Blog Post #7

I have seen evidence of standards being addressed in both my 6th grade and Kindergarten service learning placement classes. In my 6th grade class, I have seen my service learning teacher do certain science activities to fulfill sixth-grade science standards. For example, my service learning teacher had the students each research an animal and talk about where it lives, its food chain, etc. This fulfills the sixth-grade science standard of stability and change in ecosystems. The standards that I see taught to the most are probably math standards. These standards are seen in the school as some of the most important ones. The math book that the sixth-grade teachers follow also helps to ensure every one of the standards is taught.

In my kindergarten service learning placement class, I also see how the teacher teaches the standards to students. Standards for kindergarten are pretty different than other classes. They are more based on developing certain skills as opposed to specific information. My service learning teacher emphasizes reading standards over the other ones. I have seen her many times ask the students what type of story they are reading, have the students compare and contrast two stories, ask the students what the lesson of the story may be, etc. I think that my teacher emphasizes reading over science because reading is so crucial to all aspects of school and it can be difficult for some students to grasp. I also see her apply these standards by combing them, like having the kids read and write about a science topic. The kindergarten teacher has told me that although she thinks the standards are important to teach, standardized testing can take a long time for the kids to prepare for, minimizing class time and causing some students to have to get pulled out of the classroom often. I loved hearing and learning about the state's standards from my cooperative service-learning teachers!