Field Observation # 2- Domain 1

TC Name: Heather Taylor

RICA Domain: Planning Reading Instruction based on Assessment

RICA Competency: Planning, Organizing, and Managing Reading Instruction 

Grade Level: Kindergarten 

Any Additional Descriptors: Mainstream with three ELL Students 

INSTRUCTION:

In Mrs. X’s Kindergarten classroom she makes a cautious effort to plan, organize, and manage an instructional program that helps every child achieve class ELA standards. In her classroom I have observed organized instruction to meet the needs of all students.  Mrs. X implements groups based on ability levels. For example, during “center time” she has students in homogeneous groups. During center time, there are several different reading stations. This allows Mrs. X to allow the “red” group (those who are more advanced) work independently while she helps with the “purple” group (those who need more attention and one-on-one instruction). Although, she has the children pair in their homogeneous groups for center time she also combines the “red” and “purple” group so that the more advanced students can help the students who are struggling with given topics. I have witnessed the heterogeneous groups mostly in math lessons so students can explain how they got the answer they did, but she has also had the heterogeneous groups work together during activities such as matching letters to pictures or cutting out pictures that begin with a certain letter.

Mrs. X also has a very engaging and motivating classroom. Her classroom is full of age-appropriate books, a full class library, a listening center, and student work such as paintings and drawings related to their reading are hung throughout the classroom. This past week, Mrs. X read  Rosie the Hen, to her students. She read the book with enthusiasm and excitement which gets the students very intrigued and interested in the story. After the book was over they were able to paint their own “Rosie” and hang it on the wall. This allows the students to reflect on the days reading and brings so much community and color to the classroom. Mrs. X reads aloud daily to her students which allows the children and EL learners to grasp the excitement in story telling and books. She also has listening centers which children partake in daily. This is extremely important, not only for the english speaking children in the class, but for the EL learners to continuously hear the english language while following along in a book. 

INSTRUCTIONAL SETTING:
As mentioned, Mrs. X, has a very engaging classroom that motivates students to want to read. Along with her amazing library full of age-appropriate books, she also has a personal listening center which allows her students even more reading time during centers. She hangs student-made art work around the classroom that models key topics from the story they just read. She also has every letter of the alphabet bordered around the room, promoting more reading and understanding.