Education fieldwork has begun!

Hello everyone! I hope everyone had a fantastic four day weekend! I thoroughly enjoyed the warmer weather and the longer amount of sunlight we have gained each day!

This semester I have two education classes that require fieldwork components. Inclusive classrooms for all children is a special education class which requires 15 hours of fieldwork in a special education classroom. My literature for children class requires 15 hours in a classroom where I can gain experience watching and working with the reading and writing groups. I began my fieldwork last week. Fortunately I was placed at the same school for both my fieldwork components. I was also able to work my schedule so I can do my fieldwork on the same day back to back. This allows for more homework, study and family time when not doing my fieldwork.

My literature component takes place in a first grade classroom. It was an awesome experience my first visit. I am always amazed at how much the kids can read and write at that age. The groups were very organized and the kids stayed on task the majority of the time. I look forward to being able to do my read aloud assignment with this group in the future.

My special education component takes place in a room with third through sixth grade students. This classroom was very structured and organized. The students work independently of each other, but are assisted by the teacher and two aides at different times. This was a brand new experience for me. The kids were very accepting of having me in the classroom right from the beginning. I was able to help several students with their particular tasks and this was very rewarding. The teacher says in the future she may pair me up with one student to work with each week. I look forward to learning something new each time I go.

Fieldwork is so fantastic because it allows me to experience firsthand in a classroom of elementary students what I am learning in my college classes. I love interacting with the elementary students and watching them learn. I look forward to the day when I can have my own classroom of students.