I was excited to get the opportunity to do instructional rounds on
December 4th. I visited a number of classrooms in an effort to see all that our
staff has to offer our students. I was blown away by the amount of really good
things we are doing here at ESMS.
It is very easy to
get bogged down in your own bubble. So any opportunity you can get to break
that bubble should be welcomed with open arms. One particular thing
that I noticed was how much the students were doing and saying in order to be
in charge of their own learning. I noticed on most occasions that the teacher
was merely facilitating the environment while the students did the work.
Those environments seem to be the most productive in terms of learning.
I
also noticed that there were a few different methods of formative assessment.
I saw everything from traditional paper-pencil assessment to games being
played as a whole group. I learned that as long as you can mix it up in the
classroom when it comes to those activities, they don’t become stale and the
students thrive. I also noticed that classrooms with movement involved showed
more active participation within the lesson. Even though those rooms seem
more chaotic, they actually seemed to be highly effective and engaging.
It was incredibly
rewarding to see all the great things that were going on in this building!
Plus, I took away some really great ideas to try in my room.
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