My First Field Experience 2/17/11

Today was my first field experience at Madison Elementary, in the St. Cloud School District. My assignment is to work with fifth grade students in the study of Language Arts.  I checked in at the office and then reported to Mrs. Louis's classroom. When I first arrived, the class was making get well cards for a 5th grade student who was hit by a bus that morning. Mrs. Louis informed me that the children were a little distracted by what had happened earlier, and I could tell that Mrs. Louis even seemed a little out of sorts. Mrs. Louis later inquired how the student was doing, and it appears he will be okay. I showed Mrs. Louis the lesson plan for week one, and then she gave me the floor. I introduced myself to the class and presented them the "Getting to Know Me" grid to fill out while they worked on their get well cards.  I roamed around the room to help if they needed it, and when they were done filling out the grid, we talked about things we had common, and then our differences. I was nervous, but the children seemed very receptive to me, which was wonderful. There is a lot of diversity in Mrs. Louis’s class, and I am looking forward to gaining experience working with a diverse group of students. After I was done with my lesson, we went to the media center and they worked on the computers, Study Island. When we got back to Mrs. Louis's class, she instructed them to read silently for twenty minutes.  Mrs. Louis asked me to go with a student out in the hall and listen to him read. I really enjoyed getting the chance to work with a student one on one.  He was from a diverse culture, but I could understand him, and he read very well.  The day was over before I knew it, and I walked with Mrs. Louis and the children outside to the bus.  Overall, I think it went well, but I hope I can be a bit more confident and a lot less nervous while presenting my lesson plan next week.