REFLECTION STATEMENT
The vertebrate unit went extremely well.
I started teaching it during my first week of intern teaching so I was
a little rough around the edges but the students responded extremely well.
The class was broken down into five
cooperative groups of 4-5 students. Each group was named an expert group
for one of the types of vertebrates (fish, amphibians, reptiles, birds,
and mammals). They struggled a little during the unit with their team cohesiveness
but I think with a little more practice, they would have responded better.
The bulletin board was an open canvas
for them and they responded by bringing in a whole collection of pictures,
photos, and information related to their expert group and to vertebrates
as a whole. They shared the information freely with their classmates.
A highlight of the unit was when a
class mother brought in her 4 birds and left them for the day. They were
a great attraction for the students and they spent different times during
the day observing their behavior and tying in various teaching points made
during the lesson.
Another excellent outcome of the unit
was the student generated study guide. Each expert group came up with 3-4
review questions, either matching, fill in the blank, or short answer.
The questions were outstanding and provided for an excellent review and
preparation for the unit test.
The students performed exceptionally
well on the test, which I felt very good about. They seemed to grasp the
main points of each lesson and hopefully will carry this knowledge forward.
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