Placement
So I have switched placements and now I am at Nesbit doing my ESOL Placement. I went from 5th grade to Kindergarten. It has been a difficult transition because I love the upper grades. It was testing week so the ESOL teachers served as proctors so I was in ONE kindergarten classroom. Nesbit is just a different environment. The teachers are on edge because they are afraid of being fired and the student population is very different. In one class there are 23 students but 18 of them are being served.
I got to teach a small group lesson where the students got to write a few sentences. They were some talented children. I have had difficulty coming back down to their level and sounding out words and using so many pictures but I am glad I have to do this. Some things that work in Kindergarten CAN and will work in 5th grade. I got a chance to talk to a girl who came to school in November speaking NO English. She is still not even close to fluent, but VERY smart. I think teachers forget how smart ELLs can be especially if they are performing in their own language. As the girl talked to me in half Spanish and half English, I picked up on what she was trying to say. In our lesson we were talking about bees and she was telling me a story about how her sister got stung by a bee on her head and it was swollen for days. She described the color and look. It has been interesting and I am excited to learn more about these students and the ESOL program.
So I have switched placements and now I am at Nesbit doing my ESOL Placement. I went from 5th grade to Kindergarten. It has been a difficult transition because I love the upper grades. It was testing week so the ESOL teachers served as proctors so I was in ONE kindergarten classroom. Nesbit is just a different environment. The teachers are on edge because they are afraid of being fired and the student population is very different. In one class there are 23 students but 18 of them are being served.
I got to teach a small group lesson where the students got to write a few sentences. They were some talented children. I have had difficulty coming back down to their level and sounding out words and using so many pictures but I am glad I have to do this. Some things that work in Kindergarten CAN and will work in 5th grade. I got a chance to talk to a girl who came to school in November speaking NO English. She is still not even close to fluent, but VERY smart. I think teachers forget how smart ELLs can be especially if they are performing in their own language. As the girl talked to me in half Spanish and half English, I picked up on what she was trying to say. In our lesson we were talking about bees and she was telling me a story about how her sister got stung by a bee on her head and it was swollen for days. She described the color and look. It has been interesting and I am excited to learn more about these students and the ESOL program.