First Two Weeks

   
     My first two weeks have been eye opening. The classroom I am in has many behavior and learning issues. My cooperating teacher handles behaviors by awarding the students that do well with class Dojo points. Class Dojo is a site I believe one day I will use in my classroom. It's a site where each student gets their own character and the teacher is able to award or take away points for behavior. My cooperating teacher also uses Go Noodle. Go Noodle is a site that is used to get kids moving with short interactive activities. Sometimes when a student misbehaves my cooperating teacher pulls them aside to talk to them about their actions, then gives them hugs and tells them they just need love. I'm not sure I would handle things with just hugs and telling them they need love, but I do think the students have gained a newfound level of respect and love for their teacher.
 There was one day that my partner and I were giving students assessments in the hallway and we saw so much. We saw a whole new side of the school. I saw a student flick a teacher off, another student shut himself in a locker, and many students were constantly running in and out of classrooms. This completely threw me off. I grew up never being around kids that acted this way, but it has given me such a different perspective. Being in this new environment has also made me think of many new things that would be helpful for classroom management.
     On a more positive note, my partner and I have both already done two read aloud's, given the students assessments, as well as do two morning meeting lessons, and taught the class for a whole morning without our cooperating teacher in the room. We have already done so much. I feel as though my experience level has gone up a whole lot since I first started this journey.