Field Journal #2

Name:Mackenna Papst      Section: Mrs. Hall, Noble Elementary: Tuesdays 8:30-10:30

(Theory, Practice, Reflection)

Practice (What did you see in the classroom or surrounding environment?)

Today I graded papers for the first half of my session, and I helped kids individually on comparing decimal numbers. Mrs. Hall showed me how to be positive while grading papers, but putting a +8, instead of putting 8/10. While reading papers I noticed that most of the students were making the same mistakes. This made me wonder if Mrs. Hall had not taught the material well enough. I hope that when she looks threw the papers, she realizes that she needs to explain the concept better. The second part of the day was very memorable for me. I got to help kids who needed help with comparing decimal numbers. There were 4 or 5 students who struggled grasping the concept and steps, so Mrs. Hall had be sit down individually and teach them at a slower pace. One thing that still bothers me about Mrs. Hall is that she still has the one student sitting in the back of the classroom all by himself, and hardly ever acknowledges his presence.

Reflection (What do you think about what you saw in Practice?)

It might seem strange, but I actually enjoyed grading papers. It was a way of getting to know the childrens train of thought and how they learn. It was a lot of repetition but I didn’t mind. I liked how Mrs. Hall had me write the grade as a positive, with a + sign. I will definitely remember this when I grade my own students papers. I really had a great experience working with the students individually today. I was able to watch the kids go from frustration and anger, to smiles and excitement. Whenever they would finally understand, they would run up to Mrs. Hall with a huge smile on their face and show them how they learned. It really made me feel good about myself, knowing I was able to make these few kids feel good about themselves. Today was much more satisfying than last week and look forward to going back to help more students!