Aria by Richard Rodriguez

This week in my FNED 246 class, we got the chance to read Aria by Richard Rodriguez. This reading was about a student whose Spanish was their first language and English was her second. The student had trouble communicating due to the language barrier. They had to attend a parent/student-teacher conference and her teacher told them that they needed to start having English as their first language. The teacher told the parents that they needed to start speaking English more in the household to have a better education without language barriers. By the teacher says this the parents are offended because they were told that they need to speak more English than their own culture's language. The parents became distant with the student because they began to speak more English. The parents could not understand so it was always quiet throughout the house.  

At my placement for Instipring Minds, I work in a 5th-grade classroom. Most of the students can speak English and Spanish but some can only speak Spanish. I know only a few phrases or words in Spanish but I am not the best at speaking it. I can understand a few words that they are saying so I can help them a little bit when it comes to their assignments. Some students need to translate to a teacher what the other students are saying because not all teachers in the building can speak Spanish. I adore my students in the classroom and it's so fun to be with them every Thursday. I get to play with them at the gym and in the classroom I can help them with their reading and math skills. They have standardized testing coming up and they are going to do amazing!

 

Creating a better classroom

    This week I got to read Literacy With An Attitude by Patrick Finn. When reading the Preface, Chapter 1, and Chapter 2 I realized the importance of making an engaging and observing your students in the classroom. By observing your students you can see if they need extra help on an assignment and find different teaching styles that could help them through their education. Make the students excited to come into your classroom. In high school, there were certain teachers that I loved going into their classrooms because they got the students excited to be there. When I was in a less engaging class it was hard to learn and was hurting my education. Being in an engaging and safe space classroom is important for a student's growth development. 

Quotes from Literacy With An Attitude:

1) "The status quo is the status quo because people who have the power to make changes are comfortable with the way things are. It takes energy to make changes, and the energy must come from the people who will benefit from the change"(Finn, Preface).

        I related this quote to "Precious Knowledge" because the students in the video wanted to make a change and fought for it. They didn't want their class to be taken away from the school system, so they held protests to keep the class alive. People can make a change if they continue to work for change. 

2) "All of us teachers and students were locked into a system of rules and roles that none of us understood and that did not allow for much in the way of education"(Finn, p.5).

        Each subject has a curriculum that a teacher has to create lesson plans for. The curriculum is designed to be adjusted to add to lesson plans if the students should know the material. The teacher can tweak the lesson plans to include student's interests so they can be more engaged in the classroom and also in society. 

Personal Thoughts: Chart + "Classroom Tour"

     This week, in my FNED 246 class, we watched a video about a teacher's classroom. The teacher explained all the details about the rules, decorating choices, and procedures of her classroom. 

    She strives to create an upbeat and cheerful atmosphere in her classroom by emphasizing the bright and vibrant parts of the decoration around the room and her positive attitude. The setting in the classroom environment looks comfortable and welcoming for the students when they come in. When watching the video I noted that she had a certain style that complemented the room. She had her students work around the classroom and a visual representation of how her day went through the magnetized schedule up on the whiteboard. She provides supplies for students who need them. If a student forgot to charge their Chromebook and their charger, there was a bin with extra chargers in it. If I was a student in her classroom I think I would enjoy being in that classroom. I am a very organized and color-coordinated person myself even though I can get a little unorganized and untidy. 

I liked how her room was colorful and had the student's work displayed. By highlighting the colorful and lively elements of the decor, she hopes to create a positive and joyful environment in her classroom. For students, the classroom environment appears cozy and pleasant as soon they walk in. She was able to get to know the students in all of her classes through the questions and answers in the assignment. Getting to know your students is crucial at the start of the school year and to continue to grow the relationship with your students. In the classroom, the students say an anthem before their class starts. It reminded me of the other video analysis "Precious Knowledge" because the students in that class also said a class anthem before class started.

In class, we looked at a chart on what makes a good and bad classroom but also a school environment. For the school, I am currently attending the program Inspiring Minds has all the good signs that make a great classroom and school environment. The teacher always walks around the room and answers the student's questions if they have any. Around school, it is very vibrant and the children are excited to go to their next class. 

5th Grade Chaos

    Entering my 5th grade class at the Frank D. Spaziano Elementary School is a chaotic environment but the students want to learn. A student, whom we will call Justin acts up in class and gets sent to the hallways or just goes into the hallways to take a brain break. He is a student of color and comes in dressed in sports gear and things that he is interested in on shirts. This student sits in the front of the room and doesn't want to do work but will if they are interested in it. Once he sits in the hallways for a little while he can get back into learning. The teacher wants him to do work but it's hard to control and teach a student that doesn't want to learn. Justin will do the work that is assigned when he feels like doing it, when the teacher says to multiple times, or when he actually wants to learn.