It’s hard to believe that I am officially finished with second year placement and summer is almost here for me! The past six weeks have flown in and I am feeling relieved that i can finally lie in and procrastinate without feeling too guilty about it! I am, however, very sad that is all over already. It seems like no time since I walked into the P2/3 classroom 8 weeks ago. This week has probably been the quickest as I knew the end was coming even though I didn’t want to. The fact Friday was a half day probably helped too. My teacher was also far too kind to me and insisted that I take Wednesday and Thursday off to focus on university work but I told her there was no need as I had kept up to date with blogs and could get everything finished before my VIVA. We met half way and I took Wednesday as a uni work day.

As I was off for a couple of days, I had missed teaching a few lessons I had prepared so my teacher kindly let me teach some of these lessons this week. One of these was the story of Jesus feeding the five thousand people. In ways I felt prepared for this lesson as I had planned it a couple of weeks prior so had the worksheets and extension activities printed but I also felt semi unprepared as I was told on the day that I was teaching it so didn’t have much time to refresh my memory on the plan. However, all things considered I felt the lesson went well for first thing in the morning as they normally do Bible stories on a Thursday afternoon and circle time on a Monday morning instead of this RE lesson. I made use of Twinkl for a powerpoint of the story. The children listened well most of the time and enjoyed the pictures to help them understand the story. The noise level was at an acceptable classroom level and I had good control of the class at all points. I used the usual classroom behaviour management strategies when I required their attention. After the lesson, I felt quite bad as I had worked them rather hard especially for a Monday morning but they really did prove themselves! I felt my explanation of the worksheets and my expectations was clear. The main worksheet was a crossword based on the story. As the class had first met crossword puzzles with me during the ‘ai’ phonics lesson, I gave them a reminder of how it works. Most of them remembered it well but a few had forgotten things such as one letter per box. The pace of the lesson was good as pupils were engaged and kept busy. No pupil was left with nothing to do and all pupils achieved a good amount of work. The behaviour was exceptional especially for so early!  The only thing I would change about my practice for next time would be I would add a quiz or interactive activity before they begin the worksheet. This is because at one point, a lot of pupils were very distracted and only a few children responded to me. I think they were quite tired and sleepy but think that an interactive activity might help keep them engaged and get them excited.

On Monday, my reading group went well. The children were mostly focused and read clearly. They showed good understanding of the book and were able to discuss the key events. As I missed Wednesday, my reading group had moved onto a new book. Additionally, I missed reading groups on Tuesday as I was observing the P4 class. This meant that the children had only completed one worksheet for reading groups by Thursday. I decided it would be wise to get the group to do the worksheet planned for Tuesday on Thursday. As they had PE before reading groups there was less time for the worksheet. This meant that most children did not get to draw the three witches but all children completed the sentences. I am really happy with the progress that this reading group are making. They are beginning to really grow in confidence and try to sound tricky words out instead of giving up. They are making links between the books as well as links and differences between the books and the online stories.

I was determined to do one more Lighthouse Keeper story with the children before I left as they really engaged with the Lighthouse Keeper’s Picnic. I decided over Easter that I liked the Lighthouse Keeper’s Lunch and had some ideas floating in my head for activities. I had prepared a storyboard worksheet to allow children to work on their ordering skills and the days of the week. The children were excited to hear another story involving the Grinlings and most sat quietly whilst I read the story. I felt I explained the activity well as the children knew exactly what they had to do. However, some children did struggle to order the days/story correctly. It is evident that more work on the days of the week is required. Perhaps, more repetition of the events in the story might have helped the children but I felt they had grasped the order of the story and instead got mixed up with their days of the week. I ended up being asked to come and observe a P4 child during this lesson so was unable to see children as they did the activity. The end results were amazing though and it was clear that they had worked really hard especially on their drawings.

On Tuesday, I was given the opportunity to observe a child with aspergers in a one to one session with a classroom assistant. This is quite similar to the reading recovery set up but is more focused on words rather than reading books. He started off by spelling words on a whiteboard he had learnt recently such as buzz, fluff and cuff. During this time, his handwriting and how he holds his pen are considered as well as his spelling. Next, he read through page of sounds otherwise known as ‘alien talk’ such as b, p, d, d, b, b, p, b, d. This is to ensure that he knows the difference between similar letters and their sounds. The main focus for this session was the use of double letters in words. A worksheet included paragraphs with several double letter words that he had to circle. Next, he told me how he writes ‘d’ and ‘b’ and the rules he uses to help him- “With b, you need to draw an h first or huffle buffle. With d, you need to draw a c first then make it into a d.” After the pupil left, we discussed the progress they had made since the start of their sessions. For him, it is more of a behaviour thing that is hindering his learning. He is a very capable boy but due to his behaviour he gets less work done and so cannot keep up with the rest of his class and requires this additional help and teaching. He is dyslexic and often takes tantrums if things do not go his way which in turn reduces teaching time. He has made great progress with his behaviour as originally there would be little work done as he would throw tantrums if he got something wrong on the first try. Now he is more willing to give something another try when encouraged to do so. I noticed that he likes to do his own thing e.g. certain stickers and taking a huff if he doesn’t get the one he wanted. According to Lloyd (undated), when children are trying to blend sounds there are two reasons why they might struggle to hear the word when they have said the sounds. These reasons are:

1. If they do not know the sounds well enough and have to pause and think, they lose track of the word. To put this right, they need more practice with letter games and regular flash card work.
2. The way the letters are emphasised- if the child puts the emphasis on the final letter sounds, they will try and start the word with that sound and fail to hear the word. They must be trained to say the first letter sound loudly and then whisper the others fluently e.g. d-o-g.

The letters you have taught a child should be displayed in front of them. Then they can pick out the letters and lay them out in the correct order instead of giving the child the answer immediately. When the child can pick out the sounds in the word, they understand how writing works (Lloyd, undated).

I was then able to observe the child in the classroom with his teacher and the rest of the class. There is another child with aspergers in this class and I had been told that the teacher has quite a rough time with them but watching this would be a great experience for me. I took the two children with me to photocopy some things and within a few minutes I noticed that their behaviour was different to most pupils. They found it quite hard to follow instructions and act sensibly when walking down the corridor. However, once we reached the photocopying room, they were well behaved. They were interested in the photocopier and couldn’t wait to carry the sheets back. I found that one of the pupils is more out there than the other and his behaviour is a bit more obvious and extreme. It was interesting to watch pupil A in a one to one setting and then in the whole class setting. In the classroom, he struggles to keep up whilst in a one to one setting he is able to work at his own pace without the worry of others being ahead of him. However, I think he can get more frustrated in the one to one setting because he is the only one there to answer questions so he knows if he gets it wrong he has to try again and cannot rely on others to answer. He finds it hard to listen for a long time if he isn’t doing anything in both the whole class setting and one to one. The class teacher says that he is manageable but he falls behind due to his behaviour and is struggling to reach the target level for a primary 4 pupil. He makes it clear when he is struggling or if something is not his way whereas child B tends to withdraw. He doesn’t throw tantrums and instead shuts himself off. During his time in the junior school, he would play alone and walk around in a square at break and lunch times. If he can’t do the set work, he will just sit and stare at it; he will not make it known that he is struggling and needs help or needs to try again. I believe that this extra support and teaching that pupils like these two get is so vital as it can really help them to get back on track and achieve the same level as their peers. Sometimes, all it takes is a little one to one time and extra attention that the class teacher cannot give them due to the sheer number of pupils in their class to ensure children can achieve and realise their full potential. These children need to grow in confidence whilst learning to correct their behaviour and take responsibility for their learning efforts. Ultimately, each child is different and therefore has their own routines that help them to learn. According to The National Autistic Society (2017), it is important to maintain a routine with these children and ensure that they are prepared for any changes to this routine. Sometimes, visual aids can help them understand and cope better with routines such as an egg timer. It is suggested that schools use social stories to help those with autism. The school has a session of social stories with those with additional support needs each week. It lasts for about 30 minutes and allows the children to discuss what they would do in various situations to prepare them incase they do happen e.g. someone pushes in front of them in the lunch line. These stories help children to cope better in social situations and act appropriately towards others.

FINALLY the lighthouses are complete! It has taken a lot longer than I expected between pupils being off, me being off and various happenings in the school. The pupils have thoroughly enjoyed making them and have been constantly asking when they could take them home. They have worked really hard on them and asked if we can make the cottage and the Grinlings to go along with their lighthouses. I would definitely do this craft again as they were super engaged and I felt it aided their learning. I think I better start saving the Pringles tubes for next years placement now!

References:

Lloyd, S. (undated) The Phonics Handbook. Jolly Learning.

The National Autistic Society (2017) In the Classroom. Available at: http://www.autism.org.uk/professionals/teachers/classroom.aspx (Accessed: 5 May 2018).

The National Autistic Society (2017) Social Stories and Comic Strip Conversations. Available at: http://www.autism.org.uk/about/strategies/social-stories-comic-strips.aspx (Accessed: 5 May 2018).