Class Observation
Teacher- Mrs. Kerr, 4 Paraprofessionals, 12 students, Kindergarten – 3rd Grade. Special Education.
Class is decorated with Alphabets on bulletin board with pictures next to the letters representing the letter of the alphabet. Ex: Alligator for the letter A, baseball for B, etc. There were also bulletins of phonics words with two-three letter words for students to study and learn. There was a number line from 1-100 posted above the closet doors. Also posted on the walls was an essay sheet explaining how to start a sentence with an opinion. Ex: I prefer, I think, I feel, etc. The learning objective of the day was how do addition and subtraction relate to each other. Ex: 5+7=12, 7+5=12, 12-5=7. 12-7=5.
Students split up into groups, some were working from their folders with para’s and teacher and some were working independently on computers. All students have an Individualized Education Plan. The students who worked with para’s and the teacher stayed engaged with their work for about 10 minutes. Due to their autism they cannot engage on one thing for very long. They seemed most engaged when the teacher read them a story about two cousins It was considered a reverse book about two cousins one lived in the city and another in the country and depict on their different experiences with visiting each other. For most of the day the children worked separately from each other doing different material. Some read with assistance from the para’s some did math with assistance from the para’s and the others worked on their reading and math skills with assistance from the computers.
Please explain how Mrs. Kerr had the class under control as far as behavior. All 12 of her students are diagnosed with autism and it is hard for them to keep a long attention spand. Explain how cognitive development, Social and emotional development relate to the children with their autism. Explain how observing the class has had an impact on you and how it has made you a better teacher.
