Classroom Context

Social Studies Word Wall and Computer Area

Former Classroom management system, classroom textbooks, and dry erase board paddles

Classrooms pencil sharper, highlighters, scissors, hole puncher, and anchor charts on transitional phrases and revising and editing

Marquetta Strait January 22, 2014 Dr. Hicks EDUC: 450: Professional Clinical Practice Classroom Context Bookshelf

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School Name: Bethune-Bowman Elementary School Contact Information: 4857 Charleston Hwy Rowesville, SC 29133 (803) 533-6371 2013-2014 Bethune-Bowman Elementarys Principal: o Dr. Lakekia Lewis 2013-2014 Bethune-Bowman Elementarys Assistant Principal: o Dr. Sharon Hampton Title I Priority School Bethune-Bowmans Statistics: 2013-2014 Students Headcount in the School: 336 Number of Teachers: 16 Number of Support Staff: 14 Student Demographics: o 96% of the students are African Americans. o Students on free and reduced lunch: 92% Absolute School Rating: Average Growth Rating: Excellent Average Student to Teacher Ratio: 20:1 Field Experience: I am currently student teaching in Mrs. Dyrease Jacksons two fourth grade ELA and social studies classes. She team teaches with Mrs. Jeffords, the students awesome math and science teacher. In Mrs. Jacksons first class, she has a total of twenty students. The class is composed of 13 boys and 7 girls. There is 1 Caucasian student and 19 African American students in this class. There is one 5th grade student that sits in the class until about 10:35 a.m. The students are
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very well behaved and are calmer than Mrs. Jacksons second class. There are two students on IEPs and one student must receive special accommodations during assessments. There is also one student with a hearing/speech difficulty. In the second class, Mrs. Jeffords homeroom, there are twenty students. The class is composed of 10 boys and 10 girls. The students demographics are 4 Caucasian students, 1 Hispanic student, and 15 African American students in this class. This class seems more active than the first class. This may be due to the students coming to her class after lunch or activity, such as P.E. There are also two students on IEPs in this class. All four of the IEP students usually go to their Resource teacher, Ms. Camp, for an hour every day. Seeing the importance of being aware of any health concerns, I also learned that eleven students have asthma, five students have allergies, one student has bronchitis, and one student has gastric reflux. Some of the things that the students are allergic to are ants, latex, Topamax (migraine medication), applesauce, bananas, and oatmeal.
The students desks are arranged in rows due to testing.

Location:

Bethune-Bowman Elementary School is a Title I school located in Rowesville, South Carolina. The school is about 12 miles outside of the Orangeburg city limits. Condition and Appearance: The classroom is in the shape of a rectangle. Since the teacher has placed the students desks in a U shape, there is ample space to walk around the classroom. Ample space is essential in a classroom so that the students do not feel cramped. Mrs. Jackson does a wonderful job of keeping the classroom organized by placing students materials in designated areas. Her efforts also lessen the chance of the classroom becoming disorganized or hazardous. The classrooms appearance looks fresh and inviting. In addition to the classroom arrangement, Mrs. Jackson also plays classical music to stimulate the learning experience.

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Storage: The teacher has students materials (i.e. bell work journals, writing folders, social studies journals) on top of the cubby area. The teacher keeps her files in a filing cabinet and extra supplies such as glues sticks, copy paper, and construction paper in her storage.

Teachers Storage Cabinet ELA Word Wall, students journals and folders, and cubby area

Materials and Resources: There were supplies for the students that were placed in designated areas. The supplies ranged from highlighters, bell work journals, social studies journals, writing folders, and a container of child-friendly scissors. The students are responsible for carrying their PASS Coach workbooks. Displays and Bulletin Boards: The main displays are anchor charts that focus on revising and editing their writing, incorporating transitional phrases, and weekly standards to keep students on task with the teachers instruction. The class bulletin board displays the students data wall. Students are aware of their progress in the class by viewing their data wall. The data wall is continuously updated to keep students motivated.

Classroom Bulletin Board (Data Wall), lunch menu, posters on social studies, and lesson plan chart

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Classroom Layout
Teachers Storage Shelves Teachers Desk

TV

Bookshelf

Sink

Smart Board

PCs

Door

5 Storage Students Journals and Cubbies File s Bulletin Board/Data Wall