A sample of my reflective journal notes from my learning journey

key points - Introduce myself to students and do a 'get to know a bit about each other' exercise titled 'Three
truths and a lie'. This appeared to be successful. As expected, some students would test my boundaries in
relation to what I would allow behaviour wise. This is to be expected and will most likely be something which
will be a continuing situation.
key points - Observations of running of classroom, keep getting to know students, take note of classroom
management skills used by mentor and understand what accepted behaviour is and what is considered fair
consequences for poor behaviour. Assist with students learning through checking work and guiding them with
things they are unsure of when doing tasks.
key points - Run a lesson on perimeter for maths. Lesson seemed to go ok. Students appeared to have a good
understanding of the process used to finding perimeter of an object and when walking around classroom
checking their progress, few problems were noted. As expected at there are some students who are testing what
they will be able to get away with behaviour wise by distracting others and getting out of seats through lesson.
At this early stage I am still becoming familiar with students and, rightly or wrongly, am a bit tentative to give
consequences for behaviour since I feel I need for them to accept me as an authority figure in the classroom
before I do this. I am confident that I will become stronger in this area of classroom management very soon.
key points - Recap of lesson on perimeter and introduce area and process used to find it. Appeared that after
initial discussion, examples and clarifying questions that students had understood the process. 2 handouts were
given to students, one with perimeter and one with area. Perimeter was successful, but there was confusion for
some students on area. I will need to go through the process of finding area again to clear up any confusion.
Towards end of lesson the students became restless, and I used management skills to get them settled by
reminding them that their behaviour was not acceptable and to remember the class rules and stop being
disrespectful to students who were trying to work quietly. Students settled down again.
In the afternoon I took students to the computer room. This was a lesson which I found stressful as students
were excitable and I had to continuously battle with them to get them to be quiet, stop getting up from their seats
and to stay on task. On reflection, after the first warning I should have sent students who chose to misbehave
back to the classroom to do some quiet reading which would have stopped other students being silly because
they would have been aware of consequences. This was a big learning curve for me on classroom management.
key points - Fridays reasonably relaxed days. Double NIT leaves only four lessons throughout the day and 2
afternoon lessons are used for students to catch-up on any unfinished work or for teacher to do specialist tasks
with students (art projects etc.). Day spent assisting where needed and also to continue with getting to know
students and build relationships.
key points - I introduce students to basic operation of multiplication using single digit by 1 and 2 digit numbers.
Used whiteboard to show examples, had a class discussion and also allowed for clarifying questions. The
students behaved well and it felt as though the lesson ran smoothly. Some students finished work well ahead of
others while one student (Jake) struggled due to his having Autism Spectrum Disorder which affects his
cognitive ability. I also ran English lesson with the focus being on grammar and punctuation. Students had prior
knowledge of these things, so it was a case of re-enforcing the importance of punctuation and grammar to them.
Emphasised to students how bad punctuation and grammar can change the meaning of a sentence or text and
wrote examples on whiteboard. Occasionally had to remind students of noise level being too loud and they
responded well, but only for short periods. Need to control this better.
key points - Introduce new science concept to students titled 'Rot or not'. Students appear to be restless from the
start of lesson. I discuss with them that they need to support me as I try to teach them and that can be done by
sticking to the class rules. I acknowledge the students who are sitting quietly. Students settle down and we have
a class discussion about what we will be doing. Before starting the scientific experiment I ask students if they
know what a fair experiment is and we discuss this. This turns out to be a great discussion point and they appear
enthusiastic. Unfortunately, some of my questions allow students to start yelling out answers and I have to
remind students of bad behaviour. I still need to work on the way and the types of questions I ask students to
avoid these situations. Throughout the lessons, there were times where I felt a bit stressed trying to control 26
students while they were doing this experiment and moving around, and at times I had to ask everyone to stop
and listen to re-enforce behaviour management. Overall, the lessons ran well.
key points - Revisit multiplication. Discuss pathways used to regroup ones and tens. Again, show examples on
whiteboard and ask students questions to check their understanding. Some calling out of answers which I ignore
and it soon ceases. I feel my line of questioning is more appropriate and I am not getting side tracked by
students. After we have revisited the process, students are to do multiplication problems. Students are working
well and I move around room checking student's individual progress and clarifying where necessary. Table 5
students are talking. Go to table and tell them to work quietly. Some students complete problems quicker than
others and start to get restless which causes other students to become distracted. I need to be aware of having
extension activities ready for situations like this. Get these students to read quietly while waiting for others. Jake
was given easier problems which contain only one digit by one digit problems and upon checking he is doing
fine. Warn several students about their behaviour and let them know that next time their names will be moved as
a consequence. This appears to settle them down. I feel more confident with my classroom management,
although it still needs further development, I feel I am getting the balance right.
key points - Double health lesson based around bullying. This is a subject I have not taught before so was a bit
apprehensive. Students sat on floor and we discussed bullying and bystanders. The main focus is about the roles
people play in bullying and what options they have when they see someone getting bullied.
We have a discussion about how awful it would be to be bullied and students put forward their thoughts on how
it would make someone feel and we write them on the whiteboard. Throughout this I am tentative and feel a bit
lost. I am weary of the fact that some students could be using real life experiences when talking about their
thoughts on bullying and am uncomfortable with these thoughts being put forward in an open forum setting. The
behaviour of the student's is on a whole very good, but occasionally someone will test me by saying a silly
comment, and my response is simply that I don't see anything funny about bullying. This causes these types of
comments to cease. After our discussion students go back to tables and do worksheet. Occasionally I need to
remind some students about their behaviour, and other students I give nothing more than a stern look to settle
them down. Somehow I managed to get through this lesson and will feel more confident with this subject in the
future. I still need to work on my management skills, but am feeling more confident as the students seem to be
aware that if they continue to misbehave I will handout fair consequences.
key points - Introduce students to division. Following the same process, have a discussion and check prior
knowledge of the subject and show examples on board and ask clarifying questions. I thought students were
clear on the division process, but upon checking answers as I moved about the room it was apparent that some
students were still struggling. There were some issues with noise and unacceptable behaviour throughout lesson
and the fact students were unsure of subject may have been the trigger for this. On reflection and after reading
mentors notes, I should have introduced division with hands on exercises so students could visualise the process
and better understand the process. My management of the classroom was poor on occasion through this lesson.
Next I ran reading groups. Felt that I was continually asking students to be quiet. Started to compliment students
who were on task and behaving well and this had a positive effect on how the other students were behaving.
Revisited previous English lesson, and then continued on with punctuation and grammar. Felt I had good control
of class during lesson and my management had improved from earlier lessons.
key points - I gave students a punctuation and grammar test. I found I was giving too much information about
the test and felt myself stressing that the students would not do well and this would reflect on my teaching. Is
this what teachers feel like when NAPLAN arrives? Also did a lesson on narratives. I need to tighten my pre
lesson talk with students as on occasions I give too much information to them which gets me off task and
confuses them. Several students on the floor are interrupting by talking amongst each other. I act swiftly and
move them away from the person they are sitting next to and this improves the overall behaviour.
As students are doing narrative lesson at tables I make sure to compliment students on their improved
behaviour. Feel I am improving with lessons and management as each day goes by, but am aware that I am still
making mistakes.
key points - Assembly ran by our classroom which takes up most of the morning by time we have packed up.
Students well behaved throughout assembly and made their teacher proud with what they did. A double lesson
on division was done which went well. First up I gave students a maths division game to do which re-enforced
the concept of division process. This worked well and students really enjoyed it. There were some issues with
behaviour that were quickly solved with the warning that continued bad behaviour would mean that person does
not get to play the game. Also, it was difficult to control the noise. I need to have better strategies in place to
prevent students getting to loud. Students were asked to put game away and we moved onto next part of division
lesson. Students now did some division problems which involved regrouping of tens. Once they completed these
they were given a fun division problem sheet to do as an extension. The students worked well for this lesson
with minimal behaviour management needed. The two lessons were inclusive for all students. I feel confident
with time management in the way I have students making the transition between lessons, including getting ready
for recess, lunch and home.
key points - Students to do multiplication test for record keeping. I don't make same mistake as when I gave
them the test on punctuation and grammar, this time I tell them that they are test conditions and move students
to different locations in the classroom to minimise any opportunity of cheating. I give clear and basic
instructions and tell students once they have finished test to bring it to me and ten quietly read while other
students complete test. I provide Jake with some basic one by one digit multiplication problems to do. Reading
groups are run and I work with one group on the floor while others work independently at their desks. Students
in the reading group are being somewhat silly and several times I ask them to control their behaviour. I
compliment two of the students on the way they are not being distracted and this again seems to have a better
effect on the other students then warning them about their behaviour. I am learning different strategies to
manage situations that arise by getting to know students and the triggers that can adjust their behaviour.
key points - Fridays reasonably relaxed days. Double NIT leaves only four lessons throughout the day and the
two afternoon lessons are used for students to catch-up on any unfinished work or for teacher to do specialist
tasks with students (art projects etc.). Day spent assisting where needed and also to continue with getting to
know students and build relationships.
My relationship with the students feels strong and no longer am I worried about giving consequences for bad
behaviour by students, understanding that they choose bad behaviour and they know what and what isn't
acceptable. They have also understood that I am not going to allow them to get away with poor behaviour and
because of this I feel they do not test me as much as they did.

key points - Revisit division. Show students the process of division using correct division symbol. The students
are behaving well with only some minor irritating talking going on. I stop this from happening by being quite
and just looking at the student s being disruptive. This is effective for awhile, but they start talking again so I
quickly move them to different areas so they can't talk to each other. This is also effective in stopping other
students who were getting restless and starting to lose concentration into focusing again. Students get involved
with discussion through examples of division problems on board and being able to participate in the solving of
them. They go back to their tables and complete problems given to them. They work well and quietly. Other
lessons are ran throughout the day, and I feel much more confident in my delivery of lessons, my planning,
preparing extensions to lessons for students who complete tasks early, and the inclusion of Jake who is of lesser
cognitive ability. I still stumble occasionally, but much less and because of improved classroom management
skills, feel that I am not battling to get control when students get a bit rowdy.
key points - I revisit the correct way to do division using division symbol and I discuss that some students do
still not understand the process from what I have checked in their books and the worksheets they have done. The
first part of the lesson I feel that I have better explained the division process by keeping it briefer and by asking
more relevant questions. This reflects back to a previous comment I have made about needing to tighten my
lessons and not confuse students with too much information. Students are more successful this time with their
problem solving. Behaviour is good throughout lesson. Other lessons run smoothly and I feel this has been a
good day. Again, I still need improvement in all areas, but it feels that I have made significant ground since the
start of this placement.
key points - The interesting and most relevant area of today was running my second double lesson based around
bullying. This time I feel much more comfortable discussing the subject. Unfortunately my delivery on what
students were expected to do and achieve this lesson was confusing for students so I had my mentor clarify
some points for me. Students were doing posters and they did occasionally get loud, but considering the activity
they were doing I thought they were generally well behaved. It was observed that some students seemed
unhappy doing this lesson. This was discussed with my mentor who informed me that due to it being less
structured and loud they would not be overly happy. My management skills were tested on occasion and I feel
that I probably should have been firmer with two or three students with consequences, so I still need to work on
this which will allow me to get control of the classroom quicker.
key points - Today was maths, verb tenses, and reading groups. This was a pretty good day. Everything felt as if
it flowed well and even though there were occasion's behaviour by some students was poor, I managed to
quickly pull them back into line with either a stern look or a tap on the shoulder as I walked past them. When
one student continually misbehaved he was given the consequence of getting his name moved. Again, it proved
to me that you need to control the classroom, and if students continue to push boundaries by their choice, then
you need to give consequences.
I have learnt that if you don't do this, not only will that student continue to be disruptive, but other students will
see it as a green light to be disruptive. I was happy with the way today went and with the fact that the students
managed to complete their work in each lesson, which confirms I am structuring my lessons better. Again, I still
have a lot to learn, but also I have learnt a lot.
key points. I feel that I have learnt a significant amount since day one. I have improved my lesson structures and
delivery of the lesson, and feel my classroom management skills and strategies to control behaviour are rapidly
improving. I am proud to say that at no time during this placement did I have to yell at a student because I
lacked the skills to deal with them. Also, I managed to build strong and positive relationships with the students
that allowed us to work in a trusting and respectful environment. With the positive feedback I am receiving from
mentors and other staff members, I feel much more confident with my abilities going forward and am confident
I have chosen the right profession to be involved in.