Colleen Hartnett 11/15/21

EDUC 376 Sr. MaryAnn

Analyzing a Speech to Replicate Style

https://learn.teachingchannel.com/video/analyzing-a-speech-to-replicate-style - 2 hours
The teacher starts the lesson in a really interesting way. He gives students ideas and it all

feels very discussion based and he wants students to chime in as much as possible. I admire the

way he encourages students to create two key ideas. He does a lot of scaffolding looking at

various styles, motivations, time periods, real world examples, and connects that to the students

and their experiences. He relates things to the same experiences that high schoolers might go

through and asks them to use those experiences in their planning. This teacher is great at using

social emotional learning for the students. He goes around and compliments students on their

accomplishments which shows just how much he knows his students and their strengths, but also

weaknesses.

The teacher includes real world examples of speeches and I think this is something that is

really important in the modeling period. Students are actively annotating as they listen to the

speeches they hear. This technique is great because students are taking note of what really stands

out to them. What makes the speech great, what they might want to try and look at in terms of

style for their speeches. Speech is a really nerve wracking topic for students. It’s clear that his

teacher makes these students feel encouraged about gearing up for speech. He asks about tone,

style, and what they annotated as they were listening. This is helping the students develop better

annotation skills, better interpretation skills, and also their comprehension skills. To finish things

up, the teacher assigns homework that is related to the classwork they completed. This is his way

of a summative assessment for the students to check their understanding.

Colleen Hartnett 10/15/21
EDUC 376 Sr. MaryAnn

https://learn.teachingchannel.com/video/assessing-learning-and-providing-feedback - 1 hour 40
minutes.
No Series: Assessing Learning and Providing Feedback

THOUGHT STARTERS

1. Do you prefer to design tests and quizzes at the beginning or end of a unit? Why?

a. I think I would prefer to design my tests and quizzes at the beginning of

the unit. I think this because we make lesson plans with set goals we want
our students to reach. However, I also understand that teachers must be
flexible, sometimes we get caught up in the discussion in class and our
plans get derailed. I think it is important to prepare quizzes and tests with
the hopes to follow those plans, but also be ready to adjust the tests and
quizzes if the unit gets derailed in any way.

2. What is the difference between grading and feedback?

a. According to the video, grading is described as fulfilling the job

description. Teachers grad because they have to do some kind of
evaluation of their students. On the other hand, feedback is a way to
produce growth. Feedback has to be timely and specific. Grading provides
a number based off of a rubric, while feedback is commentary on how the
individual has done. Both are important, but feedback will help our
students grow and learn from their prior work.

3. Are you most comfortable offering written, verbal, or video feedback? How might
you incorporate different feedback mediums in your teaching practice?

a. Thankfully, we have had a great amount of practice doing written, verbal,

and video feedback this semester. Personally I feel comfortable using any
method, I think all of them are effective. However, I have found that I enjoy
video feedback the best. I like this because there is something more
authentic about actually speaking out the things I thought worked and the
things I think needed more improvement. Plus, it’s a video that the student
can always refer back to and compare it to other work for the future.
Colleen Hartnett 10/1/21
EDUC 376 Sr. MaryAnn

Differentiation to Combat Learning Loss and Accelerate Learning

https://learn.teachingchannel.com/video/differentiation-combat-learning-loss-and-accelerate-
learning - 1 hour 30 minutes
THOUGHT STARTERS

1. How can differentiation be used in support of equity?

a. Differentiation is important when it comes to equity in the classroom. As teachers

it is important for teachers to be equitable and a way of demonstrating equity is
having the knowledge to be able to differentiate for students based on their
different needs and backgrounds. Every student deserves the right to have
meaningful learning experiences and differentiation and equity go hand in hand
to make the students aware that they will have everything they need in order to
learn to the best of their ability.

2. How can you give students multiple ways to demonstrate their knowledge,
understanding, and skills?

a. Students can demonstrate their knowledge, understanding, and skills through

product, process, and content. There are many ways students can demonstrate
these aspects of understanding. For a product demonstration, it can be visual,
oral, kinesthetic, or written. For demonstrating understanding a student can do
this through various forms of discussion, journaling, workshops, and collaborative
learning. In order to differentiate for different skills the teacher can provide
opportunities where students get choices and things that play upon their
strengths and skill sets.

3. What's one thing you noticed in the video that Wendy shows at 18:34?

a. One thing I noticed is that as the teacher is singing the more mundane parts of
math class all of the students are engaged and singing along. I think it’s really
unique for a teacher to come up with little “silly tunes” for their students to learn
and understand the content. I think this is a great way to keep students involved,
but also help them learn. What is great is that the songs actually work because
even when the students are not singing they remember the songs in their
independent practice.

Colleen Hartnett 11/11/21

EDUC 376 Sr. MaryAnn
 Teaching Allusion: The Old Man and the Sea
https://learn.teachingchannel.com/video/teaching-allusion-the-old-man-and-the-sea - 1 hour 30
minutes

I selected this video because it fits in well with my signature pedagogy. On the baseline

of interpretation there is allusion, metaphors, similes, onomatopoeia, and many other literary

devices. Something I wondered and was kind of struggling with is how to exactly and clearly

teach literary devices such as allusion. This teacher does a really great job showing the readers

how we can use things that occur in real life and compare them both to the literature they are

focusing on, as well as real world experiences. The teacher shares with the students the exact

standards they are going to be learning, which I think helps with organization and clarification of

the lesson. The teacher brings in a children's Bible, not to teach religion, but to teach it as a

story and share the biblical allusions that occur so often in literature. I like how she reassures

students that she is in no way trying to teach them a religion, but she is trying to teach them

allusions. Along with teaching allusions she is teaching themes of perseverance, which is a

prevalent theme in the literature the students are currently reading and learning about.

Allusions are really important for interpreting texts and I think this lesson shows just how

important learning about literary devices is for students' interpretations. The goal is not to

interpret for the students, but to give them the tools and practice to be able to interpret the text

themselves. From this video I learned that there is a lot that goes into teaching not only

interpretation, but also literary devices. Each literary device will take time for the students to

learn. By the teacher giving real world examples like the Chris Bosner (the man in the

wheelchair), the aspect of the Bible which helps translate some of the biblical allusions, and the

literature that are reading all works to aid students in learning about allusions and getting a

deeper meaning of the text.

Colleen Hartnett 11/9/21

EDUC 376 Sr. MaryAnn
https://learn.teachingchannel.com/video/teaching-shakespeares-othello 50 minutes.

No Series: Ways into Shakespeare's Othello

ELA.RL.9-10.1 | ELA.RL.9-10.4 | ELA.W.9-10.9A
THOUGHT STARTERS
1. Why do students perform lines from Othello prior to reading the play?

a. The students perform lines from Othello prior to reading the play because
it engages the students. This activity is particularly engaging because it
gets the students out of their seats and interacting with their peers. It also
makes the students wonder exactly what their line is going to be about
when it comes time to actually read Othello. Also by breaking down each
line students are able to gain knowledge about the form of the play and
Sheakspeares style of learning.

2. How do the pre-reading activities help students remain engaged with the text?

a. The pre-reading activities help students remain engaged with the text
because when they go to read the text they can connect it back to the
activity they did. The activities also help the students understand the form
of the play and even the interpretation of the form and the times in which
Shakespeare breaks the form occasionally. This style of learning engages
curiosity and provokes a sense of excitement.

3. How is “memorable learning” encouraged?

a. Memorable learning is encouraged by giving the students the creative lens

to work with the introduction to Shakespeare. Students are literally asked
to remember and recite many times in various emotions. The key is to
leave the students wanting more and the goal by the end of the first day's
activities is that the students come back feeling excited about learning
more. I think this technique is really interesting and useful. It differentiates
on many levels and hits various interests of students. It also forces
students to step outside of their comfort zone a little bit, which can always
be useful.

Colleen Hartnett 11/20/21

EDUC 376 Sr. MaryAnn
 A Closer Look at Toni Morrison's "Beloved"
https://learn.teachingchannel.com/video/a-closer-look-at-toni-morrisons-beloved - (1 hour 30
mins) ELA.RL.11-12.1 | ELA.RL.11-12.3 | ELA.RL.11-12.5
I like the way the teacher activates prior knowledge in this video. The students have

already completed a QPA (quick passage analysis) which is a writing piece about the novel that

the students are reading. The teacher asks about the themes of the book, students touch upon tone

and mood, and he compares the author to an artist. Sometimes I think students really need to hear

that authors can also be artists, it stands in as a friendly reminder that E.L.A is a creative subject

and students should be able to explore that. The teacher talks about examining passages which is

something I try to do in my lesson. He shows the students why it is so important for students to

be able to look at certain passages and how their literary devices further the book even further.

The teacher differentiates for a student that was away. He begins talking about the

“context” she missed as she was unable to catch up on the reading. He uses this as an opportunity

to talk about context for the students. I also talk about context clues in my lesson plans and it

shows in this video just how important context clues are for reading and interpreting a novel. I

think the teacher does a good job in reassuring the students that their questions are valid, one

student asks, “how do you zoom in on one characterization device?” The teacher reminds the

students of a poem they have read that was full of metaphors and he reminds the students that

there can be all kinds of literary devices throughout the novel and in any kind of literature they

read. Students have really great questions about the novel, but also about the literary devices,

form, and authors choices throughout the novel. As the students break up into groups the teacher

goes around and asks questions that are really useful. When I taught my lesson to the class this

semester I think this example of a teacher going around asking prompting questions would have

been more beneficial than the general questions I was asking.

 EDUC 376-378
Name: Colleen Hartnett__
Sr. Mary Ann Jacobs
Team #: ___ Date: _11/12/21___________
Fieldwork- https://learn.teachingchannel.com/video/socratic-seminars-patience-practice-full-lesson 2
hours
SOCRATIC SEMINAR #2
CLAIM
COUNTERCLAIM
Remember how you score points on debate: An argument
The prefix
or opinion
“Counter” that
means
is against,
powerful,
so theunique,
counterclaim
and cantobeyour claim is
supported
any opposing
by evidence.
idea. Anticipate,
● Use an appropriate language phrase (1 pt)
mention, and disprove counterclaims
● State what a counterclaim could be and disprove it (1 pt) This is another
as partword for “thesis”
of presenting your claim.
● Make a unique claim (1 pt) or “controlling idea”.
● Refer to a specific moment in the text for evidence (2 pts)
● Paraphrase another debater's claim (1 pt)

Question/Statem Our CLAIM/S and Anticipated Notes on the most

ent (answer, EVIDENCE from Socratic COUNTERCLAIMS and interesting points made
agree/disagree) Seminar: Patience Practice how we can refute them during the discussion
1. Is it Yes, it is very possible to use Socratic seminars might not Students display a sense of
possible socratic seminars in ELA be the best use of abstract thinking about
to use because when interpreting a conversation because it is literature.
Socratic poem (like the video) there is a sometimes too structured
Seminar lot to explore and each student and students feel as though Students collaborate with
in your can have different views. they have to speak on points their peers.
content There is a lot to say and that they do not necessarily
area? comment on in literature and agree with. Students can
being able to express an also fall into a silence with
argument and use evidence not much to say and there
from the text. can be many factors that go
into students feeling
apprehensive about
speaking in class.
2. How can Claims and counterclaims can Claims and counterclaims Students tend to get a little
claims & be used in ELA for students to can get confusing at times lost when they are trying to
countercla back up their thesis statement. because students can be refute claims of the opposing
ims be Counterclaims can be used to heavily opinionated behind side.
used in respectfully refute their peers' their claims rather than facts
your points and bring a new and evidence to back up
content viewpoint of the text to the their claims.
area? class.
3. Which A lot of the language used The students might feel I think the most important
parts of throughout this video will be limited when they are told thing was the clarification
 the really effective for socratic what language is between evidence and a
“appropri seminars especially for an appropriate versus not claim. Students understand
ate English content area. This is appropriate. the difference between what
language really important for making can be argued and what is
poster” be students feel secure in their not arguable. I think the
used for socratic seminars. Without teacher does a great job in
your this, students might fear showing students that they
content speaking out in the classroom. need evidence in order to
area? support their claims.
Reflection: What was the most intriguing claim you heard today and why?
Why are claims, counterclaims, and appropriate language important for a Socratic
Seminar?
I think one of the interesting debates and claims was the question “What would the world

be like if there was no poetry?” I thought this was interesting because it is a broad question. This

discussion was between Isa and Jane (two students) and I think this was interesting to me

because it felt as though it was lacking evidence. Jane said the world would be less colorful

without poetry. However, as other classmates tried to chime in, their evidence helped to

strengthen the claim. Without poetry there would be no metaphors and similes, writing would be

more journalistic rather than artistic. The conversation did end up bringing a lot of evidence. The

claim I most enjoyed was that the world would be less beautiful without poetry.

Claims, counterclaims, and appropriate language are all important to socratic seminars

because they give structure to what should be a fairly loosely structured conversation. Claims are

there to get points across, when a student states a claim they are making a point based on their

interpretation and evidence they found. Counterclaims are important because they create a sense

of respectful disagreement. The parties are able to acknowledge their opposing side while still

being respectful to their peers. Counterclaims are not used to start an argument, but to get

students to see the other side of things and flip the perspective. Appropriate language is really

important for socratic seminars because the main goal is to make all students feel comfortable to
speak. When a student is using harsh language and being rude in their disagreements then the

other students may feel less inclined to join in on the conversation.

Colleen Hartnett 10/20/21
EDUC 376 Sr. MaryAnn

No Series: Deeper Learning Through Textual Analysis

https://learn.teachingchannel.com/video/deeper-learning-through-textual-analysis - 1 hour 30
mins
ELA.RL.9-10.1 | ELA.RL.9-10.3

This video was really beneficial for a future English teacher. Throughout the entire lesson

the teacher was keeping the students engaged. Quote analysis is something that goes along with

my signature pedagogy. Teaching, using, and practicing quote analysis is key for students to be

able to interpret texts of all kinds. These students are working with Shakespeare, the play

Macbeth, which is particularly tricky. Prior to the discussion led by the students, the teacher

prefaces their “Roundtable Discussions” with appropriate language for the students to use. She

then reiterates that students should have evidence about their claims and the points they plan to

bring up during the discussion. I admire that she has the students read out each aspect of the

lesson so they know exactly what they are doing.

The discussion is fueled by questions and the students have to arrive at an answer while

being prepared to share evidence to their answers. It’s clear some students are not as comfortable

speaking in front of the class as others, but I think the set up of the “roundtable” helps the

students gain more confidence. It’s great to see that all of the students came prepared, this is

something we talked about in class that makes for a great discussion. A lot of the aspects we said

in class that made for a good discussion were included in this discussion. The teacher takes a

back seat in this discussion and allows the students to get their own ideas out there. This is also

part of my signature pedagogy because I think that when teachers become too involved in

discussions it becomes a discussion about what the teacher thinks rather than the students. When
the teacher does chime in, it is just to give the students a gentle push down a direction that

focuses more on the questions at hand.

SCHOOL DETAILS
The Springfield Renaissance School

1170 Carew Street

Springfield MA 01104

Population: 728
Colleen Hartnett 10/6/21
EDUC 376- Fieldwork- 2 hours Sr. MaryAnn

Teaching Channel Present Math and English Essentials

1. Assignment – view The Essentials – on Teaching Channel – identify inquiry tools,

concept under development, & dispositions

a. Inquiry Tools: Some inquiry tools that were presented in this video were the

teacher asking probing questions such as, “Why did you pick that?” “Is it either

pathos, ethos, or logos?” These questions are useful for the students because it

makes them think beyond their original answers. We then see the teacher trying to

gain more information about the students and the content that they were learning.

The teacher would engage in specific conversation with the students trying to

extract more information from their writing topics in order to get a more detailed

story together. We see them narrow down their information from broad to specific

while pulling out more information from the students personal lives.

b. Concept under development: A way to deepen the students' development is to

have the students talk to each other. For example, when the students share their

writing pieces they actually heard and saw the areas of their writing that were

under developed. The teacher would walk around and consult with the students

that needed more assistance in specific areas of their writing. For the math class,

the teacher posed a real world scenario in which they are “winning the lottery”

this helps them to understand the things that go on in their real world, while also
 understanding the math behind it. They are learning and developing the concept

without even realizing they are learning. The teacher slowly adds more math

concepts within the lesson and the students still see it through the lens of the real

world and not just numbers on the paper.

c. Disposition: Each teacher throughout the video was so supportive and did lessons

that pertained to the students' lives. We particularly enjoyed the Ad lesson

because it was so related and understandable to the students. They see these ads in

their lives everyday. This teacher urges her students to be proactive in their

learning, participate often and ask questions. By encouraging her students to

participate and be open to hearing the questions students will feel more

comfortable opening up. One quote from the video we found really inspiring was,

“As long as your students are succeeding, it’s a good moment.” This is really

interesting because as a teacher you just really want to see your student succeed

and make progress, then you know you are doing something well. Another

important aspect we recognized is that when the students are so involved in the

lesson, it’s okay to get off track. When the students are speaking and engaged, the

teachers are aware that they care and they are learning something. Time

management is important, but the students' learning is what is most important.

Colleen Hartnett 10/21/21
EDUC 376 Sr. MaryAnn

No Series: Equity-Based Approach for Leaders

https://learn.teachingchannel.com/video/equity-based-approach-leaders - 1 hour 15 minutes

THOUGHT STARTERS
1. How does your own identity shape your mindset and practices as a leader?

a. I think that this is relevant to the signature pedagogies we learned about

and are formulating. I think our past experiences help to shape our
mindset as teachers. We might remember a past teacher that had a style
that we did not exactly love or work well with. On the other hand we might
have had teachers that influenced us and our teaching for the future. I
think our backgrounds alter the way we think about leadership. However,
what I think we lack from our background should be made up in reliable
research and knowledge about equitable leadership.

2. What's one thing you can incorporate into your coaching of other teachers to help
them refine their equity-based mindset?

a. Being that I am just studying to be a teacher, but I can change this

question to ask what is one thing I want to include in my classroom to
highlight and encourage my own equity based mindset?: We talked about
equity in class and it is recognizing that there are going to be students that
need extra support and services that other students will not need. This
video talked about the pandemic and equity. Three goals that I want to
“steal” from this video when it comes to equity is “Comfort, Communicate,
and Connect.” In order to be equitable in a classroom we have to have a
relationship with our students and

3. What might your "equity mission statement" look like?

a. I think my equity mission statement might look like using some of my
background knowledge and growing up during such a critical time period
with Black Lives Matter movement as well as the pandemic, I want to
apply my experiences with that. However, I also recognize that I am a
white middle class American and I grew up in a predominantly white
neighborhood. I understand that I will need to do a lot of research and find
various resources to properly educate myself in order to be equitable in
my classroom. My goal is to make all students feel comfortable, happy,
and appreciated in my classroom. This is going to take time, research, and
effort to ensure all of my students trust me and feel comfortable with me.
Colleen Hartnett 10/25/21
EDUC 376 Sr. MaryAnn

Fostering Heterogeneous Collaboration

https://learn.teachingchannel.com/video/fostering-heterogeneous-collaboration-sfusd - 25
minutes

THOUGHT STARTERS
1. How does Mr. Halle-Erby strategically use groups to support learning and foster
collaboration during the lesson?

a. By placing the students in heterogeneous groups the students support

each other and their readings. The students are all at different levels of
reading and by having their peers help support them they are able to grow
as English Language Learners. This also increases the sense of
collaboration in the classroom. Students are all working together to figure
out the readings to the best of their ability.

2. |What scaffolds does Mr. Halle-Erby have in place to support his English
Language Learners?

a. Mr. Halle-Erby scaffolds for the students if they need clarification in the
reading. The students are encouraged to try explaining in English, but they
are absolutely allowed to speak in their first language in order to get
clarification. He also gives them feedback and makes them read their
feedback during class time. There is a lot of strategizing with groups.
Sometimes he has groups that are completely different and sometimes he
puts groups together that are more similar. Collaboration appears to be a
really key aspect in his classroom. He also makes connections between
other classes for the students. He includes discussion frameworks and
sentence structures for the students to get started speaking.
 3. |How does Mr. Halle-Erby collect and use formative assessment data?

a. He collects the recordings of the students' conversations and uses them

to check in and see what kind progress the students are making in terms
of language. He also walks around the classroom as they discuss and he
takes note of the positive language and discussion skills the students
were demonstrating and he goes over it after class. This helps students
build confidence in their English Language Learners.

Colleen Hartnett 11/4/21

EDUC 376 Sr. MaryAnn

Interviewing High School Students

5 hours

Interview With 9th Grader Aidan Durcan

Aidan Durcan:
- Pearl River High School
- Pearl River, NY
- About 700 students
- 9th grade

What is your favorite subject? Why?

- Aidan reported that his favorite subject was math because he really likes his teacher. He
says that his teacher does a great job slowing down the lesson when she knows people
are confused. He also said that he is easily able to ask her questions when he needs to.
This is beneficial for Aidan because he is generally a quiet student, but when he gets
lost in a class he sometimes does not ask questions because he does not feel like
speaking up in front of the whole class. Aidan reports that he likes Algebra and is doing
well in the course so far. He admits that the term algebra did appear to be intimidating,
but actually is not bad once he got into the curriculum.

What does your classroom look like?

- Sometimes the class is set up in groups and that is usually when his teacher is going to
ask the students to work together. Other times the classroom is set up in rows with the
teacher at the front and a Smartboard at the front of the classroom. Almost all lessons
are taught using the Smartboard. Aidan reports that the class usually takes notes in their
notebook, but sometimes there is a handout.

How has the transition been from middle school to high school?
 - Aidan reports that there was less of a transition for him this year because at Pearl River
students go into high school in eighth grade. The school is set up so that eighth graders
have their own wing of the building, so they usually never saw high schoolers. However,
he said since he has been in this atmosphere for over a year he feels quite used to it. He
admitted that as an eighth grader in high school, he was somewhat intimated, but after a
few weeks the adjustments became much easier for him.

How is your workload? Do you ever feel overwhelmed?

- Aidan reports that his workload definitely increased since eighth grade, but he manages
it. Sometimes it does become hard for him to balance work and extra curriculars being
that he is on Cross Country, Winter Track, as well as Spring Track. He said his schedule
usually remains the same: go to school, practice, come home and do homework. The
way Aidan describes it as the workload gradually gets larger. He also says that he is a
little worried about the regents he will be taking this year. Although he is enjoying his
math class, he is still worried about doing well on the regents exams.

Interview with 9th Grader Maura Durcan

Maura Durcan:
- Pearl River High School
- Pearl River, NY
- About 700 Students
- 9th Grade
- Aidan and Maura are twins

What is your favorite subject and why?

- Maura reports her favorite subject is English. She is an honors English student and she
really enjoys reading. Her teacher is a great teacher and understands that the new texts
they are reading can be difficult for a freshman in high school. Maura enjoys participating
most in English class because she feels that is where she is most confident in her
answers.

What has been your favorite piece of literature in English class and why?
- Maura says that her favorite piece of literature this year has been Night by Elie Weisel.
She enjoys this piece because it gave her so much more information about the
Holocaust. She also said she liked it because the main character was a teenager and
the way she could compare just how different the lives of teenagers today is between the
teenagers that were growing up during the Holocaust. While the book is obviously
heartbreaking Maura was pleased that Ellie, the narrator and author, is freed and able to
share her story. She thought because it was a memoir it made the story much more
engaging to read and she felt empathetic for Ellie based on her personal experiences.

Do you prefer reading or writing? Why?

 - Maura reports that she prefers reading. She said she enjoys looking at all different
genres and thinks that reading stories is more engaging than writing essays. For Maura
writing becomes challenging for her because she often lacks the vocab that novels she
reads have. She enjoys reading in her free time, but also for school. However, she does
admit some of the books that she has had to read for school are “boring” to her.

How is your workload? Do you ever feel overwhelmed?

- Maura reports that her workload is very manageable. She always gets her work done on
time and is doing well in most of her classes. She reports that she wants to try and take
some challenging courses next year. She admits that (like her twin brother) the regents
exams are a little scary and she is worried about all the preparation that goes into them.

Interview with Kevin Gorham 12th Grader

Kevin Gorham:
- 12th grade
- Pearl River High School

What has been your favorite subject predominantly throughout high school? Why?
- Kevin reports math has always been his favorite subject. He enjoys math so much
because he likes that there can be just one answer. He has taken challenging math
classes and he takes pride when he does well in them. Kevin has been taking honors
and AP math classes and he says although they are challenging, he enjoys them and
takes a lot of interest in math.

Being that you are a senior, have you thought about what you want to do after high school?
- Kevin reports he has been looking at a whole bunch of different colleges, particularly
ones with good engineering programs. Kevin hopes to be an engineer and he thinks his
capabilities in math will be able to help him achieve that goal.

What makes you want to join an engineering program?

- He thinks that engineering has become a really popular profession over the years and a
lot of people tell him that he could be really good at it. He admits a lot of the math
classes he took throughout high school instill some confidence in his decision as well.
He is aware of the other components that are involved in engineering, but he is willing to
work harder in those areas. Kevin hopes to become a mechanical engineer.
Colleen Hartnett 10/12/21
EDUC 376 Sr.MaryAnn Jacobs
Whole module- 1 hour 20 minutes

Module 1 - Observing the First Days of School

First Days of School: It’s Always Awkward in the Beginning- 30 Minutes

This article talks about how difficult it is to build a comfortable classroom environment at

the beginning of the year. It is difficult because a teacher can make great connections with their

students, just to have to do it all over again the next year. As we discussed in class there is a lot

of work that goes into a student feeling comfortable in the classroom. Trusting the teacher is

important, and trust in the students is also crucial to building a comfortable learning

environment. Sarah Brown Wessling gives great insight to making this transition a little bit

smoother. For example, she writes to her students and gives them a letter on the first day of

school. This must make the students feel welcomed and automatically involved in a classroom

setting. She uses all of the time she has to try and get to know her students even if it is just for a

short period of time. I admire that she just jumps right into the teaching. By giving out a poem to

set the scene for the rest of the year, it shows students that this will be an environment to do

work, but also be creative and enjoy the learning together.

Series First Days of School: It's Always Awkward in the Beginning: Sharing Stories to Build
Community- 20 minutes
1. Why does Ms. Wessling start the lesson with a story?

Ms. Wessling starts the lesson with a story because the story is about people feeling
uncomfortable in the classroom. She acknowledges that she might know these students but they
don’t all know each other. She starts the story to generalize the idea that everyone is going to
need to get to know each other and that’s okay.

2. What do students learn from the Humans of New York project?

From the Humans of New York project students learn about the stories of random people,

all living in New York. The students' job was to figure out what questions the man

running the project must have asked in order to get the answers produced by his subjects.

3. How does Ms. Wessling model how to conduct an effective interview?

a. She notes that a lot of the time an interview can start with an observation. From

there it’s able to lead to a discussion. She uses Humans of New York as an

example of interviewing someone and then she works from there to further

teaching. After she has modeled it, the students spend time doing interviews. She

utilizes practicing interviews in class for about two weeks, this is a great way to

get students to practice and really understand interviewing and discussion. She

then does a practice interview with a student. This is a great way to get students to

start to feel comfortable speaking in the classroom.

Series First Days of School: It's Always Awkward in the Beginning: Give Some Snaps!- 10
minutes

THOUGHT STARTERS
1. How is snapping different than clapping?
 a. Snapping is different from clapping because it is more unusual than clapping,
and less dense than clapping. The teacher just gives a few snaps when she sees
behavior she likes or hears a good discussion and it’s just a good way to show
praise to the students without making it an entire scene.
2. How does the snapping evolve over time?
a. The snapping evolves over time because we see just the teacher using the
snaps and the students tend to feel confused by it, then we see students begin to
use the snaps themselves. The snapping eventually becomes symbolic to the
students as a group and it creates a commonality for the students in their
classroom. It’s like their own little ritual that brings them together.
3. How could you adapt this strategy for use in your class?
a. I think that I could adapt this in my classroom for when I feel the students are
doing a great job learning. I know some of my past teachers have used a “that
was easy” button and it just kind of added a fun new way of feeling praise from a
teacher. It’s something simple that the students can enjoy.

Series First Days of School: It's Always Awkward in the Beginning: Teaching Through Silence-
THOUGHT STARTERS- 10 minutes
1. What are the different ways Ms. Wessling deals with silence?
a. Ms. Wessling puts herself in her students shoes, she wonders if they do
not understand the question, or maybe the content has become too
confusing. She understands that speaking in class can become nerve
wracking. She lets the silence sit first. She then calls on a student or two in
advance to allow them enough time to formulate some kind of response.
She then takes what the students say and paraphrases that and tries to
build on it creating even further conversations.
2. How does Ms. Wessling use empathy to relate to her students?
a. She relates to her students by understanding that, especially in the
beginning of the year, students are not comfortable with speaking in front
of their peers and they want acceptance.
3. Why might this strategy be particularly helpful at the beginning of the year?
a. This strategy is effective for the beginning of the year because it is in a
sense differentiating for the students that are shy and do not feel
comfortable to speak up yet. She does not yell or cold call on students.
She helps them get to a point where they build up their confidence in the
classroom and start to participate more comfortably.
Series First Days of School: It's Always Awkward in the Beginning: Reflecting on Teaching After
20 Years- 10 minutes
THOUGHT STARTERS
1. What has stayed the same over Ms. Wessling's teaching career?
a. She believes that in her twenty years of teaching questions are more
beneficial than answers. Papers are less effective than discussions and
questioning
2. What has changed over Ms. Wessling's teaching career?
a. She says that she really wanted students to like her, but as she grew as a
teacher she found out and realized that respect for her and respect for
learning.
3. How has Ms. Wessling learned from her students?
a. She has learned everything is a gradual process. Over time her students
will grow and some may come back and tell her that her teaching style
really worked.

Colleen Hartnett 11/9/21

EDUC 376 Sr. MaryAnn

Re-establishing Classroom Routines, Norms, and Group Behaviors

https://learn.teachingchannel.com/video/re-establishing-classroom-routines-norms-and-group-
behaviors - 1 hour 25 minutes

THOUGHT STARTERS

1. What classroom routine do you teach on Day 1?

a. I think that a classroom routine that is really important to include on the first day
of school is to teach respectful speaking and listening skills. This is important
because this is going to set the scene for the teacher and the student. This will
develop respect for not only the teacher, but also the students. I also think the
video makes a great point in mentioning that you can not set the scene of
classroom rules all in one day. A gradual process of letting students know the
rules of the classroom mentioned in a positive matter.

2. How do you positively reinforce your classroom routines and rules?

a. I think one way to positively reinforce routines and rules is to state rules in the
positive format. Instead of “Don’t run” we frame it as “Walk, please.” This creates
 a more positive environment. Another simple suggestion is to just greet your
students at the door. The students will feel more welcomed and ready to learn.

3. What's one strategy you use that helps save time at the beginning of a lesson?

a. I think one thing that helps save time at the beginning of a lesson is to really
activate prior knowledge. When students begin to get in the mindset of what they
are learning, they will quickly be able to shift their focus to the new content that is
already similar to what they have expressed they have known already.

Colleen Hartnett 11/21/21

EDUC 376 Sr. MaryAnn

Socratic Seminars: Patience & Practice (Uncut)

ELA.RL.9-10.1 | ELA.RL.9-10.4 https://learn.teachingchannel.com/video/socratic-seminars-

patience-practice-full-lesson
Socratic Seminars is something that we discussed in class a lot this semester. I think this

teacher does a great job in prefacing the discussion the students are going to have by having

them talk in pairs about what poem was hardest for the students to understand. I think that

because the teacher gives “four easy steps to analyzing evidence” she makes the instruction for

the students very clear. I think this is something I would want to “steal” to use in my classroom.

Socratic Seminars are so important in the classroom because when the students are the ones

doing the talking, they are the ones that are doing the learning. I think the students have a lot of

great questions that get the conversations flowing. The students all participate which is beneficial
for building confidence in the classroom and encouraging. These students are ninth graders

working with some complex poetry and the way the teacher scaffolds for understanding and

comprehension of the poetry.

It’s also interesting to see the students as they relate emotions from the literature to

emotions of their real world experiences. For example, one student said that the person in the

poem that feels sad about losing their dog can be related to the feeling of the Giants losing if

you're a Giants fan. I admire that in the end the teacher steps in just to ask if there are any last

comments. As I watched in another video, when the teacher invites the students to speak,

sometimes they feel more comfortable opening up to the class. The teacher also debriefs by

asking what the students “shining moment” was. This is a good way for students to talk about

what they felt worked well for them. Also the teacher asks the students if they reached their goal.

I think the idea of setting goals in a classroom is really important, it gives students motivation

each and every day.

Colleen Hartnett 10/15/21

EDUC 376 Sr. MaryAnn
1 hour 20 minutes https://learn.teachingchannel.com/video/transforming-assessment-authentic-
engagement-21st-century-learningn

Transforming Assessment Into Authentic Engagement for 21st Century Learning

THOUGHT STARTERS
1. What are "desirable difficulties"? How do they support student learning?
a. Desirable difficulties are things that cause students to have to work a little
harder and put in more effort. This supports student learning because it
forces students to work through difficulties and produces overall better
performances long term. It might make students feel stressed, but it has
to be enough difficulty, but not too much that we overwhelm the students.
This concept works with the zone of proximal development.
2.How does allowing students to struggle with content benefit them?
 a. Allowing students to struggle can actually benefit them because when students
struggle they are not only building a stronger sense of learning and perseverance,
but they are also generating questions. Questions are so important to student
learning and discussions. When we think more about student questions instead
of focusing on their answers.
3. How might you replicate real-world challenging situations in your classroom?
a. I would include this in my classroom by including it with inquiry based learning. I
would want my students to conduct some kind of project completely on their
own. When students are given very little guidelines they feel that coming up with
ideas, answers, and questions makes things more difficult. They have to work
through an entire thought process.

Colleen Hartnett 11/1/21

EDUC 376 Sr. MaryAnn

Unpacking Song of Solomon (Uncut)

ELA.RL.11-12.1 | ELA.RL.11-12.4

https://learn.teachingchannel.com/video/unpacking-song-of-solomon-complete-lesson - 2 hours

I really like this teacher's warm up activity. The students are unpacking major themes of

the Song of Solomon. One thing the students found interesting, two connections to the theme,

and three questions or confusions. This is a great way to start a class for students that are reading

and interpreting texts, especially ones that are confusing or maybe ambiguous for students. I

think that the students have the space to demonstrate some things that they know they understand

while also getting the opportunity to clear up their confusion they might have had while reading
the text. The students all work together and discuss various aspects of the text and it is a really

smooth transition from the warm up into a discussion.

The teacher really is considerate of when her students want to speak. Before every

transition she makes she opens the floor for the students to make any comments, questions, or

concerns they may have about what they just discussed. Personally, I think unpacking specific

lines and areas of the text is really useful for students. It brings them through the process of

interpretation and it was clear students' answers were getting more creative with their answers as

they began to explore deeper meanings of the theme throughout the text.

The teacher also creates a great atmosphere for the students to participate. She scaffolds

just enough for students to still be able to come up with their own interpretations. This semester

we discussed the ways in which a teacher can sometimes cloud a student's answers. This teacher

does a really nice job of pulling back from giving her interpretations before the students give

theirs.

Colleen Hartnett 11/4/21

EDUC 376 Sr. MaryAnn

Writing Like an Author and Choral Reading

https://learn.teachingchannel.com/video/writing-like-an-author-and-choral-reading
- 1 hour 30 minutes. ELA.RI.11-12.2 | ELA.RI.11-12.6 | ELA.W.11-12.3A
In this video we see the teacher begin the class with an engaging activity and get the

students talking about things that are difficult in adulthood. This is a good way to gain a sense of

social emotional learning. The teacher is setting up the class for the students in a way that makes

them feel comfortable because they got to talk about things that were stressful for them. I also

noticed that the equipment in the room was not properly working so the teacher had to

improvise. This is the flexibility that teachers need in order to get their teaching done on a daily
basis. The teacher goes through and models for the students about interpreting this text, he is also

asking prompting questions to keep the students involved. He also asks the students to take time

in their groups to discuss the literature. As he allows the students to go through and do some

writing of their own he is very helpful for his students when they feel they are stuck. The

students really show a great sense of creativity and critical thinking. This is a good video that

pairs with my signature pedagogy because it shows student collaboration, paired with

interpretation, and creativity. This is a great lesson that I think students enjoy because they get

the opportunity to display some creativity and work they can be proud of. The students show

great progress in working together and I noticed they are all very respectful and using

appropriate language. The students not only make suggestions to each other, but also explain

why their suggestions would fit in with the story. The way the students are all trying to

collaborate and find common themes within their own stories shows a great development of

interpretation. The students dig deeper into each other's stories to find common themes and they

work together to figure out what ties each of their stories together.