Monday, December 6, 2010

Service Learning Site Blog 12/1

On December 1st, I went on my last trip to St. Thomas. I worked with the fourth grade girls and helped them with their Spelling homework. They had to put each word in alphabetical order, and they also had to complete several workbook pages. Then, I helped them complete a worksheet for their Social Studies class.   Once the girls finished their work, I moved on to another table and colored with a little girl. She was separated from the group because she had been punished. Supposedly she chose to tell her mother that she finished her homework one day, but she really had not done any of it. Her mother told the woman in charge, and now the girl had to sit alone for the next three days with no fun interactions with other students.  It seemed like she truly learned her lesson from this experience. She told me that she was never going to lie about having her homework finished ever again. I hope that it is true.

Wednesday, November 17, 2010

Service Blog 11/17/10

Today was a simple day at my service site. All the students were pretty calm and a lot different than normal. As soon as I arrived, my usual fifth grade girls called me over to help them. They had very little homework this today. I helped one girl finish her social studies and math worksheets. After all the students finished their homework, I played Uno with some other students. Once that game got old, one girl asked if she could read a book to me. She seemed like she was in third or fourth grade, but she definitely struggled with simple words. I definitely noticed and achievement gap in her studies. The other students seem to be better readers than her.

Wednesday, November 10, 2010

Service Site 11/10/10

When I arrived at St. Thomas today, the girls that I usually work with were arguing with the fourth grade girls. Immediately I attempted to separate the two sets of friends and told each group to ignore the other and work on their homework. At first they did not want to listen to me, but eventually I was able to get the girls to sit down and do their work. They all had very hostile attitudes and brought up the idea of fist fights several times. I made many attempts to tell them that fighting was never the answer, but they argued that their mothers taught them to always fight back. One girl said that her mother told her than she cannot just sit there and take other people's bullying. Instead, she needed to stand up for herself and fight, or do whatever it takes to win. I was very shocked today and actually a little bit frightened. I knew the girls were just talking about fighting, but I still wasn't sure what they were actually capable of doing.

Finally, though, they were able to settle down and concentrate on their homework. It seems that each week they always struggle on their math homework. Most of these students have a lot of problems completing their math assignments. The textbook they use is very random. It does not seem like the math problems relate to each other in any way. The students have a hard time learning how to do the problems because nothing relates to other problems in the same section.

Overall today, though,  it was very emotional from the start. The girls were very intimidating, and it makes me give the teachers at the school a lot of credit for being able to go through those situations on a daily basis.

Wednesday, November 3, 2010

Service Site

Today I went to my service site at St. Thomas. As soon as I got there, I went over to the fifth grade table. The girls were very loud and energetic today. It took many tries for me to get the girls to focus on their homework. They kept yelling at other kids across the room and making a mess with their food everywhere. Once they finally pulled out their homework assignments, they still continued to talk to each other. I'm not sure why, but the girls definitely were more energetic today than ever before. After about 45 minutes of arguing, two of the girls left, and the others were able to focus more on their homework. Their homework assignments today were to put their spelling words in alphabetical order and then to do 30 math problems. They did not need too much help with their homework. Instead they just seemed to enjoy having another person to talk to about their problems. I think that some of these kids don't have anyone at home that would be willing to listen to them talk. They probably need another figure in their life that they can seek advice from.

Tuesday, November 2, 2010

WebLog 6

This blog is supposed to be about a prop that can be used to relate to Chapter 9: The School Culture. I chose to find a youtube video that helps me to explain this idea. I would like to play the first 3 minutes of the clip.

This clip is from the movie Sister Act 2. If you are unaware of the plot in this movie, Whoopi Goldberg is playing a fake nun. The school where she is working needs a music teacher, and Whoopi Goldberg's character is the person to fulfill the job. The school is in a poor neighborhood, and most of the students do not want to be in school. In this clip, Whoopi, or Sr. Mary Clarence, is meeting the students for the first time. They students are acting up while the previous substitute is teaching, and the teacher was not able to control the class. However, once Sr. Mary Clarence goes into the room, she is able to get their attention and  make the students listen to her.

This video represents school culture because it shows that with the proper attention and control from the teacher, the students are able to learn better. No matter what economic situation a school may be in, anything is possible. Students are able to learn if the teacher shows enthusiasm and is willing to help. Also, the students have to want to be there as well. 

School culture is not just how well the grades and standardized tests turn out. Instead, it also includes how well the the students retain the information, and also the willingness that each student has to be in school. If most of the students show an interest in the subject matters at school and enjoy going to class, then there is a good school culture. However, if the students feel like they are being forced to be there and do not enjoy any part of the school day, then there is something missing in the school; therefore, the school culture is not an enjoyable setting. 

Service Learning Site Blogs


Today I worked with two third grade girls again. First, I helped one girl go through a worksheet of multiplication problems. Then, I had to listen while one girl read her poem out loud to me. I was surprised by how well her reading skills were. Compared to the math skills of these kids at St. Thomas, their reading skills were more advanced. After she finished her homework, I played "Speed" with both girls. They each tried to compete to see how many games they could beat me at. If they won the game, they would run around cheering and dancing with a huge smile on their faces. If they lost, they still would shout out that they won and told me I lost. They never wanted to lose the game. However, they seemed happy that someone would play these games with them. They might not have a parent that would be willing to play with them at home.


At my service site today I helped tutor two fifth grade girls and one fifth grade boy. They worked on their math homework for the full hour and a half I was there. They had problems that involved long division, word problems, ratios, and decimals. They all seemed to struggle with their homework. I constantly had to correct their mistakes. Also, they all used the comfort of a multiplication table. When I was in school, I had to know my multiplication table in my head. They kids seem to have a lack of basic math skills, and it seems that they will struggle in the future. It makes me want to help them learn how to do math better.


I worked with the fifth grade girls again today. This time, they were working on their spelling homework. They had to put their spelling words in alphabetical order, and then they had to make each singular word plural. They all seemed to struggle with this homework. They took anything and everything they learned in class and applied them to the words. For example, one girl was trying to figure out the plural form of "fruit." Without really thinking about it, she wrote "fruites." After I told her that was incorrect, without even thinking about the word itself, she wrote "fruitives." Finally, after several attempts, she was able to figure out that there was no change needed. These girls definitely seemed to struggle with this concept. I feel that the teacher may have given the assignment without actually teaching the students how to do the work.

Wednesday, October 13, 2010

WebLog 4

Timeline Entry:

In grade school, we had to take the Iowa Tests of Basic Skills (ITBS). Each student had to take them because they were a basic assessment of our basic skills in different subject areas. The ITBS assessment test allowed the teachers to determine how the students were intellectually compared to the other students of their age in the United States. Also, the teachers used these tests as an evaluation of how well they taught the students as well. If the majority of the class wasn't doing well, then the teacher was teaching poorly. If the students tested high, the teacher was doing his or job well. This idea of evaluating the teacher has encouraged me to try to be the best kind of teacher that I can be. I want my students to learn the best of their potential.

Writing Circle Discussion:

I believe that by having a writing circle, it will allow us to write better papers. Because each person has his or her own opinions, it allows us, as writers, to meet the needs of all the audience members who would potentially read our research papers. In addition, the members' feedback will help us to only include information that is beneficial to our papers. Also, the writing circle can help us to make sure that our papers are grammatically correct. Each person in the group can provide a different talent that they have to our papers. One person may be good at proofreading, while another person may be good at making sure the paper itself makes sense. Also, the writing circle is there to make sure each person participates. Overall, the writing circle is a beneficial element to writing our papers.