Date of Class: 10/17/13
Day of Class: Thursday
PI: Jacob
SI: N/A
Assistants: N/A
Module: Homework Helper
How Many Learners: 11
Score: 3 + 6 + 6 + 6 + 5 + 5 = 31
What happened (as short or as long as you like, but be specific):

I had no idea what I was going to do about this until last night! Thanks to Brooke for responding to a last minute request for materials.

I ended up getting to the site only 10 minutes early, not enough time to ask Laura to get some homework assignments — she said she would do that next week, so I need to follow up and make sure that this happens.

What I did instead was found a math assignment sitting in the room, and I used it for a document search activity. Then I dictated the names of a few subjects that children learn in elementary school, and I had people put them into a short dialogue.

I incorporated some TPR by having people do some actions related to homework – sharpening your pencil, writing your name, drawing a picture. I had “play guitar/flute/piano” written down on my paper, but I wasn’t sure how this was going to work. It actually worked really well! Right after I said “play the flute”, people started saying other things like “trombone” or “trumpet” or “violin.” There was a little confusion, I think, between “trombone” and people hearing “drums,” but most people got it after a bit. It might have been a little off topic, but it was pretty cool to resonate with the class that way.

Date of Class: 10/24/13
Day of Class: Thursday
PI: Jacob
SI: N/A
Assistants: N/A (Laura?)
Module: Homework Helper
How Many Learners: 14
Score: 4 + 6 + 6 + 5 + 5 + 5 = 31
What happened (as short or as long as you like, but be specific):

I’m putting Laura as an assistant because she really helps make this lesson. She rounded up some homework assignments from other teachers and stapled them into a little packet that I was able to hand out to the Ss as real world materials. This lesson wouldn’t be possible without her help.

That said, I still don’t feel satisfied with how I’m doing this. I asked Ss, “What are you working on?” and had them respond, “I’m working on ____” where they would plug in Math, Reading, Writing, etc, based on what page they turned to. I had them do a document search, and then I had them do some TPR from last class (sharpen your pencil, open your book, “don’t say it, do it!”).

I think I produced energy, but I don’t produce connection. I produced laughter, but I also leave people… bored. I was entirely, 100% aware that I had 3 people at one table, 6 at one and 5 at another, and I was paralyzed by being completely unsure who I should move from which table to which table. Who truly is supporting a table, and who supports them? Am I risking breaking a forming bond by moving one lower level Ss to another table with higher level Ss? Am I thinking about it too much? I’m not sure.

Date of Class: 10/31/13
Day of Class: Thursday
PI: Jacob
SI: N/A
Assistants: N/A
Module: Emergency Preparedness
How Many Learners: 11
Score: 4 + 4 + 5 + 4 + 4 + 5 = 26
What happened (as short or as long as you like, but be specific):

I didn’t plan very well for this class. The execution was a little off, and I don’t think people really understood the meaning behind my activities very well. With a little more planning, I could have tied everything together into a pretty neat knot, but I rely too much on doing things in the moment, and in the moment, I fell short.

I think there was some laughter, but honestly, I can’t remember. I had people tell me what their name was, their phone number, and their zip code, with the intent of having them simulate calling 911 and being asked for that information, but I never got to the latter part. I didn’t write a script that would work with the activities, and I couldn’t just make one up. So, the class was pretty… boring. I think. And repetitive.

Date of Class: 11/7/13
Day of Class: Thur
PI: Jacob
SI: N/A
Assistants: N/A
Module: Emergency Preparedness
How Many Learners: 11
Score: 5 + 5 + 6 + 4 + 3 + 5 = 28
What happened (as short or as long as you like, but be specific):

I brought tons of materials, but only a vague lesson plan with loose ends that never got tied up. It definitely showed in the classroom – some students were confused, the energy level was kind of low (it had its high points) and I could tell some people left unsatisfied.

I don’t think it was a total disaster, just underwhelming compared to the pie I normally bring.

I definitely need to make a better habit of following up with people after class — one of my higher level learners was asking why she had to write “an” before “emergency,” and that would have been the perfect thing to easily explain one on one after class was over.

Date of Class: 11/14/13
Day of Class: Thursday
PI: Jacob
SI: N/A
Assistants: N/A
Module: Emergency Prep
How Many Learners: 7
Score: 31
What happened (as short or as long as you like, but be specific):

This class actually went really well. I came in feeling prepared, I put in the work, and executed pretty well.

I pushed the students a little in this class; I brought several pictures of different emergency supplies to play “this is an apple” with. I did it in the very standard style, and when people got the hang of it, I also included items like “an emergency blanket” and reinforced the “an” (which I explained to some of the students last week, after class). After that, I pulled out my last item, which was a box of waterproof matches.

I called on my best student and I said “these are waterproof matches.” As softly as I could, I got her to reply with “they’re what?” and she caught on pretty quickly, but was also very nervous when I had her hand the item back to me (complete with new dialogue)

I ended with some listen and point and TPR. I’ve started bringing a whiteboard and marker with me that I bought from Walgreens, and I used that to diagram some very simple grammar rules (their/they’re/there and a/an) to the higher level students after the class was over. I’m really enjoying this class.

Date of Class: 11/21/13
Day of Class: Thursday
PI: Jacob
SI: N/A
Assistants: N/A
Module: Emergency Prep
How Many Learners: 10
Score: 42
What happened (as short or as long as you like, but be specific):

Today was pretty amazing. We started slowly, with only three students, but slowly and surely, all the usual suspects showed up. Everyone brought a bunch of food, and fortunately there was a third table where we were able to place it all.

I told Laura I was going to teach for at least an hour, because there was going to be a class today, but that I would end it a little early because obviously everyone wanted to eat and celebrate the end of the term. I ended up teaching about 70 minutes or so.

It was a little uncomfortable; talking about 911 calls, and the reasons why you might call 911, is pretty unsettling right before a celebration… but it’s important, and I think everyone understood the intent behind that. I did make a game out of one activity (“what are you wearing?”) where, after practicing the simple question and answer, I had Ss ask each other and I timed how fast they could do it. This produced a lot of laughter and good energy, I feel.

One S was staring at the food and saying she was hungry, and I asked if she could wait just 15 more minutes. I practiced a little more material, and then Laura came in and did a really cool thing… she handed out yellow Certificates of Participation to the 4 students who filled up an entire loyalty card, we all took dozens of pictures, and then ate delicious food.

The caretaker came by with everyone’s kids, and they ate, and we had a really fun time together.