Earlier this morning, I met with my second placement cooperating teacher, Mrs. Sopko! Even though it’s been sad leaving my students at MCHS, I’m excited to work with new students and get a taste of the middle school daily life at Forest City!
The focus of our meeting was to talk about several things:
- Class Schedules/Week Schedules – Forest City Middle School doesn’t have the same schedule every day; in fact, the schedule switches every Wednesday for Professional Development and certain periods in the afternoon are cut short to accommodate, while still keeping the lunch hour the same.
- Standards-Based Grading – This is new for me, but something I’m interested in using and learning more about. We talked about the ELT (Extended Learning Time) which is at the end of every school day, where students can go to different classrooms and be re-taught some lessons and concepts. We also talked about the learning targets and how students are formatively assessed continually, with a summative assessment at the end and opportunities to retake until mastery.
- Dugout/Book Club: These are different gatherings of students during the school day. Book Club focuses on reading and is an opportunity for students to essentially stop what they’re doing and just read. Dugout is almost like an advisory, but is held on Fridays.
- Hours and Classes: I learned that I’ll be in a co-teaching environment for 6th Grade Reading and also work with 8th Grade Reading! A varied, fun day!
Planning for the future: I’m going to teach and completely take control of the House on Mango Street unit, so my future planning will be focused on creating activities and lesson plans for that book.
Post-Meeting Reflection: I’m feeling good about this placement! Mrs. Sopko is very different–energetic, spunky, and her teachings are eclectic and unique! She works perfectly with middle schoolers–continually moving from activity to activity and keeping the students connected and engaged. This placement will be challenging and fun! I’m excited to meet my students on Monday and see how I can fit into their daily lives over the next two months!