CRITICAL ASSIGNMENT ONE 1

Critical Assignment One:

Mentoring Plan

Shannon D. Cook

Troy University
CRITICAL ASSIGNMENT ONE 2

Critical Assignment One:

Mentoring Plan

Background Information:

I meet at the end of each week with the first year teacher, EH, at my school to discuss

how her week went, to plan for the next week, and to discuss any concerns she may have about

her students’ behaviors or learning.

Meeting One:

On Friday, January 24th, I had my weekly meeting with EH. She discussed with me that

she had concerns about a few of her students. They appeared to be having difficulty learning the

letters of the alphabet and were not at the same level of the other students in her classroom. She

said that she had tried everything she knew to do with them and asked me if I could her give her

some activities to use with those students during the next week. We discussed the different

strategies and activities she had already used with the students. We looked at her lesson plans

and I discussed with her ways to differentiate her small group lessons to accommodate those

learners. I reminded her that the same activity did not have to be done every day of the week

with every child in the classroom. I gave her the following activities to try in her small groups

the next week: digging for letters in sand/salt. She seemed very enthusiastic about trying the

new activity the next week. She adapted the lesson to accommodate the various levels of the

students in her classroom.

CRITICAL ASSIGNMENT ONE 3

EH’s Small Group Lesson Plans (1/27 – 1/31)

Teacher Monday Activity: Tuesday Activity: Wednesday Activity: Thursday Activity:

directed Letter Hunt— Letter Hunt— Letter Hunt—Students Letter Hunt—Students
(Lead Teacher) Students will hunt a Students will hunt a will find the letters the will find the letters the
letter that is called letter that is called teacher calls out by teacher calls out by
out by the teacher by out by the teacher by finding it in rice. finding them in rice.
looking through rice looking through rice Students will then Students will then
to find the letter. to find the letter. build words with the build words with the
Once they find the Once they find the letters they found. letters they found.
letter in the rice they letter in the rice they
will state the sound will state the sound
the letter makes. the letter makes.

Students: Students: Students: Students:

T, R L, J JD, Z, Z K, T, C

STANDARD: CLL7.4a STANDARD: CLL7.4a STANDARD: CLL6.4f, STANDARD: CLL6.4f,

CLL7.4a CLL7.4a

Monday’s and Tuesday’s small groups included the students that had difficulty recognizing the

letters and sounds of the alphabet. Wednesday’s and Thursday’s small groups included the

students that had mastered recognizing the letters and sounds of the alphabet.

Meeting Two:

On Friday, January 31st, I met with EH again to discuss how the small group activities

went that week. She was very discouraged and said, “The students on Monday and Tuesday

were not interested in the activity. I had a difficult time keeping them engaged and I finally just

quit and told them to go play.” I told her to think about the lesson and try to pinpoint what went

wrong. I asked her if she thought the activity was too difficult or if it just didn’t get their

attention. She said, “They just seemed like they didn’t care about finding the letter I called out

and they kept watching the other children play in the centers.” We discussed how these were the

students who were having difficulty recognizing the letters so if she was just “calling them out”,
CRITICAL ASSIGNMENT ONE 4

they may not have known which letter she wanted them to get. I asked her what the objective of

the lesson was and she replied that it was supposed to help them recognize the letters and their

sounds. I asked her to explain to me how her calling out a letter and then expecting them to find

that letter and tell her its sound achieved that objective. She had a “ah-ha” moment and said that

she could see why they weren’t interested in finding the letters. It wasn’t because the activity

itself was too difficult; it was because of the way she had expected them to do something they

weren’t able to do. She expressed that she wanted to plan another activity for the next week that

was more appropriate for those learners. I gave her the following books to look through for ideas

to use with her students:

CRITICAL ASSIGNMENT ONE 5

She looked thru the books and decided on an activity where the students would the students

would find a letter on a giant keyboard and hit it with a flyswatter. She made the giant keyboard

on a shower curtain so that it would be big enough for the students to be physically interactive

with.

EH’s Small Group Lesson Plans (2/3 – 2/7)

Teacher directed Monday Activity: Tuesday Activity: Wednesday Activity:

(Lead Teacher) Students will use a giant
keyboard to identify the
letters of the alphabet. The
teacher will call out a letter
and the student will use a
flyswatter to swat the letter
on the key board.
Students will use a giant
keyboard to identify the letters
of the alphabet. The teacher
will call out a letter and the
student will use a flyswatter to
swat the letter on the key
board.
Students will use a giant
keyboard to identify the upper
and lower case letters of the
alphabet. The teacher will give
the child a lower case letter—
the student will name the letter
and then find the upper case
letter on the giant keyboard.

Students: R, K Students: L, T Students: T, J

STANDARD: CLL7.4a STANDARD: CLL7.4a STANDARD: CLL7.4a

CRITICAL ASSIGNMENT ONE 6

Instead of meeting back on the next Friday and discussing how the lessons went during the week,

I gave EH a daily lesson reflective form to fill out after each small group lesson. We met each

day during nap time and discussed how the lesson went.

**I did not look at her lesson plans to see how she planned her activities prior to the week

beginning. After meeting on Monday, I realized that she had planned the activities the same as

the week before. I made myself a mental note to look at her lesson plans before the week started

to make sure the activities would achieve her teaching goals and objectives. If I do have a

concern, I will ask her to explain how she intended to use the activity to achieve her goals.
CRITICAL ASSIGNMENT ONE 7

Lesson Reflection

Name: EH
Date: February 3, 2014
Students: R and K

1. GELDS Standard being taught during lesson:

CLL7.4a Students will recognize and name some upper/lower case letters of
the alphabet

2. Objective of lesson:
For the students to recognize the letters of the alphabet.

3. Describe lesson:
 Describe the activity planned for the students:
The students are to use a giant keyboard to identify the letters of the
alphabet that is called out by the teacher. When they find the letter
they are to touch it.

 Did I introduce the skill being taught? How did I introduce the
skill?
Yes. I told the students that we were going to be working on
recognizing the letters of the alphabet by using a giant keyboard.

 Did I connect the lesson to prior knowledge to make it

meaningful? How did I connect it to prior knowledge?
Yes. I asked the students if they knew what the giant keyboard was
and where they had seen one before.

4. What went well in the lesson?

The students seemed excited and engaged. K was able to identify the letters.

5. What didn’t go as I had planned?

The children wanting to play with the keyboard by putting their hands
underneath it.

6. What came up during the lesson that wasn’t anticipated?

K wasn’t able to touch all the letters from her seat. I told her she could stand
and move around to find the letters instead of sitting down.

7. Were the materials age appropriate? Describe the materials used in

the lesson.
Yes the materials were age appropriate. I used a giant keyboard that was
made out of a shower curtain.
CRITICAL ASSIGNMENT ONE 8

8. Did I accomplish the goal of the lesson? If not, what were the
barriers?
Yes, I accomplished the goal of the lesson with K. I did not accomplish my
goal with R because she doesn’t know all the letters of the alphabet.

9. How did I accommodate each student in the lesson?

I made the lesson hands-on with a giant keyboard.

10. How did I differentiate the lesson for students?

R needed help so I touched each letter and had Rylee say the letter with me.

11. What classroom management aspects made this lesson challenging?

I was interrupted by other the children while they were in centers and we
were in small group.

We met on Monday during nap time and I read her lesson reflection. I asked the

questions again and had her go into more detail with her answers. I asked her, “Why didn’t you

accomplish the goal with R?” She answered, “Because I would call out the letter and she didn’t

know the letters so she couldn’t find them on the keyboard.” I reminded her of the previous

week when that was an issue with the students during the other activity. I asked her to think of a

way she could adapt the lesson to teach the children the names of the letters instead of just

calling out a letter for them to find even though they don’t know their letters. She thought for a

minute and seemed to be having difficulty thinking of something so I suggested showing them

the letter card, telling them the name of the letter, and then having them find that letter on the

keyboard. I told her to have them repeat the letter name after her and then again when they

found it on the keyboard. I reminded her that she was teaching them the letter names using this

activity. She replied that it made sense to show them the letter card and she would try that the

next day. I pointed out that she realized that R was having difficulty and she modified the lesson

for her by finding the letter and having her say it with her. I told her that she did exactly what
CRITICAL ASSIGNMENT ONE 9

she should have done and reaffirmed to her that she knows what she is doing; she just has to

realize she knows what to do.

Next, we discussed the classroom management issues that interrupted the lesson. She

said that students kept coming up to the table interrupting the lesson because they needed help

during centers. She asked me how I got my students to not interrupt me while I was doing small

groups. I explained that I remind my students daily before center time that while I am with my

group, my aide is available and vice versa. I also explained that it is a classroom procedure that

should be practiced and reinforced daily. She said that she would try doing the same in her

classroom the next day. She appeared very optimistic about making the appropriate changes the

next day and pointed out that she thought the reflecting after the lessons helped her to see what

was working and what wasn’t.

CRITICAL ASSIGNMENT ONE 10

Lesson Reflection

Name: EH
Date: February 4, 2014
Students: L and T

1. GELDS Standard being taught during lesson:

CLL7.4a Students will recognize and name some upper/lower case letters
of the alphabet

2. Objective of lesson:
For the students to recognize the letters of the alphabet.

3. Describe lesson:
 Describe the activity planned for the students:
The students are to use a giant keyboard to identify the letters of the
alphabet that is called out by the teacher. When they find the letter
they are to touch it.

 Did I introduce the skill being taught? How did you introduce
skill?
Yes. I told the students that we were going to be working on
recognizing the letters of the alphabet by using a giant keyboard.

 Did I connect the lesson to prior knowledge to make it

meaningful? How did I connect it to prior knowledge?
Yes. I asked the students if they knew what the giant keyboard was
and where they had seen one before.

4. What went well in the lesson?

Once the students were given alphabet cards they were able to locate most
of the letters on the keyboard.

5. What didn’t go as I had planned?

I didn’t expect to be alone during small group. My assistant had to leave
for an appointment.

6. What came up during the lesson that wasn’t anticipated?

The students from centers kept interrupting when they were previously
told to ask Melba.
CRITICAL ASSIGNMENT ONE 11

7. Were the materials age appropriate? Describe the materials used

in the lesson.
Yes the materials were age appropriate. I used a giant keyboard
that was made out of a shower curtain.

8. Did I accomplish the goal of the lesson? If not, what were the
barriers?
No, I did not. The students did not know all the letters of the
alphabet.

9. How did I accommodate each student in the lesson?

I made the lesson hands on with a giant keyboard.

10. How did I differentiate the lesson for students?

I gave the alphabet letters to the students to help them find the letters on
the keyboard.

11. What classroom management aspects made this lesson

challenging?
I was still interrupted by other the children while they were in centers
and we were in small group.

On Tuesday, we met during nap time to discuss how the lesson went that day. I read over

her lesson reflection and immediately noticed that she had used the letter cards for the lesson that

day. I asked her how she thought it went and she replied that it went a lot smoother and they

were able to locate most of the letters. She said she had to still help them but it went a lot better

than the day before. I asked her if she thought they had difficulty finding the letters because they

were unfamiliar with the keyboard or because they were unfamiliar with the letters. She said that

she thought it was more because they were unfamiliar with the keyboard because once they

became more familiar with it, they could match the letters faster. I asked her why she thought

she did not achieve her goal and she said because they still don’t know their letters. I asked her

to think back to when she set a goal to lose 20 pounds. Then, I asked her, “Did you achieve that

goal after working out one time or did you have to do many different things at many different

times?” She replied, “I had to do many different things many different times.” I explained to her
CRITICAL ASSIGNMENT ONE 12

that it was the same with teaching. Her goal for those students is the same: them learning the

letter names and sounds but it wasn’t going to get accomplished after one lesson. I reminded her

how every little thing she did put together helped her lose weight and all the little things she is

doing with those students will come together to help them achieve her goal for them. She smiled

and said that she had never thought about it like that.

Next, we discussed the classroom management issues again. She said that she had

instructed her students to go to the aide if she was with her small group and vice versa but her

aide had to leave for an appointment. So, the students continued to interrupt the lesson. (The

teacher:student ratio in Pre-K is 1:11 children so when her aide left, she was still in compliance

with the ratio count because she only has 10 students in her classroom. At that time, the ratio

was 1:10.) I asked her how she felt getting interrupted repeatedly and she answered that it was

overwhelming and frustrating. I asked if it really interrupted the lesson or if it just bothered her.

She didn’t answer so I asked if the kids in your group were unable to do the lesson due to the

interruptions. She said that they weren’t so I tried to explain that sometimes teachers have to

multitask in certain situations. I tried to offer her support and encouragement so she wouldn’t

feel discouraged when things went differently than expected due to someone leaving or

interrupting her class (besides the students). I explained that some days things just go differently

and you do your best to teach no matter the circumstances. She felt like the students still enjoyed

the activity so all was not lost. She said that she was going to continue to remind the students

every day to not interrupt if she or the aide is teaching a small group lesson. Again, I told her

that she was doing a good job and we would continue to work together so she would not feel like

she was alone and overwhelmed.

CRITICAL ASSIGNMENT ONE 13

Lesson Reflection

Name: Erin Huggins

Date: February 5, 2014
Students: T and J

1. GELDS Standard being taught during lesson:

CLL7.4a Students will recognize and name some upper/lower case letters
of the alphabet

2. Objective of lesson:
For the students to recognize the upper and lower case letters of the
alphabet.

3. Describe lesson:
 Describe the activity planned for the students:
The students are to use a giant keyboard to identify the upper and
lower case letters of the alphabet. The students were given the lower
case letters cards and were asked to say the letter and then put the
letter on the upper case letter on the keyboard.

 Did I introduce the skill being taught? How did you introduce
skill?
Yes. I told the students that we were going to be working on
recognizing the letters of the alphabet by using a giant keyboard.

 Did I connect the lesson to prior knowledge to make it

meaningful? How did I connect it to prior knowledge?
Yes. I asked the students if they knew what the giant keyboard was
and where they had seen one before.

4. What went well in the lesson?

The children were excited about having a hands on activity.

5. What didn’t go as I had planned?

Everything went as I had planned.

6. What came up during the lesson that wasn’t anticipated?

NA

7. Were the materials age appropriate? Describe the materials used

in the lesson.
CRITICAL ASSIGNMENT ONE 14

Yes the materials were age appropriate. I used a giant keyboard that was
made out of a shower curtain.

8. Did I accomplish the goal of the lesson? If not, what were the
barriers?
Yes! Each student was able to identify the lower case and upper case
letters of the alphabet.

9. How did I accommodate each student in the lesson?

I made the lesson hands on with a giant keyboard.

10. How did I differentiate the lesson for students?

The students in previous lessons had help identifying the letters. Some
were given letter cards to help them identify the letters. In this lesson the
students independently put the lower case letters on the upper case
letters.

11. What classroom management aspects made this lesson

challenging?
NA

On Wednesday, we met during nap time to discuss how the lesson went that day. I read

over her lesson reflection and noticed that everything went as planned. I asked her to describe

her day and she said, “It went wonderful!” She explained that she had went back over how they

were expected to not interrupt her or her aide during small group time and no one did. She said

that the lesson went well and the students were able to complete the activity with no problems. I

asked her, “What are you going to do now with these students that you worked with this week?”

We looked at her notes from the past three days and discussed how a few of them still needed to

participate in activities to learn their letters but a couple of them had achieved that goal and

could move on. She discussed how she really enjoyed reflecting and meeting daily. She thought

she was gaining more confidence in her teaching practices by getting feedback each day. I told

her that I could see how it had helped her and I would be glad to meet a few minutes each day to

reflect and offer assistance in how to make changes when there were problems.
CRITICAL ASSIGNMENT ONE 15

Conclusion:

We will now meet daily during naptime for a few minutes just to reflect on how each day

went. I believe reflection of my own day is beneficial for me, also. She will also have her lesson

plans ready by Friday afternoon for us to go over before the next week. This will give us an

opportunity to see if there are any modifications that need to be made to accommodate students

or achieve her desired objectives.