Denise Torres

Dr. Sells
EDUC-455-01
November 17, 2017

Virtual Lesson Self-Analysis

Intro Summary of Lesson Plan

During math time, my class did rotations; there are 4 rotations. The first and second

rotation are tablets. Student got to the first center and they began working on a program called i-

ready. The second tablet station the students practiced their number facts by using a program

called quick tables. The third center, I taught the content part of the math lesson. In the last

station, the students got to practice the content on their homework sheet. My higher math group

gets to start with the homework first. My objective for this lesson was to have the students learn

how to estimate quotients and to find compatible numbers to divide. I introduced the lesson by

doing the problem of the day that is online through the My Math curriculum. I went over the

same content with every group, but in my first two groups I explained everything with more

detail and I did more examples. In all of the groups I expressed that we were rounding the

quotient. I asked the students what the quotient was and what it meant to estimate. I had to

differentiate with my English Language Learners students because I had to explain what

compatible meant. In all groups, I showed an example of how to round and then divide. In my

first two groups, we had to work more problems together before they got to the homework

practice. In the other two, just by working on two examples of estimation and finding the

compatible numbers and they were able to begin working on their homework. After I had gone

and taught all four groups we finished up math by gathering up in whole group and doing

closure. My lesson closure is whole group on the carpet. I asked the students what were two
things that we learned today, the students raised their hands to answer. Before math is over my

students are to turn in their homework in the homework basket. (Attached is a copy of my lesson

plan).

Professional Demeanor

Looking at my video, I was able to observe that I looked and acted like a teacher. To be

sincere, I look a little over weight but I was rocking those black slacks and my fall sweater; I

would say I was dressed professionally. I sat around my students facing them and looking eye-

to-eye with them at one of the kidney tables that we have in the classroom. I like the kidney

tables because they help me look around easily to see the students work and observe the rest of

the classroom. I also liked that my voice doesnt have to be raised, I can talk to them on a lower

voice tone to teach. One thing that I noticed, was that I kept saying ok before moving on to

next thing. I find it difficult to stay away from saying okay. I liked the way my posture was, I

usually slouch, but I think that in my lesson I was comfortable and confident in knowing my

material. Therefore, my assertiveness was friendly confident, where I welcomed my students to

interact in my lesson. My attitude was positive towards my students because I knew that we had

learned how to estimate. I was also hopeful because I didnt want them to be discouraged due to

not being able to divide. During my lesson, I had to be able to show my students that I cared

about them and for this I had to be patient if they werent able to calculate the right answer. I try

to encourage my students to work hard and let them know that math is used everywhere. I

questioned them by asking them what do I do next? and they were able to walk me through. In

my video, I was able to observe a friendly, positive, and professional person. I praised my

students when they got the answer correctly with Excelente, Good Job, Perfecto,

Perfect. I was committed to their learning by paying attention to their work, and by answering
any questions. Overall, I saw myself as a professional educator who is responsible for my

students education.

Classroom Management

When my cooperating teacher and I introduced the math centers at the beginning of the

school year, we wrote down the expectations and modeled what they would look like. We wrote

down the procedures on the easel pad. While on either of the tablet stations the procedures were:

1. Grab your tablet.

2. Sit down at your center
3. Work on your lesson of the day
4. If you have a technical problem ask the tech person in your group.
5. If you have any other questions ask 3 before me
6. If you need a drink or go to the bathroom show me the signal and wait for permission.
7. When the bell rings, gather your supplies and go to next station.

The procedures for the homework table were the following:

1. Sit at the back table on the stools. (not the teachers chair)
2. Have your homework page and pencil.
3. Be on task by working on your homework
4. If you have any other questions ask 3 before me
5. If you need a drink or go to the bathroom show me the signal and wait for permission.
6. When the bell rings, gather your supplies and go to next station.

The procedures for when the students are with me working are the following:

1. Bring your book and pencil and be ready to learn

2. Eyes on speaker
3. No side conversation when teacher is teaching
4. Participate
5. When the bell rings, gather your supplies and go to next station.

I was pleased to see, not only in my video but every day how well my students were able to

follow the procedures and be on task. Yes, there were a few redirections that were handed and a

few visits to the safe seat, but during math time every student is on task. In my video, I notice

that I redirect students without interrupting my lesson. For example, there was one student that

kept airing her multiplication fact sheet around, I nonchalantly grabbed her paper and laid it flat
on the table. I could tell that after I did that I had her attention back without having to interrupt

the lesson. I observed that I had my students attention throughout the lesson, I knew this

because I had my groups eyes and they were participating in my lesson. One thing that I did not

catch in my lesson until I saw the video was how my group that was at the homework table was

not on task. There were two students who kept talking and one of them was working on a puzzle

that are off limits during that time. If I would have looked up and looked around I would have

caught it and gave them a warning. One thing I tried during my lesson was having the students

find the page we were going to work on and then place their pencil in-between the page and

close the book. I did this because students were very impatient because they want to be able to

finish the homework page before math time is over. I found this to be helpful because the

students were able to give me their full attention during my introduction and examples. There

were definitely behaviors that the students did that I had to overlook because they were not

disruptive to my teaching, for example I had one student that was slouching while I was teaching

but he was giving me his attention and following along with lesson. I also pointed out a positive

behavior, for example when a student participated and answered my question I praised him with

an awesome, thats a Dojo point and immediately I had two other students wanting to answer a

question because they knew that I was handing out points. So far, the procedures that we have in

place have been working well, one thing that we use for transitions is the bell. The students are

now accustomed to the ring of the bell that they now as soon as the bell is rung they move to the

next station. Its a very easy transition and the students are able to accomplish it in a timely

fashion. Overall, I know my class is not perfect but my cooperating teacher and I have set

procedures for our students to follow to become a well-run class.

Lesson Construction

I began the lesson with the Problem of the Day as my anticipatory set, because it helps

set the tone for math. The problem is shown on the SMART Board while the students are on the

carpet. The students work individually and after computing their answer they compare it with

their shoulder partner. At the beginning of the lesson I told my students the objective, Today,

we will be finding the quotients to division problems figure mentally. After I tell them this I

break it down into a student friendly language, by asking them questions such as What is a

quotient? and What do I mean by mentally? I ask them questions like this because my

students need to be comfortable using math terms and strategies. After reviewing the

vocabulary, I make sure that we review the skill that we were going to practice today which was

rounding. We had done rounding in a previous chapter. In my lesson, I modeled rounding and

then diving by finding compatible numbers. I included check for understanding, guided practice,

independent practice, and closure in my lesson; all of this are written down in my lesson plan.

The students, during the independent practice were assigned the homework page number 1-

17, numbers 1-6 has the students practice the skill, and the rest is them applying it in word

problems. After the students have turned in the homework page I went back that same day and

grade them 1-6, I look for those students who had trouble understanding the concept of

rounding to find the quotient. Since my cooperating teacher and I worked consistently with the

students on rounding all were able to round; we are now focusing on multiplication and

division. My lesson objectives were met, and we didnt have to spend more time on rounding. I

felt comfortable with the lesson and confident with the way I presented the information to my

students. I believe that math has been one of my strong suits in school. Therefore, coming up
with examples to show my students was not hard. I used a small white board to write down

examples for my groups and I had them guide me through two problems before they practiced

by themselves. I had to differentiate my lesson for my English Language Learners. I had to

explain to them what compatible numbers were. I demonstrated this by giving them the

example of (student 1) and (Student 2) work well together. They are compatible. Explain to

the students that compatible numbers are numbers that work well together. One resource

that I used to help with the planning of this lesson was the teachers book. Its incredible how it

walks you through the lesson and how to plan it. What I dont like about it is that it feels very

scripted. Since this is not my style of teaching, I read over it, and grasped the objective of the

lesson and dived into teaching the material. Overall, my lesson was smooth and the students

were able to estimate quotients which was my objective.

Teaching Strategies

During my lesson, I tried to use different teaching strategies to be able to get the

objective taught. One strategy that I used was creating a real-life example so that my lower level

group was able to understand the concept of compatible. I tried to show the students to find a

compatible number to be able to divide using their facts sheet. The fact sheet has all of the

multiples of 1 thru 15, and the students are able to use them while they are still learning to do the

mental math. For all my math lesson, I use a small white board so that my students are able to

see me model the equations. I try to maintain poised and positive when my students are not able

to calculate correctly During my modeling, I did an example and told the students word for word

of what I was doing. Next, I had my students walk me through, step by step and I make sure that

they have understood the objective. Afterwards, I gave my students instructions your homework

will be on page 339 and you will be working on number one thru 17, when you are done please
turn it in the basket. Overall, I believe that I gave clear instructions and my students were able

to meet them.

Time on Task

I have 4 math groups that I teach the content to. The first two groups I spend 25 minutes

with each since they are my ELL and my lower level kids. The other two groups I spent 15

minutes with each, to teach the content and show them examples before they get to do their

homework. All of my students in all 4 groups are kept busy working on the skill. In my lesson,

there was no down time. I did however have a couple of students that come up to me while I am

working with a group to tell me that their tablet is dying or has no battery. When students tell me

that their tablet is low on the battery I make sure to let my students know the importance of

making sure they plug in their tablet after they are done using them. Something that I will keep

an eye on is housekeeping procedures such as assigning two students to be my technology people

to make sure they get plugged in. Also, one thing that I didnt catch during my lesson but I saw

afterwards was the one student that was rocking back and forth on the stool. If I would have

caught this student, I would have given them a warning and if they continued they would have to

lose the stool and they would have had to stand while doing the homework. Overall my

objectives were taught with the correct amount of time.

Questioning and Praise

I was pleased with the questions I asked throughout my lesson. I like to think that the

level of my questions varied according the Blooms Taxonomy. I had to pull some of that

background knowledge in order to build on top of. After I prompted my students I gave them

about five to ten seconds of wait time to answer. Depending on their facial expression I would

rephrase my question. I didnt have to rephrase as much with my top two groups, but with my
lower two groups I did. The term I had to find a different way to present it was estimate, the

students had a hard time remembering that it just means to round. Therefore, during the

instructions I made sure to repeat the word and I used the strategy echo. Whenever I say

echo the students repeat what I am teaching them, in this case estimate, means to round and

then they would repeat the phrase. My questioning thru the math lesson consist of asking the

students the steps of my math procedure, or asking them what do I do next?. During my lesson,

I praise my students as much as I can with individual, positive and direct praises. Whenever I

make a question and a student raises their hand to answer and gets the correct answer I praise

them and award them with a DOJO point for participating and raising their hand. There was an

instance in my lessons that I had one or two students blurt out the answer but I asked the student

who had their hand raised and thank them for raising their hand and gave them a DOJO point.

My intent to use a variety of praises are composed of the following phrases: excellente

(students name), Woo-hoo, that right (students name), Perfect, (students name), etc.

Overall, my students paid attention to me and were able to answer the questions that I asked

them.

Directions

At the beginning of the lesson I gave all of my groups one verbal direction find the page

335 and place your pencil in between the page and shut your book. I was pleased that I only had

to redirect one student because he was not paying attention to the instructions but afterwards he

was able to follow along. After showing the students the instructions of how they were going to

estimate and then divide, I checked for understanding by asking the students to give me a

thumbs-up if they understood the directions, thumbs in the middle if they were unsure, and

thumbs down if they had no clue what they were supposed to do. I had 94% success rate of
students understanding because they were listening to the directions of the steps. The one student

out of 18 that didnt have a clue was because he had come in late to class. Therefore, for this

students group I had asked one of students in the group to repeat the directions. After all of my

lessons I ask if there are any questions, if none, the assignment is written on the board next to the

math objective for the students to see. Overall my directions were clear and my students are able

to follow them.

Evaluation

Evaluation is done by my cooperating teacher or myself, whoever is teaching the content,

in two ways. One, when the students are working on their homework, we glance through it to

make sure the students are understanding the objective. If they are not we reteach and have them

practice with us. Two, once the students are finished with their homework page, at the end of the

day we grade the practice homework. If the students score 80% or above no re-teaching is

needed but below 79% we review and reteach at the beginning of the next math lesson. However,

during my lesson I repeat the steps to the math because its a good way for the students to get

used it and practice. The homework is modified the majority of the time for my identified

students. We have word problems and fro example if there are 5 word problems they will do 2 or

3 of them and the special education teacher will read them the question. Overall the majority of

my students will retain the objective they learned.

Nonverbal Communication

In the area of nonverbal communication, I tend to use my facial expressions a lot. For

example, when a student interrupted my lesson, I clenched my lips together and gave the student

a blank stare. Also, for this student I have to raise my index finger to my mouth to signal that we

are being quiet. My seating arrangement if pretty much flexible for all of my students but for one
student I like to keep a close proximity due to the fact that he is easily distracted. At the

beginning of the lesson I tell him (students name) you can sit in my favorite chair that gets to

ring my bell today, the chair can either be to my left or right of me as long as I am at arms

length of the student. Since I use a kidney table to meet with the groups my mobility is limited

because I sit in the chair in front of the students but for me this is easier to look at the students

work. Also, my seating arrangement helps the students look straight at me. I like to show

emotion and do use facial expressions throughout my lessons, to encourage my students as well

as to make the lesson more entertaining. Expressions such as raising my eyebrows or doing a

confused face when Im trying to have the students guide me in the correct direction, or placing

my index finger on my chin and doing my thinking face, these are only a few of my expressions.

Overall, the message that I was trying to get across was that my students are able to guide me

through by limited guidance from me.

Classroom Atmosphere/ Relationship with Students

The atmosphere of the classroom allows the students to feel safe and welcome in a

positive learning environment where they are expected to be responsible, respectful, honest.

Throughout the day, I get to see my students demonstrate these values. But during my lesson in

specific I watched a student explain rounding to her peer who was having trouble remembering

which number to round. Within every group I found a positive attitude from all students as they

were learning either on the tablets or doing their homework. I attentively listened around the

class as my students were working, one to make sure that conversation was appropriate to their

learning, and two to make sure they were on task. I had to redirect two students because they

were talking about whose team they were going to choose for soccer during recess. After

redirecting both students were able to get back to their tablets and do math. Overall the
atmosphere of my classroom is filled with students who are responsible for their own learning

and aspire to fill their chalice with the knowledge that I impart on them daily.