but for the majority of the time, its overwhelming. I'd like to shop or take the bus home without being stared at. I've had a little taste what it feels like to be a celebrity, and I never want to be one for real!

My Lessons and Reflections Weeks 5-7

Week 5:
Objective: Students will be able to identify their five senses by name and characteristics and the organs associated with each.
Materials: Large flashcards with pictures of the organ on the front and the sense on the back, one small item (i.e. candy) for each student.
Activity: Start by asking the students if they know about their five senses. If not, explain that they observe the world five ways: by looking, hearing, smelling, tasting, and feeling. Explain the organs associated with each sense using the large flash cards and pointing to them on your body. Ask the students for things that they smell, taste, etc. and create a lists on the board. Pass out the candy, but tell the students not to eat it. First tell them to look at it and describe it. Go through all of the senses, ending with taste. If time permits, play a game with the flash cards. Have all the students stand up, and hold up a picture. The first student who yells out the sense associated with the organ can sit down. Continue until the students are all sitting. The flashcards can also be reversed so that the teacher holds up the name of sense and the students have the yell out the organ.
Reflection: The students did not know what their five senses were, so I was glad to have done this lesson. I tried to explain the importance of each sense by picking one thing off their list and saying how you can't use another sense for it. For example for listening they would say "music." I would say something like, "Can you see music? Can you touch music?" and all the students would go, "nooooooo." Then, I would explain that our sense of sound is important because it does things the other senses can not. I did that for each sense.
       They all of course loved the candy. I played the game successfully with my first two classes, but the third class just did not understand the directions, such as who was supposed to stand up or sit down. After that, I dropped that game and played another game instead. I took the flashcards off the board and had the students come up and put the flash cards on the right column based on the lists they had made. Each time it got harder. First they had to do it with the picture, then with the name of the organ, then with the name of the sense. I think it worked out well. One thing that happened this week was that I heard students using vocabulary I had taught them in the previous weeks, such as "dairy," "seafood," and "drinks." That made me happy!

Week 6:
Objective: The students will learn parts of their body (feet, hands, knees, stomach, back, shoulders, elbows, fingers, and toes, arms, and legs ) as well as distinguish between left and right.
Materials: Large outline of a person, large flash cards of names of body parts, magnets, 1/2 a sheet of paper for each student
Activity: Point to the different parts of your body to see what the students already know. Distinguish between right and left. Put up the large outline of the person on the board. Use magnets to label the different parts using the large flash cards. Play "Desk top Challenge." Ask all of the students to stand up. They have to place whatever body part you call out on top of their desks. For example, you can call "right elbow" and they place their right elbow on the desk. If they are good, make it more challenging by calling out two body parts. Afterward, pass out paper to each students. Have students draw themselves and label as many body parts as they can, reminding them of the ones they learned last week.
Reflection: Other than the first week, this was probably my worst lesson so far. There were just so many random things that didn't go right. The first day, with my first class, I realized the words I had picked were way to easy. The students already knew all of them. The only words they had trouble with were stomach and knee. For the next lesson, I decided to add more parts. I added neck, wrist, and ankle.
     Another thing that didn't work out was the game. Students found it very confusing, so I just played a simple "Simon Says" instead. Also, the some of the classes did not get as excited about coming to the board and labeling the parts as they had last week when I had them put the senses in the right column. I had also forgotten to bring paper on Thursday. Luckily, I had some at my office, but it wasn't enough to give each student a 1/2 sheet. I had to cut them half and give each student a 1/4 sheet. The lesson wasn't a failure, but I'm not as satisfied as I have been in the last few weeks. I guess I'll have to come up with something great for next week!

Week 7
Objective: The students will learn the meaning of and how to express different emotions (silly, grumpy, angry, joyful, confused, excited, lonely, happy, and sad).
Materials: Today I Feel Silly by Jamie Lee Curtis, Strips of paper with emotions written on them
Activity: Start by reading Today I Feel Silly by Jamie Lee Curtis. Only read the pages with the emotions for silly, grumpy, angry, joyful, confused, excited, lonely, happy, and sad. Focus on over-emphasizing the emotions on each page. After reading the book, write all of the emotions on the board, act that emotion out. Encourage students to join in. Let the students know that they are going to now practice the emotions. Write the following simple dialogue on the board:
A: Hello.
B: Hello.
A: Nice to meet you. How are you?
B: I am fine, thank you. How are you?
A: I am ok. Good bye.
B: See you later. Good bye.
Have the students practice the dialogue over and over again until they seem to have a good grasp of it. Hand out the paper with the emotions to pairs of students and tell them they will have to say that dialogue with that emotion. Act out a few examples. Give students time to practice, and then ask for volunteers to go up and “perform” the dialogue. Have the rest of the class guess the emotion. Continue until time is up. Review emotions once more with the class, again acting out the emotion. This time, encourage students to join in.
Reflection: I had two very different reactions to this lesson by my Grade 3 student and my Grade 4 students.
     The Grade 3 students struggled a little. Some of them really didn't understand how to portray the emotion, and I had a hard time keeping the rest of the class quiet while students were in front of the class performing. None of my Grade 3 classes got a square filled in for the week. They were all really disappointed, but they were bad! They were just not listening. I tried my best to act out and explain the emotions to them, but they were just not having it. I told one of my Grade three classes that I was sad that they were talking so much, and my favorite two students were so cute about it. They said, "You are sad because we are not listening?" It touched my heart.
     On the other hand, the Grade 4 students loved it! They really got into the acting and portraying the emotions. One of the classes got a little too into it, but that's ok. They enjoyed coming up in front of the class and saying the dialogue. Of course, angry and excited was a favorite because those can be over exaggerated. They liked listening to the book and seeing the pictures. All of my Grade 4 classes had a square filled in this week.
     I'm not sure why there was such a disconnect between the two grade levels. This has never happened with my lessons before. I don't feel as though the content was too high, the Grade three students aren't too shy. Maybe it has to do with their attention span - they just aren't mature enough to want to sit and listen to their peers perform the dialogue?

Reflection Assignment 3

Prompt:
At this point in your student teaching, consider your teaching practice as a whole. What has changed in your approach or beliefs about the 3 keys for new teachers: management; lesson strategies, including differentiation; content? To what extent are these changes situation-specific (ie based on your adaptations to the school and social conditions in China) or based more generally on your growing experience in a classroom with real kids?

Response: 
       When considering my teaching practice as a whole in China, I believe that my management style has changed the most. During my internship and in previous work experiences, I have practiced a constructivist approach. I have involved students in the decision-making process in terms of classroom rules and choices in activities as well as spatial arrangements. I relied much more on encouragement and positive reinforcement. I focused on developing relationships with my students to create an atmosphere of respect in order to minimize disruption. However, in China, I have taken on a much more behaviorist approach to classroom management. Since I have so many classes with so many students, it is hard to get to know them on an individual level. I have to rely on a Reward Chart. Classes get a square filled in if they get through a class without getting three strikes. When they reach five squares, they get a reward, such as candy. I also use stickers to reward students who complete their work or volunteer to answer questions on a daily basis. This change is definitely situation-specific. I have had to adapt to the large number of students and the minimal time I get to spend with them. Another factor is the language barrier. It is hard to give positive reinforcement when the only thing I can say that the students will understand is, “Good!” Back home, when students are misbehaving, I talk to them, explain how it hurts my feelings and how it’s disrespectful. Here, the students don’t have enough English for that. But everyone understands stickers, strikes, and candy.
      I’ve seen that most classroom teachers in the U.S. use some type of reward system. Since I’ve never had my own class before, I can’t say that I will won’t ever use a reward system; however, I can say that it will never be my main classroom management strategy. From this experience in China, I have grown professionally when it comes to managing students. Now I know how to implement a long-term behavioral classroom management strategy that for the most part, has been successful. Before, I used to get nervous teacher, but now I am confident that I can get up and teach 60 students at one time. That has definitely come from my growing experience in a classroom.
     Lesson planning has also been very different. I usually like to plan learning centers or more hands-on activities. The lack of resources and the large class sizes has limited me from doing those things, and I have stuck more to large class, individual, or pair activities. One of the other student teachers here mentioned to me that they pictured me sitting on the floor with a group of students sitting in a circle around me. That is my ideal situation. I don’t have that classroom set-up here; the classrooms are arranged to be used solely for direction instruction. This has stretched my creativity because I don't want to stand in front of the class and lecture the entire period. Differentiation consists of my using as much oral, visual, and kinesthetic material as I can in order to reach the maximum number of students. All of my target vocabulary goes on the board as a say it and act it out. As the students repeat vocabulary back to me, I encourage them to act out the words as well. Again, these changes are more situation-specific. My previous experiences in the classroom with real kids have taught me to use more active learning, which is just not possible here.
      The content I am teaching is somewhat similar to what I would teach to my students in the United States. Although I would go much more in-depth and create more cross-curricular activities with each lesson, the basic concepts I would cover would be the same. What I decided to teach here was based on what I thought would be beneficial for students to know. This was based on my adaptations to the school and the schedule.
      Overall, I feel as though I have learned and grown a lot through this experience.

Random Things about China: Volume II

I thought it was about time to publish some more interesting tidbits I've noticed while being here.

1. This one kind-of adds to the women not changing their names. Women and men here have such a sense of equality. Rarely will there be a stay-at-home mother, because women like having their independence. The cool thing? The men seem to be totally ok with it! The women I know work so much the men have got to help out in house with chores. From what I've heard, this attitude has been in place since the Cultural Revolution. Funny thing, huh? The Communist Party means equality for ALL, not just all upper class men.

2. Women get six months off for maternity leave. That's so cool!

3. I can't believe that I haven't really really mentioned this yet, but the people here are so nice! With the exception of a few not-so-friendly cab drivers, everyone here is just so friendly. The general attitude of the people here reminds me of what I would find in the south in the U.S. Everyone smiles and is friendly. We've been treated to so many meals and shown great hospitality while being here. It's like I'm a movie star! Everyone I've gotten to know hopes that, "we can stay friends forever."

4. Toasting is a big deal at mealtimes. Everyone wants to toast and it's a sign of happiness and friendship. Also, the person who is older or has the higher status's glass should be higher when touching glasses. So, often times there will be small battles to get your glass lower to show respect when people are toasting. I've had some pretty important people toast lower to me and it's been really awkward.

5. I remember going to Joy Yee in Chicago and loving the huge picture menus. Well, all the menus in China are huge picture menus! It's awesome! I love seeing the food that I'm going to be eating. Some fancy places even take it to the next level and have the food out on display and you can walk around and point to what you want to eat. For meat and fish, you can choose your unfortunate victim.

6. Karaoke (KTV as they call it here) is really fun when you do it like the Chinese! Instead of being in a big room where everyone can see you, groups of friends get a small private room. It's really fun when you don't have to worry about embarrassing yourself in front of strangers. Here we are all singing the official 2008 Beijing Olympics song "One World, One Dream"

Montessori Preschool

For the past few Wednesday mornings, I've been going to a preschool (what they call Kindergarten here) in China.  When Maggie first told me about it, I was shocked to hear that Montessori was in China. For everyone who is unfamiliar, the Montessori Method is an educational approach started by Maria Montessori. It focuses on letting children follow their own development. Teachers are just there to assist and guide children. There is no curriculum pacing guides, since children learn at their time and what they feel comfortable doing. Montessori schools usually have very natural materials found in children's everyday environment, such as empty cartons for dramatic play. There is also very little plastic toys.

When I went, I was amazed to see much "Montessori" I could actually see in the school. The materials, the set-up, the carpet squares. The room was divided into centers, just like I would see in an American preschool. The kids were super cute too, of course. Here are some pictures:

Their beds. This would be so illegal in the U.S. because two students sleep next to each other.

Some of their materials

This is exactly like what I would see back home. Notice the picture of Maria Montessori up top.

Again, very typical of a Montessori School.

I wouldn't find play dumplings at home...

Learning and Growing

Prompt: 

1. Tell us about the teacher or administrator you most admire or have something to learn from.

2. Pick something you've avoided outside of school (going to a different restaurant or shop, going to a different part of town) and do it!

Response:
           There are 7 other English teachers at the primary school with me; however, I honestly haven't found much about them that I find admirable. The teacher that I admire is the woman I teach at the Kindergarten/Preschool with, and that I've taught with at the English Power School a few times on Sunday. She has been teaching English at both places for 10 years, and her English is better than any of the teachers at my school. Personally, I feel that I can have an easy, flowing conversation with her without having to explain what I mean to say every sentence. I like hanging out with her, and easy to get along with. I admire her strength. She has the cutest 3-year-old daughter and raises her by herself because her husband passed away two years ago. Her parents help her, but I can't imagine how hard it must be to be a single mother in China. But she doesn't let this bring her down; I always see her smiling and she has a positive outlook on life. She's my first friend in China!

          Professionally, I feel that she is an amazing teacher. She was one of the first teachers at the English Power School, which now has 10 branches. Just watching her, she has so much knowledge of the English language. I feel like she must know every sound-letter combination when she sounds out new vocabulary words to her students! More than I do! The strategies and games she uses to keep her students engaged and her classes interactive are great; I've even already used a few in my own class. I think that I can learn a lot from teaching with her and continuing to observe her. She's very proactive with the work she does, and I can clearly tell she loves her job.
           There are a lot of things that I've avoided doing outside of school that I feel like I've done over the the last week or two. I'm not sure if its because of the warmer weather (30 degrees to 40 degrees makes a big difference) or if it's just that I am starting to feel more comfortable here. The fact that cab drivers understand "Shree Yen Arn Bu" when I say it to come back to my dorm helps a lot! I've been walking around and going to new places by myself a lot. I went to the market myself a few times. Two weeks ago, I wouldn't have gone without one of the other UMSL students. I even went to an area of town to just walk around and go the shops, by myself. And I felt ok. I wasn't scared; just a little unsure, but that was fine. Another thing I did was take a pedicab. It's pretty much a bike with a small cabin attached to the back. I had been afraid to take one because of the crazy way people drive around here. I've seen a few accidents with pedicabs and I was afraid one taking one, even though so many people use them.I rode in one from school to the dorms the other day and it wasn't too scary, although I felt bad for the man pedaling the entire time. Another thing I did last week was get a blind massage. The masseuse was a little rough, but overall, I liked it! I can't wait to go back for another :)

Drumroll Please!

Now what many of you have been waiting for...

....pictures of my students!

These are pictures from Fuxin Experimental Primary School:

One of my 4th grade classes :)

One of my 3rd grade classes :)

Put the correct sense on the correct column on the board. The pictures were up originally, and the students had come up with the lists themselves.

       "Is this right teacher?" He's one of my favorite students!

* You can see My Class Rules and Reward Chart posters too!

Let's make this a little harder...now place the sense instead of the picture of the organ!

The kids in this class were a little taller and could reach the top...lol

This is my after school English Activity class. It was a nicer day outside so I decided to play games for 1/2 the class. We played Duck, Duck, Goose (with a twist). They could choose any two words in any catergory that were different (like Apple, Apple, Pear) or opposites (like Hot, Hot, Cold). They had a lot of fun!

Cat, Cat....

....Dog!


Having fun! Big thanks to Eleanor and Donna who came and helped out, especially Donna who led 1/2 the class for me :)


Pictures of the preschool to come...

My Lessons and Reflections Weeks 1-4

I can't believe it's been four weeks already! To catch you up, here are my lessons and reflections from all my weeks. I wrote the reflections the week after they were completed, not now. I'm making notes now with stars:

Week 1:

Objective: "Be" verb - Present Tense
Materials: Visual Lesson Plan, My Dinosaur Stuffed Animal,  Drawn "Pictures" of his parents
Activity: Introduce myself, my family, St. Louis, and my home using my Visual Lesson Plan. Use forms of "be" verb as much as possible. Then introduce my friend, Goober, the stuffed animal and his family. Create a story about him and check for understanding by asking questions using the "be" verb in question form to the entire class. Then ask students to pair up and talk about their families to each other. If time allows, ask students if any would like to share with the class. At the end of the class, go over my rules for the class.

Reflection: I think that my visual lesson plan went pretty well this first week. It gave me insight into the various grade levels and their English proficiency. The 2nd, 4th, and 6th graders are all very different from one another. My lesson ended up not being so much about "to be" but rather about the vocabulary associated with family and homes.
           With the younger two graders, I had decided to take my "likes and dislikes" out of my original lesson plan, so I could really focus on the family vocabulary. While teaching, I found that was what they were most interested in, so I stuck with it. Turns out that most students have never used "mom" or "dad." I explained that most people in America use those terms instead of "mother" and "father." Then I had the students talk about their families and homes to each other. 

          For the 6th graders, I used my original visual lesson plan. I had the the students first write about their family, their likes, and dislikes, then share in small groups. I was pleased to see how well they could write! They knew the vocabulary pretty well. My challenge with them will be to get them to talk in class. I noticed that when I asked for volunteers, the younger students were much more willing to get up and speak, while the older students seemed more shy.
          At the end of each class, I asked the students if they had any questions for me and what they wanted to learn in English. The reoccuring topics were colors and animals (younger grades only), and fruits, vegetables, jobs, sports, and America.

          **I remember I was SOO nervous that first week! I couldn't even eat. I had no clue what I was doing and I was trying to make it through each 40 minute period. That was understandably my worst lesson.

Week 2:

Grade 2 Objective: To teach students basic colors (red, blue, green, yellow, orange, black, white, and brown) in English.

Grade 4 & 6 Objective: To teach students the days of the week in English.
Materials: The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle, large cards with colors (Grade 2), cards with the different foods the caterpillar ate on each day (Grade 4 & 6), music CD with days of the week song. 

Activity: Read The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle, emphasizing the concept needing to be taught depending on the grade. For Grade 2, hold up the large color cards and ask students what color it is. After the students understand the colors and know how to say the names, go around the room and have students pick one article of clothing they are wearing and say, "I am wearing (color) (clothing item)." For Grade 4 & 6, review the days of the week and write them on the board. Hand out cards (one per pair of students). Have each pair of students say what day of the week the caterpillar ate that food. Ex. if they have a card that says "one apple" the pair would say, "The very hungry caterpillar ate one apple on Monday." If time permits and students behave well, play the days of the week song CD as a treat.

Reflection: I always find ways to tweak and improve my lessons as I am teaching them. Here are the changes I made for this week's lesson.
Grade 2:
There was a miscommunication in translation for the first 2nd grade classroom. I wanted each student to tell me what color he or she was wearing. Instead, I think the Chinese teacher thought I wanted them to talk among themselves. This worked out well, since they were talking to each other in English, and I could go around talking and listening to the students. Then, I held up each color card and students who were wearing that color raised their hands. They really got into that and were holding up their books, pens, pencil carriers, etc., that had that color. In one of the 2nd grade classes, I found that I had a lot of time left, so I talked about the days of the week as well. I didn't use the cards, but I did just write the names of the week on the board and have the students repeat them.
Grade 4 & 6:
For the first class, I did as I had originally written in my lesson plan - I handed out the cards and went around the room, asking what day of the week. I noticed that the other students were distracted. So, for the next class, I broke the class into four teams and had each student come up, draw a card, and tell me the day of the week based on the foods. I found that the rest of the class was much more engaged, since the fate of the team was on the line! Students from the same team would call out answers, and students from opposing teams would call out the wrong answer. There was much more enthusiasm and participation by doing the game. The winning team got a sticker. I realized that I need to plan lessons that are active and get all the students involved. 

          **Again, thinking back, I don't think this lesson went so well. I think I just wasn't comfortable with the 6th graders.

Week 3:

Objective: To introduce students to the American supermarket and teach the following categories of foods: meat, seafood, bakery, deli, produce, grocery, dairy, frozen, beverage, and everyday essentials.

Materials: Schnucks advertisement paper

Activity: Tell the students that they are going to go shopping today at an American grocery store. Introduce them to the different categories of food and explain each one by giving examples. Hand out the Schnucks advertisement paper and show the students where the various categories are in the paper. Have a scavenger hunt with the paper by naming one item from the paper and students must find it and point to it. Do this for at least one item in each category. Then, tell the students that they are shopping for dinner, and must locate the groceries they need. Give the class time to look through the paper and have them write down what they are making and the groceries on a sheet of paper.  Allow time for any student(s) to present what they are making and their shopping list. 

Reflection: I think overall, the lesson was a big hit! For one, the students LOVED looking at the papers. They got so excited when I handed out the papers. It got them immediately involved. They really liked looking at the American foods. Some of the classes weren't so interested in my scavenger hunt, so I let them go on their own instead. Some of the classes were so interested, that I extended that activity and did not have them write down a shopping list.

          The second reason I believe my lesson worked well was because I started my classroom management plan this week. On one poster board, I wrote down my rules. On a second poster board, I made a "Reward Chart" with each classroom listed. I explained my rules to each class, then explained that if they got three strikes, they did not get a square filled in on the Reward Chart. They would get a strike if I would have to tell them twice (second time by pointing to my rules) to quiet down. Once they got five squares filled in, they would get a reward from me. It worked really well! As soon as I pointed to my rules, they quieted down. Most of the classes did really well and earned a square colored in. Only three classes did not. I was a little lenient this week because I feel like seeing a square colored in demonstrates more than no square. I'm also hoping that by having all of the classes listed on one chart, it will create some competition and motivate the less well-behaved classes to do better!

          I also realized this week that I do not like the "home teachers" in the class while I am teaching. The students really afraid of their "home teachers" and do not really participate when they are in there. The "home teachers" also don't really let the students talk among themselves. I really liked it when the students got excited about the papers and started talking. However, the "home teacher" in one of the third grade classes made them all stop talking, which I feel killed their excitement.

Week 4:

Objective: The students will learn famous American cities (St. Louis, Washington D.C., New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, and Miami) and the song "This Land is Your Land."  

Materials: U.S. Map, magnets, Powerpoint of images from different American cities and the song lyrics
Activity: Hang up the U.S. map on the board. Explain to the students that we are going to "tour" America today. Use the Powerpoint to show images of the different cities in America. Use a magnet as a marker on the map to show the location of the city. Explain the significance of the city/what people like to do in the city. Ask students what city they would like to visit and why. Teach students the song "This Land is Your Land" first with the lyrics on the board. Then have them sing it without the lyrics.

Reflection: This lesson went really well. I don't think the students were as enthusiastic about learning the song as I hoped, since from the culture I've sensed they love to sing! They really liked hearing me sing it for the first time, but they didn't seem as interested in learning it themselves. I guess some of the students really got in to it, but the majority were just indifferent to it. Maybe it was too hard?

          The students really liked looking at the pictures of the different cities. One thing that went really well was me acting out what people liked doing in the city. For example, for Miami, I would say, "People in Miami love to dance (and start dancing) and people in Miami love to swim (and do a swimming motion)." This really got the vocabulary across, even to those students who might not have understood when I just said it.

          When I asked the students which city they would like to visit, I gave them an example of my own, because of course all I would get at first is blank stares. I would say, "I would like to go to New York because I like to go shopping." or "I would like to go to Washington D.C. to see the President's house. Where would you like to go?" There would always be one or two brave souls in each of my classes who would answer the question. I would then pull out my stickers and give one to the students who answered. Then of course, I would have more volunteers because they all wanted a sticker. I think it worked really well. I also think my classroom management plan is working well too. ::sigh:: I never wanted to so heavily rely on behaviorist strategies, but I guess it's all I have work with since I don't see these students enough to form strong relationships.

Lisa sent me an email about this week's lesson. It said:

Hi, Margi,

Today you did a good job. your class is perfect. you are welcomed by your students. The intraction is good, you show your enthusiasm in your class.

 Lisa

That makes me happy!