1

329 Teacher Work Sample Lander University Teacher Education

1. Contextual Factors (LO 1.3) (APS 1) Classroom factors: This fourth grade classroom is very welcoming as it is full of
organization and smiling faces. Standing in the doorway, to the left you will see a long row shelves where Social Studies and Science book are stored. Above, there are multiple brightly colored posters for math, problem, solving, and fractions. Underneath, there are hooks for students to house their jackets, lunch boxes, and book bags. In the back of the room there are two large cabinets that holds teacher supplies and other miscellanies materials. On the outside of these cabinets are posters about science inquiry. Beside the cabinets is a table with a printer and four computers that students use for math, reading, and other educational programs. Above the computers are several more shelves used for storage. Located in the back, right corner is the classroom reading center. All the books are separated into baskets by genre. Here you will also find posters with information about all the different genres as well as posters on literary elements. In the front right is a horseshoe table where students meet with for reading groups and small group work. The front of the room contains a white board and a smart board. Above the smart board are two small speakers that are correlated with the classroom microphone that is used to accommodate certain students. In front of the smart board is a multi-colored carpet where students meet for certain daily activities. Finally, the teachers desk is located next to the smart board along with a billboard with the daily schedule, weekly helpers, and monthly calendar. The back row of desks is in a line of six with a path way in between, then another row of four. Angled next to those four is a line of three. Then the front row is very similar with a line of five with a pathway between then three more desks. Each of these rows are classified by the color of container that is on top of the rolling cart next to each row. Classroom communication is a very large factor in the success of this classroom. Weekly progress reports are sent home, as well as newsletters, notes in agendas, interim reports, parent conferences, and phone calls if needed. Student Characteristics: There are twenty-two students in this fourth grade classroomfourteen boys and eight girls. Five of the students are Caucasian, fourteen are African-American and three are Hispanic. Seven of them live with two parents and fifteen live with a single parent or grandparent. Three students have been identified as gifted and talented and receive specialized instruction for a certain time period each week. Two students receive speech therapy twice each week totaling one hour and one student receives occupational therapy once a week for thirty minutes. There are four resource students that are pulled out for fifty minutes each day and one extended resource student that is pulled out for two periods each day. One student is hearing impaired and wears hearing aids.

2 Five students in this class are above average, thirteen are average and four are below average. Most fourth-grade students are in the concrete-operational stage of cognitive development, therefore needing hands-on activities Instructional Implications: When planning for instruction, it is important to consider those who have been classified as gifted and talented, as well as those who are pulled out for resource. They do a great deal of work together while outside of the classroom, but often when they come back in they are paired with another student to help them get caught up. If additional help is still needed, they then get with the teacher for clarification. It is also important to consider the different reading levels of the students in this class. Students are paired with classmates who are at the same reading level for their guided reading groups. There are two students who usually require more one-on-one attention in this content area than others. There is one student in the class who is hearing impaired. He is accommodated during lessons by a microphone that the teacher wears while instruction when he is in the room. Often times, he still has trouble hearing, so the teacher then calls him over for one-on-one work to make sure that he understands all the information. There are also some students who have vision issues. They are allowed to sit on the floor during instruction time if information is being presented on the board. The room is also equipped with a doc camera to amplify the texts if needed.