Intro to Education

The learning theory that my 6th-grade placement teacher uses is constructivism. She loves to apply the lessons to life, even if they are simple math lessons. For example, she actually had me talk about how I have used the Algebra that they are learning in my life. I was able to explain that I use simple equations often to figure out how much money I need for something. This was a great way for the students to see that math is applicable to life. She also has them problem solve. Instead of giving them the instructions for how to do a problem immediately, she has them think about how they might solve it. This leads them to think critically about the problem and how it might be solved. One student solved the problem by thinking about it backward, which showed the other students that there are multiple ways to solve a problem. The teacher has also told simple analogies that can be related to life for mnemonic devices. Such as telling the students that when the "2" and the "3...

The school that I will be attending for my service placement is Freedom Elementary. The school is fairly new and has a kiva and a teacher prep room for every grade. They have TVs throughout the school that showcases announcements. The surrounding neighborhoods are mostly two-story family houses. It is in a residential area. Most of the students attending the school are from high-income families. This leads to great funding and a lot of parent support in all of the classes. I have learned that the students I will be working with are all throughout the school. I will work with kindergarten most of the time in my placement. Teaching Kindergarten age students is about more than just academic learning, behavior is a large focus. I will also get to work with the 6th grade. These students are learning new concepts that can seem overwhelming to understand. I get to assist them mainly in math. Most of them catch on very quickly. The school has seen a problem with their behavior, but from wh...