Drake Lomax

Date: 4/16/15

West Green Elementary

Classroom setting 10 hours

 

              On Thursday I went to West Green elementary school to sit in with Leslie McMillan. I had always thought I wanted to teach middle school math but when Dr. Carson was talking about needing men in the elementary school I began to wonder as to how the elementary setting was.  When I arrived that morning, my initial thoughts were this is a way smaller setting than that of the middle school or high school. It seemed as if every teacher knew the name of the student who was coming in off the buses. I was amazed at the fact of the teachers being so personal with the students. Being they were approaching the end of the year and were also preparing for the Georgia Milestone test the majority of the day was spent reviewing for that monster of a test.

              I was privileged with the opportunity to work with numerous different students through the small groups we had established. We had the class separated into four different groups and each group had different assignments to complete. During my day with the 4th graders at West Green I learned a lot about how to structure a classroom in order to keep students motivated while they are working together. I also encountered many different types of students. There was one student in particular that really caught my eye. The majority of the people just saw him as a special child who wasn’t really heading anywhere, but to me I felt like he was on the way to being another student who was given the opportunity to be successful in the classroom. The common thread among the teachers was we’re just going to pass him so we don’t have to deal with him again. I felt like as a male I had a greater ability to help and teach this kid then the women teachers that were there with him.

              After school was over there was a faculty meeting. This was the first time I had ever witnessed a faculty meeting and it was cool to me to see the inside of teaching. A lot of times I’ve sat in the classroom but I never realized all the extra work that goes into the job of a teacher. After making a day of an elementary school visit I feel like I would rather teach in the elementary school level verses the higher grades. I also enjoyed being able to be more personal with the kids.

 

 

Summary:

After going out and spending the day at West Green I realized a lot more than I ever did before about teaching at the elementary grade level. I also enjoyed the opportunities to become more personal with the kids. I felt like a lot of these kids were missing a father figure in their lives. I could tell by the way some of them took right to me that they longed for a male role model in their life. I felt like I could really make a positive difference  in their lives.