Professional Semester III Final Report

Faculty of Education
Field Experiences
Fall

Spring

Semester, 2016

(Please check appropriate semester)

Professional Semester III is a five-course equivalent integrated semester including half-time teaching and
professional study in curriculum design, leadership, advanced methods, and reflective practice. Intern Teachers are
assigned full time to schools for the semester during which they assume responsibility for approximately one-half of
the teaching day. PS III professional study is designed to complement and enhance the internship. The
professional study components may occur on or off-campus and are coordinated by the Faculty Mentors in
collaboration with Intern Teachers and school personnel.

Place a checkmark () in front of the course in which you are registered

X
Education 4571
Elementary Education
Education 4572
Secondary Internship
Education 4573
Special Focus Internship
Education 4574
Fine Arts Internship - Art or Drama
Education 4575
Fine Arts Internship - Music
Intern Teacher

Ria Beekman

Grade Level(s)

Grade 6

School

Wilson Middle School

Administrator

Dean Hawkins

Teacher Mentor

Stephen Thibault

Faculty Mentor

Kerry Bernes

Intern Teachers Descriptive Report:

My PSIII internship was a very rewarding experience! The teachers at Wilson Middle
School were very welcoming and made sure to let me know that I could come to them with any
questions. Throughout my practicum I have been involved in various activities within the school.
I started out teaching math to two very different grade 6 classes. Both classes consisted of just
fewer than 30 students. The students within the classes came from very diverse backgrounds
and brought in a wide range of learning needs. Some of my students only came to class a few
days a week. This created a challenge for me as these students missed a lot of the material
being taught. When they did show up to class Id check in with them often and Id pair them up
with someone who knew their math or work with them individually. To keep my students
engaged I had to constantly incorporate new and interesting activities within my lesson. Ive

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brought in card games, played active games like Simon says where students had to make
angles with their arms and showed relevant videos to help the students focus on the lesson.
Ive also gone around to other classrooms to observe different teaching styles and to see how
others are differentiating the material for their students.
Both of my math classes helped me to continue to improve my classroom management
skills. Ive started a points system where each day a student is assigned to keep track of the
classs behaviour and he/she then decides whether the teacher or the students receive a point.
This made students feel more responsible for their actions! I taught units on Fractions, Percents
and Ratios, Patterns and Angles. (Naming Polygons, Area, Perimeter and Volume and the
beginning of the Transformations unit will be taught during the last part of my practicum).
Intern Teachers Descriptive Report (Continued)

Within a week or two of the start of practicum I was asked if Id be willing to supervise the
breakfast program every Friday morning. I was more than willing to help out as I really wanted
to get to know more of the staff and the students within the school. I always welcomed the
students to school and said a kind word as they exited the cafeteria. I feel like students need to
know that they have been noticed and that they are cared about. They soon became very used
to having me there on Friday mornings and so weve ended up having some great
conversations!
Even though I majored in math, I became very involved in the arts taking place within
the school. I agreed to teach a watercolor class to a group of 26 students from grades 6, 7 and
8. Ive created a lot of pencil drawings but Ive never tried painting with watercolor prior to this
practicum. Before starting this class I did some research on watercolor, bought my own
watercolor paper and painting set and created some of my own pieces of art so that Id become
familiar with the material. I found out that I really enjoyed this type of art and was happy to be
able to encourage these students to try the different techniques to create their own unique
piece of art! I was impressed with some of the work that my students created!
Besides this watercolor class I volunteered to help another grade 6 teacher with the
creation of props for the schools Rumpelstiltskin drama production. Together weve put in many
hours after school to make sure that these props looked realistic and completed on time. Weve
created baskets of berries, an old looking broom, a quill, various different banners and flags
just to name a few. Occasionally Id also take some of this work home to continue on. Once we
came closer to the production date I joined the staff for a drama work bee on a Saturday to help
out with the painting of stage sets. I really enjoyed this day as it showed how awesome and

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how very important it is to have a staff that works well together and helps each other out when
necessary even though each teacher has a lot to do individually.
Throughout my practicum Ive made connections with parents by sending home an
introduction letter and updating the class weebly site every week. Ive also called home on
various occasions to check in with how students are doing in school and updating parents on
their progress.
Within a few weeks of the start of practicum the other intern teacher and I started our
PIP project on numeracy. We began by putting together a set of grade specific home strategies
for students and then we went on to build our website as a resource for teachers to go to, to
plan their numeracy units! Weve made sure to align the activities with the Alberta Achievement
Indicators for number sense. We also plan to create a numeracy display to add to our project.
Now that I know my students and have built relationships with them I have fun with them
in class! In previous practicums I felt like I needed to follow my exact lesson plan but now I
often find myself adding and taking away things throughout the lesson based on how my
students are doing. Also, if a student asked why we were learning about something I wouldnt
put it off to explain it in a future lesson but instead Id stop the class and again discuss where
wed use things like angles in our everyday lives! Reading week was great break but by the end
of it I just wanted to get back to the class and see my students again!

Intern Teacher Signature

Date

This page is to be attached to the Intern Teachers Report.

School Administrator Comments:

Ms. Beekman made a good first impression in her PSIII Internship at Wilson Middle
School. She came to visit the school, her mentor and myself early so she could get a start on
planning. Ms. Beekman volunteered to support our extra-curricular program by assisting with
the Collage of the Arts. She also was instrumental in developing a math tool for our website for
the numeracy classes in which each teacher was able to access during the 6 week Numeracy
class. She was also willing to supervise the breakfast program where she was able to meet a
number of students and connect with them.
Ms. Beekman was very eager to involve herself in the curricular areas of Grade 6 Math,
Water Color Exploratory Options class and teaching Numeracy. Ria had a great mentor
teacher and was able to receive a solid grounding and good understanding of the teaching and
related pedagogy strategies involved in these curricular areas. Ms. Beekman also received
some great professional learning on March 11 with Richelle Marynowski. Ria has really
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learned the importance of understanding how important differentiated instruction is and beyond
that how teachers never stop learning.
Informal and formal observations, Ms. Beekman was successful in her curricular
teaching assignments. During my observations, Ria used a variety of teaching strategies to
actively engage students in their learning. Ria responded well to constructive recommendations
which allowed her to improve her lessons. I also gave a number of recommendations in which
she could use to improve her lessons; she was very receptive and eager to improve her
teaching. Ms. Beekmans expertise in the area of Math was particularly evident during her
time at Wilson Middle School. Her lessons demonstrated enthusiasm, energy and creativity in
the area of Math and Numeracy. She was able to further engage students in higher level
thinking and questioning. She also did a phenomenal job of learning and trying different types
of differentiating within her lessons. I was most impressed with how she handled her numeracy
class and the extra time she put into organizing the Wilson Numeracy project. She worked
hard to understand the students needs and adapted her teaching style to meet those needs.
Ms. Beekman was able to warm up to her students and spent time with the students in
the breakfast program which allowed her to meet other students within the school. It is always
nice to see growth and her confidence has taken off. She related well to students, both inside
and outside of the classroom, during her internship. For example, Ria was able to understand
her students needs and bring her lessons down to where students could understand at their
level. She would also spend a lot of her time at lunch and after school providing students
opportunities to learn from her. Once the students knew she was there for them they were
engaged and worked hard for her.
All interactions observed were positive and encouraged student participation. Ms.
Beekman has very good verbal skills and uses a variety of classroom management strategies
to support the warm and positive learning atmosphere in her classroom. Most importantly Ria
took the time to develop relationships with students and the students connected with her. They
appreciated that she cares about them.
Ms. Beekman has all the attributes to be a successful and professional teacher. She
has worked hard with understanding the dynamics of students at Wilson Middle School during
her internship and has been rewarded with a positive teaching experience over the past three
months. Ria understands what it takes to be a successful and contributing staff member. I
would strongly recommend her for a teaching position in any school setting that she might
apply to.

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School Administrator Signature

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Date

PS III Final Report for

Ria Beekman

This page is to be attached to the Intern Teachers Report.

Teacher Mentor Comments:

It has been a pleasure to work with Ms. Beekman over the past 3 months during her PSIII
Internship at Wilson Middle School. Ms. Beekman made a good impression during our initial
meeting prior to the start of her Internship, as she was eager to start planning for instruction,
and she wanted to become familiar with the students that she would be teaching through
learning their names and looking at their school photos on the Teacher Logic program. Ms.
Beekman demonstrated early on in her practicum her desire to involve herself in our schools
culture, through volunteering to help with our yearly Collage of the Arts Drama Production, and
through taking an active role in supervision during the breakfast program and during lunchtime.
Ms. Beekman assumed responsibility for the instruction and assessment of two grade 6
math classes at the start of her Internship, and shortly after began planning for an exploratory
option class in watercolor painting. I found Ms. Beekmans planning to be very thorough for
both her math classes and the art option. Ms. Beekman used a variety of instructional
approaches that demonstrated planning with differentiation in mind, presented learning
outcomes clearly to students, and had students engage in a variety of learning activities that
were both fun and meaningful. Ms. Beekman also developed and used a variety of assessment
tools that included both formative assessments and summative assessments. In order to teach
her watercolor art option, Ms. Beekman taught herself how to use a challenging painting
medium, and presented work that she completed at home in preparation for instruction to her
students for motivation and inspiration. Ms. Beekman co-developed resources for a numeracy
program that was implemented in all grades at Wilson Middle School. Her work on this program
involved the creation of a website with content and resources that were used by all staff
members teaching numeracy. Ms. Beekman also taught a numeracy class herself. I am
extremely impressed by the work ethic that Ms. Beekman demonstrated throughout her
Internship.
A good measure of success in teaching is about building positive relationships with all
students, and in this area Ms. Beekman shines. It did not take long for students to become
attached to her, and Ms. Beekman quickly won over any who were trying to holdout. Ms.
Beekman demonstrated a calm, patient, caring, and professional approach to working with

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students who at times were quite challenging. Many of the discussions that Ms. Beekman and I
had were about student needs, and how to approach certain students who were experiencing
difficulty in math, or who were struggling with emotional or behavioral regulation. That Ms.
Beekman cared for her students as unique individuals, and wanted to understand them better,
was evident to me and to the kids she taught.
Ms. Beekman has the knowledge, skills, and attributes needed to make her an excellent
teacher. I feel fortunate to have worked along-side Ria, and I know that as a staff member she
will make a significant contribution to any school.

Mentor Teacher Signature

Date

This page is to be attached to the Intern Teachers Report.

Faculty Mentor Comments:

Ria has had an outstanding Professional Semester III. She is described as having great
work ethic and sound lesson planning. She works effectively to build strong relationships with
staff and students. She is quick to keep students on task with very good early intervention. She
is organized, effective, kind, caring and always ready to help out.
Throughout PSIII, I have become very impressed with Rias creativity in how she could
implement great learning activities for her classes at Wilson Middle School. Her ability to
conceptualize the development of these learners and plan accordingly was outstanding. Her
lessons are thorough, detailed and extremely creative.
It is my opinion, that Ria will make a significant contribution to any school lucky enough
to have her as part of their team.
An exceptional semester Ria!!!

I have read the complete Final Report and certify that the assigned grade is PASS.

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Faculty Mentor Signature

Date

September 2000
FE_Forms_PSIII

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