3rd Grade Class

To be given the opportunity to interact with students who are not only so kind a friendly but also enjoy the company of others is truly extraordinary. For the first time in my life I did not feel like I was working or waiting for the hours to go by. Time was non existent, and I felt so comfortable as if I belong. This was my first time shadowing a class room and to be shocked on how beautiful it feels to be in a classroom environment from a different perspective, was just mind blowing. My time came to an end to have with the children and I did not want to leave. I have never felt more appreciated.

Classroom Description:

I was given the opportunity to engage with 3rd graders in a Title 1 elementary school with a population of ELL students.
The classroom profile consists of:

Number of students: 26
Gender: 14 girls and 12 boys

Language:
2 students who spoke Spanish
1 student spoke another language I wasn't able to identify

Language proficiency and ability:
Many of the students I was able to interact with were mainly mainstreamed and their were a few that were Either ELL or R-FEP. I would identify the students according to the WIDA as:

• 1st student male who spoke Spanish I believe was just a beginner in Oral, Writing, Reading, and Developing in Listening. As I worked with him, he eagerly listened to the questions I asked. Such as, what was his favorite games, and he did not understand. So I drew a picture of a child playing video games and he pointed and said " I like Mario game". He began to draw a picture similar to mine and I noticed that when he wrote his sentence that went with his image he spelled the words out how he spoke such a " Video game" was written as "Vidijo Gam".
• 2nd student who spoke Spanish was Expanding due to her quick understanding of my explanations. I would consider her Bridging in listening, and oral, and expanding in writing and reading. She was able to pick up on what I was teaching and teach it back to the other students. For example I was teaching them how to count coins and transfer them into bills. She understood quickly how each  coin had a different value and was able to add them together in her mind at a fast rate. But when it came to writing down something such as what the teacher was posting on the board, she toke a while trying to spell out the words.
• 3rd student with language I was unable to identify I believe was Expanding because he was able seemed fairly balanced in all areas but was taken out of class with help with reading. So reading I believe was still developing. He at first seemed to me as a mainstream student because he was very interactive with the other students and could explain things very well. But when it came to reading a question of the homework, he had a hard time reading it at a fast pace and did not pronounce the works correctly at times.

Other Relevant information :
I really enjoyed the visual and oral methods the teacher used. It was amazing how they are very up to date with modern technology such as the reading from a tablet instead of a book. and how the teacher created the daily calendar step by step with the students. The classroom was very well organized through colors and numbers.
The layout of the classroom was my favorite because their were groups instead of rows and she switched their seats often to allow them to all work together and interact.
Everything was set on a time frame. Students were given a lot of independent work and were relayed on to get the job done and move on to the next. They all helped one another keep on track and not goof off.

I was surprised by the warm welcoming and encouraging personalities I met as I took my first steps into the classroom.This image is very dear to me because it expresses the beauty of diversity and connections of younger generations. I originally wanted to become a high school teacher because I had recently graduated and I felt like I had a close connection with older students. But through this experience I realized my passion was in smaller children. There mind set is on a different scale then ours and their ability to learn things at an incredible pass is so inspirational to me. What really got to me the most was their care and friendliness to not just me but to other students. There was no judgment on skin color, looks, abilities, etc. They just all worked together and helped one another to make sure they did well. I truly felt like I was not working and the fact that they were able to teach me too just shows how brave and considerate young students are.