Armanda Morico

SPED 245
Reflection #1
Dr. Elfreda Blue

Today was our first time as a class working with the students of Caroline G. Atkinson
Elementary School in Freeport, NY. I was assigned to work with four different students from both
fifth and sixth grade, but one student was absent. The three students I was able to work with were
three lovely girls by the names of Jessica, Litsy, and Christina. Each of the three students were very
polite, responsive, and cooperative. What I noticed while working with them was that all of three
of students were truly intimidated by working with me. I got the sense that they didnt want to get
any answer wrong, so as not to seem dumb in my presence. I made sure to constantly remind
them that I wasnt testing them, but rather attempting to get a sense of what they knew and what
they didnt. I stated various times that by assessing them I would be able to understand what they
needed to improve on, and knowing this type information would make me a better asset to them.
I began my assessment by asking simple questions about their lives in and out of school,
including: What are your greatest strengths as a student? If you could change one thing in the
world, what would that be? My questions were each color coordinated by subject; therefore, each
student would take turns picking an M & M from the bag, and the color of the M & M would
determine what question I read. I wanted to create an environment in which they could feel
comfortable, and I believe asking these simple questions lightened the mood a bit. I also knew that
after a long day at school, the last thing these students want to do is continue to do schoolwork. I
also believe that by answering these questions along with the students, truly allowed them to feel
at ease in my presence. They really seemed to enjoy that I was open to sharing information about
myself and it led them to speaking more and more.
I was not prepared for the limited amount of time that we were given, and I truly felt
rushed. The amount of material I prepared was cut in half, but overall I was able to get a sense of
each students reading, writing, and mathematics capabilities. For English Language Arts I had had
each child respond to the questions I asked about their lives by writing down their answers. Each
question required a short answer, but my one request was that they write their response in one
complete sentence. In addition, I gave each student a copy of the poem The New Colossus by
Emma Lazarus. I utilized this poem, because I plan on using the theme of immigration and Ellis
Island as major concepts for my English language arts lessons. I read the poem first, and then had
the students read the poem on their own. The students were also given four different questions
that would help engage them in conversation and ultimately improve their comprehension of the
poem. This specific poem written by Emma Lazarus is a complex one that incorporates many
difficult words, but my goal was to observe how these students analyzed material that was above
their grade level. The students had a very difficult time with the poem, especially dissecting the
meaning of the vocabulary words. I also noticed that their general knowledge of events in history
was very limited, which is where I got the idea to create a lesson that will teach them about Ellis
Island and immigration. As for mathematics, this subject seemed to be equally hated amongst
every student. I stressed the notion that the questions wouldnt be too complicated, but they
seemed to lose focus anyway. I began with fourth grade material and worked my way up very
slowly. The students required at least two to three minutes for each problem, so getting through
mathematics was a longer process. With limited time, I thought it would be a good idea to end
with the mathematics questions and instead move to asking the students what they were
currently learning in their classrooms. Knowing more about what the students were currently
learning in their classes, would give me a better idea about the important concepts I could choose
to focus my lessons on for our future meetings. One student volunteered to show me her
homework, which ended up being on the conversion of decimals and percents to fractions. As a
result, I decided it would be a good idea to assess their knowledge on basic fractions. What I came
to find out was that these students didnt know how to add fractions, which made me wonder how
they were going to complete their mathematics homework for the night. Overall, I can truly say
that the students in my group were a joy to work with. I was able to get a sense of what they
needed most help with, and it was partly due to their excellent cooperation throughout the whole
forty minutes I was there.
When the students went home for the day, the class focused the rest of the time on
discussing the positives and negatives of assessing our students. Speaking with my peers and
instructor is truly something I enjoy, because it allows me to discuss my experience and think
about what things I can do differently. In addition, we were able to take a glance at the
Individualized Educations plans for each of our students. One of my students is currently being
reviewed and assessed; therefore, there were only two IEPs for me to look at. I learned that one of
my students has been diagnosed with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity disorder, and is taking
medication to address her distractibility. This same student receives supplementary aids and
services, including: occupational therapy, speech and language therapy, and school counseling. In
addition, this student does receive testing accommodations. When reading this information,
certain things struck out to me the most. Her diagnosis made absolute sense, as she was one of the
students who were constantly distracted throughout the assessment. This is something I have to
remember when constructing my lessons, and I must make sure to think about ways to keep this
student focused on the task at hand. When taking a look at the second students IEP, I learned that
she was classified as having a learning disability. In addition, the IEP stated that this student is a
socially immature student who aims to please adults. After reading the students IEP, the
statement made absolute sense. This particular student was always making jokes, but I didnt
think twice about it. In terms of the students learning disability, I will look for different strategies
and methods I believe can help this student to learn the different mathematics and English
language arts concepts I will be teaching. Spending more with the students will give me a better
idea at what their strengths and weaknesses are, and from there I can develop a better idea at how
to address these concerns.