A typical day at N. Melbourne Primary

My Tuesdays begin with a weekly stop at the coffee shop around the corner from my apartment. From there, I walk about 10-15 minutes to my placement, and am greeted by the students and their parents as they start their day. The school days are divided into sessions, such that there is a session of subjects, usually two, at the start of the school day, one in between the two breaks (which consist of play and eating time), and another session of subjects after the last break.

I begin my day in prep, which is the equivalent of kindergarten, in Mike’s class. Though I am usually with a Year 1 classroom, my SP has a team meeting in the mornings so Mike offered to take me in. After the morning routine, we typically head right into reading. Mike and I each work with a group of students of the same reading group, usually the highest or lowest group of readers. When working with either group of students, Mike provides me with some background info on what they’ve read or worked on the other day and what the plan is for the new text I’ll read with them that day. This can be a little challenging at times because it is hard for the lowest group of students to follow what one of their classmates is reading aloud, so I often bounce back and forth between kids sitting next to each other and read through a page or two with them, and then move onto the next two. However, I enjoy working on their reading comprehension skills, which is usually more successful because they enjoy the conversations we have about making predictions and making text to self, to text, to world connections. Even though Mike has provided me with some guidance, I am still feel like I need to better organize and structure these small group sessions. After a quick bathroom break, we move onto writing. The task or topic varies, but Mike pretty much keeps the routine consistent. By this I mean the class gathers on the rug, discusses a book or topic, Mike incorporates a curriculum standard and learning goal, and the students return to their tables to apply what they’ve just discussed through pictures or words. Mike works with a few specific students at this time, and I walk around to offer help. I do so by sounding out words with the students and helping them expand upon their ideas orally if they’re struggling in the writing process.

All of the students then have recess at 10:40 and return to the classroom at 11:20. Mike has meetings at this point with his Prep team, so I return to my original Year 1 class with Svetlana. As the students eat part of their lunch in the classroom, Svet reviews her plans for the mid day session with me. The subjects are usually writing and numeracy. I’ve been able to see the students progress in their writing as they’re now beginning to write narratives and learning this genre of writing’s characteristics. This has been really enjoyable experience of mine while in Svet’s class, and reminded me of the semester long writing project we led in small groups as P2s. In regards to the numeracy sessions, I haven’t seen the students really develop in one specific area since it’s usually a different math topic every week. However, this could be due to the fact that I am only there once a week and miss out on the other math sessions. I’ve led some small group and whole class lessons in numeracy, but it can be challenging at times because my SP offers the opportunity for me to do so the day of. Though she provides me with a detailed outline and the lessons usually go over smoothly, it can be a bit stressful since it is so last minute. However, I’m thankful for experiences like these, as it helps me think on my feet and gain flexibility in my instruction.

After the afternoon break, I return to Mike’s classroom since the new semester changed Svet’s specials times so the Year 1’s have drama and Italian after their midday session. Mike usually teaches numeracy and history or another reading session. The preps are little more temperamental in the afternoon, as they’ve already spent a good portion of the day learning and socializing. I’ve noticed that Mike is more flexible when teaching these two afternoon subjects since it accommodates to the kids’ antsy behavior. For instance, our math session two days ago involved ordering of numbers on a number line. After the activity and worksheet, Mike just had each student use a whiteboard and told various groups of students to create number line starting at number “x” and ending at number “y”. He could have been reinforcing a previous lesson or skill in this activity, but I found the level of freedom and fluidity within the lesson to be interesting.

Though my Tuesdays can be hectic, I am able to learn so much from two amazing teachers and two enthusiastic, talented groups of students. The repetition of the schedules has also allowed me to reflect on how I conduct small and whole class lessons, determine what I need to improve upon, and how I can do so the following week. I’ve been lucky enough to develop great relationships with two classrooms throughout my time at North Melbourne Primary, and I can’t believe I only have two more visits left with them.