Laura Friesen October 19, 2014
Guided Reflection Questions
Science Exploration Conference – Oct 15 Normandeau School & Westpark Middle School. Points to address in the reflections: 1. Do you feel the lesson objectives were met? Our objective was based out of the knowledge outcome 2 and we focused on the particle model of matter. In student friendly terms our outcome was, “Students will explore the concept of “particle model of matter” and how it affects their everyday life. They will be encouraged to ask questions and to explore ideas for themselves.” To help students know where we hoped to go with the lesson we wrote this on the board, and continually talked about the concepts of the particle model of matter theory. In essence we did meet the objectives that we set out to meet. 2. Did your classmates (or classroom teachers) provide any feedback? If so, how could you use this information in planning future science lessons? The teacher that observed us in Normandeau School did not give any feedback, and the teacher in Westpark Middle School only complimented us on a great lesson that was engaging and fun. We did not receive any constructive feedback from the authority within the classroom, but I asked my partner, Shelley Wiebe, what I could have improved on, and she informed me that when initially grabbing students attention I seemed to be a bit quiet and could have been more aggressive in that way. She also pointed out that it is my nature to be quieter, so it is hard for me to go beyond those bounds. This is feedback that I have often received and even more with the loudness of my presentation, so I am usually conscientious about it and try to increase my volume; although, another tactic that I like to use to grab students attention is putting up my hand and have all students follow suit until the room is quiet and eyes are focused back up front. We also had given students exit passes to tell us how they felt about the lesson, whether they had understood all the concepts or did not. Looking at these over threequarters of the students responded that they had understood and had fun. 3. How was the timing of the lesson? The timing of our lesson was perfect. We had planned enough, and knew that if we had more time we could revert to the game that we had initially started out with, which we only used in Westpark Middle School for about five minutes at the end of class. We probably would have had more time left over in the lessons if we wouldn’t have added on to our experiment. 4. Were you well enough prepared for your lesson to be successful? 1
Laura Friesen October 19, 2014
I definitely felt wellprepared. Shelley and I had used our discrepant event of the balloon over flame in our lesson plan, so I already knew what it would look like. As well as, an hour before we started at Normandeau Shelley and I met up and ‘practiced’ what we were going to say to one another, because I was so wellprepared I didn’t worry about what I was going to say or how I was going to present the material, but could focus more on how students were reacting and any management pieces. 5. Did anything unexpected happen that made you change the lesson? Were you able to accommodate the changes? How did you do this? In our lesson planning we did not rely on technology at all, but in the library of Normandeau school there is a smart board, so we thought we would put it into use. This was a little tricky, but with some assistance from a vice principal, Kelly, we were able to get everything setup and running. Whether we had got it setup or not would not have greatly affected the lesson though. Also, in our experiment I decided to add a solid, baking soda, into the balloon, not really knowing what would happen. Shelley and I had practiced using a solid in the parking lot; although, with the wind it was not a true representation of what would happen, so I myself was curious to how long it would take to pop the balloon, assuming that it eventually would pop. It did pop, and could have been a disaster, but it turns out that the baking soda basically just fell onto the table, which was easily wiped off into the garbage can. This being said, in one of the classes a student was sitting too close to the table, even though we had asked them to back away a couple of times, and he got a little baking soda dust in his eye. Luckily it wasn’t a major issue and he was okay. 6. What modifications would you make to the lesson plan to make it more effective? I would have liked to experience continuing on from this lesson, just to see if students understood the concepts in a way where they could put them into practice. If I could change anything about the lesson it would be to slow down in teaching, and have made sure all students were recording their predictions, observations, results and conclusions. Knowing that technology was available to us, I would have used the smartboard more to enhance the presentation. 7. Think about the differences from the morning session to the afternoon session? a) Classroom The morning session at Normandeau we were situated in a library. The tables were in a semicircle all facing the front. This was a good setup in that it was less formal, but it also meant there was less structure. Also, by the second lesson students had naturally moved their 2
Laura Friesen October 19, 2014
chairs so they were closer to the front and more in a line than semicircle. At Westpark Middle School we were in a classroom. This meant that it felt more congested and formal; although, it made it easier to ask students to find a seat and for them the write their notes. b) The students It was interesting at Normandeau School because there was a mix of different students from different schools. I found that with a mix of students they were a little more shy of themselves and stuck to their friends, but at the same time they were excited about us and our lesson, so were engaged and outspoken. At Westpark Middle School, all the students already knew each other, but they had a different supervisor teacher than normal, who set out his expectations for the first class right away; though, he didn’t say anything to the second class. The students in the afternoon had a lot of energy. We played a little game at the beginning of class, to get them excited and engaged, and I was surprised at how much they just wanted to jump and move around. 8. Did you experience any classroom management situations? If so, what were your strategies to help overcome any of the issues? I did not find that I had any major classroom management issues. The students were excited, yes, so I did have to deal with trying to quiet them down. At Westpark Middle School I raised my hand and told the students I wouldn’t continue until I saw their hands up and eyes on me. I also tried to use my space and walk towards students that were offtask to get them to pay attention and let them know I saw them. 9. Please include any other comments that you feel are pertinent to the lesson. Being in the classroom with students always reminds me why I am going to be a teacher. Pertaining to the lesson, I think it went very well, and again, I am excited to put into practice fun and engaging lessons like this one, but also to see the progression of students on the topic. 9/10 This is a higher grade, but I believe I deserve it. Shelley and I worked hard to prepare a dynamic lesson that was engaging for students. We used the resources we had around us, being in a library in the first school and a classroom in the second school. The lesson plan was sufficient length for the time we were given, and there was a backup plan if we ended up having more time in our lessons. I am learning, as I will be for the rest of my life, but I know I could have improved in having full student participation as some students refused to write down anything. And, I could have been more scientific in presenting the experiment. 3
Laura Friesen October 19, 2014
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