Journal Week 6

After a long weekend and what felt like an even longer trip it was tough getting back into school mood. All I wanted to do was rest and recover. But duty called, both figuratively and literally. I arrived on Monday to find that I had been assigned to recess and lunch duty this week.

This week during lunch duty I observed the students (mainly the 8^th grade boys in my class), their actions, and the way they interact with each other. I noticed a lot of cultural differences in the way the students have a friendship love. Compared to guys in America, the Costa Rican boys have more love for each other and comfortable with themselves.  They can tell another guy friend that they love them and hug them, without having a second thought about it. It is very interesting to observe this different view of masculinity.

Although, the cultures in America and Costa Rica are vastly different, I noticed one similarity. The students that attend Lincoln are in the top 10% of the social economic status, the majority of them have maids, chauffeurs, and personal lawyers.  This means they are used to be waited on “hand and foot”, doing whatever they want and it shows through their behavior at school. For example, they protest the rule that they are not allowed to eat in the gym, though there are signs posted, and at the end of recess and lunch they leave their equipment out for us or the gym helper to pick up because they are used to not having to clean up after themselves. This becomes frustrating to me because I wasn’t raised in this manner, nor am I used to this and it seems as though they take their lifestyles for granted and lack responsibility.

Within each quarter Frans likes to incorporate a small unit of movement composition. Since we are currently in a basketball unit, we planned to incorporate basketballs/basketball skills into the movement composition unit. (Proficiency 2.6:  Candidate designs effective instruction (i.e. units and lesson plans) that reflects high expectations for all students and the belief that all students can learn)  We decided to co-teach this unit. We shared ideas, completed the lesson plan and the rubric together. (Proficiency 3.1:  Candidate communicates effectively orally and in writing) The plan was to first introduce to the students the way music is composed by teaching them how to count beats. This was done by playing music and having the students following along as we counted the beats. Once the students understood the counts we informed them that they would be creating a group routine using basketballs and gave them a demonstration/example of how it would look. We made the groups in order to minimize misconduct and lessen distractions. We informed the students that how they use their time would be critical to their grade. The students were given the challenge of using their time wisely in order to prepare to present their routine during their third class of the week.

Throughout the week as the students worked together in groups, I would walk around to make sure they were on task, give them ideas; and critique their work if asked. (Proficiency 2.2:   Candidate successfully motivates students to learn by providing effective instructional feedback for skill acquisition, student learning, and motivation) The majority of the students worked well in their groups and really focused on the task. There were a few students in each class that had to be corrected many times during class. On the day of the presentation it was easy to identify which groups actually used their time wisely. It was also easy to see which students actually gasp the concept of the 8 count beat. A lot of them could put patterns together but their transition from one pattern to the next needs a lot of work. I think that if they had more time in class to work and practice that they would have a greater opportunity of grasping the concept. Some students needed more than three 40 minute classes. Overall, this was my first experience using group work with this students and I was impressed with the way they behaved. They worked well together to create good routines and most of them did this with minimal supervision needed.

Overall, this week I was able to “learn the ropes” from an experienced teacher. After being a part of a small movement composition unit, I was able to broaden my scope of knowledge in an area I have had minimal experience. The collaborating process went well. (Proficiency 3.3: Candidate builds collaborative and respectful relationships with colleagues, supervisors, students, parents and community members) I was also able to make the most of my recess and lunch duty, by observing the students and witnessing the cultural differences between American and Costa Rican males. My relationship with the students is continuing to grow each day. I am looking forward to spending the next few weeks with the 8^th graders and anxious to switch over to elementary.