CHRISTA COLLARINI

Observation Questions for ELL/LEP student(s)

1. What techniques/methods/strategies do you see being used with the ELL/LEP student(s)? Are they effective? Why or why not? (Either specifically for the ELL student(s) or in whole class/small group instruction) - There was lots of enunciating with every word that was spoken by the teacher. The smart board was also very widely used during the morning when I was there. Calandar activities, along with counting, sight words, and sounds. The students would all be picked to go to the board and drag and move things on the board for every activity. These were definitely effective because the students got to see, hear, say everything that was expected of them to learn. Mostly everything was effective. Not all of the students could pay attention the whole time though. It was a whole class instruction. The little boy (S.S) had a designated place near the teacher on the class rug, but not when they were at their desks. 2. Do you notice any student behaviors that you would consider out of the ordinary? Please describe in detail. (This applies to both the ELL student(s) and other classroom students) -Some of the students had to be redirected to pay attention. One student that was not the ELL student actually had to go back to her desk because she was misbehaving. Her desk was also completely seperated from all other students. The ELL student did not seem very different. The teacher told me that he had more of a behavior problem than a problem with his langage however.

3. What type of interactions do you see between the ELL student(s), other classroom students, and the teacher(s)? Please describe in detail. -The ESL student did not seem any where out of the ordinary. I definitely would not know he was the student I was supposed to observe if the teacher did not point him out to me. I saw the boy interect with other students, they were talking on the floor before the smart board activities went on. The teacher told the other student talking to the ELL student and told him that she didnt know why he was talking with the ELL student because in a few minutes he would be telling on S (the ELL student), which I thought was very negative to say. After that, the students were really on their best behaviors and all listened and performed the tasks that were asked of them. 4. Identify resources/materials that are being used with the ELL student(s). Please describe in detail how the ELL student is using them. Do they appear to be effective? Explain. I only saw the morning activities done by the classroom. I know that after lunch S goes to Vo Tech for ELL classes with an ELL teacher. There was nothing that made him stand out to see that he was an English Language Learner. I would not have known if I was not told who the student was. The smart board was used a great deal for sight words and language arts activities. The class also went through calendar activities, time, and money with magnet manipulatives and also the white board. S was called on several times and took probably slightly more time than the other students in the class to answer, and always answered by questioning it. S went up to use the smart board various times. He used this well and knew how to do everything but always aske, This one? or , Here?. I think the smart board is a wonderful tool for an ELL student because it shows

the student the words with the letters and pictures, it provides movement at times, it provides the audio pronounciation of the words, and also it is interactive and fun. 5. Does the classroom environment seem to be comfortable for the ELL student(s)? Please describe the environment and explain how you made your decision. I think the environment is perfect for an ELL student. It has many posters with with words, it has pictures, a ton of color and bright things, a smart baord, a white board, the desks in 3 rows of some sort, its own bathroom in the classroom, and also big windows. The student stays for morning activities and leaves after lunch which is at 11:30. The ELL Student is not seperated from his peers which I think is good so he doesnt have to feel exiled. I did not get to see him in the ELL Classroom because he leaves but I imagine it is much different than this classroom at Mid Valley. I would say that the ELL student is comfortable in his Mid Valley class, he seemed to socialize and also follow along with the activities being asked by him. 6. Whats the comfort level of the ELL student(s) in regards to the English language? What observations help you arrive at your decision? Refer to the Vocabulary Performance Indicators. At what level would you place the ELL student? How did you decide on that level? I believe that the student is progressing on his way to masteringthe English language but isnt fully prepared to as of right now. He is very unsure whenever he answers a question because he always says an answer by asking if it is correct. I believe this is complely normal for a kindergartner even if they are not an ELL student. I would place my student at the level that is a little below the correct level

that an English student is at in kindergarten. He seemed to know everything that the regular classroom students did. He did not stand out in any way. I think this would be much different if he was in the ESL program in an older grade. I hope he will continue to get much better with his English and also keep his Spanish language that way he can be bilingual. 7. If you feel comfortable enough to ask, ask the cooperating teacher (or ESL teacher) what type of accomodations/modifications they have to make for the ELL student(s). Please describe the types of accomodations/modifications that were discussed. Do they appear on the checklist? Why/why not do you think they are present/not present on the checklist? The teacher just stated that if needed she would repeat things several times and whatever else needs to be done she is open to. She said she wished she knew more about what was taught and what went on at Vo Tech, she wished there was more teacher collaboration. The did appear on the checklist for the most part, however I believe a lot of what was on the checklist may be seen at the Vo Tech. Since the ELL student is only at the school for the morning part of the day it is hard to see what is expected to be seen for an ELL student going through school.