College of Southern

Nevada Field Observation

Packet
Student: Khylsie Aparece

School: Canarelli Middle School

 Field Observation Assignments

Assignment One (Observation):

1. The classroom environment is cluttered with many desks in a small room, but the

students are still engaging and participating with the teachers lesson plans. The students

are friendly toward each other and the teacher. There were some students who answered

the Daily Warm Up question incorrectly, but they were not discouraged; the students and

teacher continued to help each other understand the material. Overall, the classroom

environment was welcoming and enriching.

2. The class is covered with the students work in one wall and various posters in the other.

The posters range from motivational quotes from Oprah Winfrey to the Periodic Table of

Elements. The students are seated in rows rather than in groups of tables; it appears to

encourage a personal learning experience instead of group participation. The whiteboard

is in the front of the classroom, and it contains the objective, lesson, and homework for

the day. There is a Smart Board between the whiteboards in the front to project the

teachers slide show, but there is also a television in the upper left corner of the room.

The students also have supplies on their desks provided by the school such as colored

pencils, tape, etc.

3. The students in this classroom are very diverse. Every race, ethnicity, and culture appears

to be represented equally. I wasnt able to spot anyone who was experiencing any

physical challenges. However, there was a student who did not learn English as their first

language. They were still welcomed and attended for by the teacher and the other

students in the classroom. There is a great variety in the heights of the students; some of

them are as tall as elementary students and a few of them are taller than I am. The boys

and girls have an equal amount as well, but I noticed that there were more boys in the
 front and the girls were mainly in the back. No matter the gender, background, language

barrier, the students still participated in the questions that the teacher was asking.
4. There are no posted classroom rules. The students are in 8th grade, so Ms. Sahi already

expects them to know how to behave in a classroom setting. She expects them to respect

each other, the teacher, and the classroom. Occasionally, she will have to tell them to

quiet down and to sit back down, but there are not a lot of behavioral problems in her

class.
5. Although the classroom size is large, the teacher does not constantly have to enforce the

rules to her students. The students were consistently respectful of each other, the teacher,

and the classroom during the whole class period. Students only spoke when they raised

their hands and were called by the teacher. They rarely spoke while the teacher was

teaching, and they raised their hands in appropriate times without interrupting the

teachers lesson plan. During the times where the class would get out of hand, Ms. Sahi

would politely remind everyone to lower their voices or to go back to their seats. Ms.

Sahi does not present physical rewards, such as toys or a certificate, to the students who

get the questions correct, but she does provide a quick moment of verbal praise to the

student. After a student got the question correct she would say, great job or keep it up

which boosted the students confidence level and classroom moral.

Assignment Two (Instruction):

1. The weekly schedule is posted on the whiteboard in the front of class for the students to

see. It shows that on Monday the students will be recognizing the Periodic Table as a tool

for organizing information. They will be color coding their own copy of the periodic table

to use for future lessons. On Tuesday, the students will learn about the atomic number of
 elements within each period. The lesson for Wednesday is to help students identify

information about each element using only the Periodic Table. On Thursday, the class

will be focusing on the properties of metals, non-metals, and metalloids. Lastly, on

Friday, the students will learn about atomic bonds and why they bond.
2. Similar to the first day that I arrived, the instruction was delivered to the class as a whole.

Ms. Sahi would present something to the class through the projector or Smart Board, and

the students would write it down in their notes or follow the steps of the procedure that

she was showing. Occasionally, she would roam around the desks as the students were

working to make sure that they were doing it correctly and to see if anyone needed help.

Overall, she would teach new material to the class as a whole and then provide

reassurance to the students individually as she walked around.

3. Ms. Sahis teaching style encourages student participation and elaborates on each step of

the assignment. She opens the classroom with a discussion between all her students to get

them to start placing their focus on her classroom instead of the class before. She is

consistently asking multiple questions to her students as a form of review or a way to get

them to think. All her questions are also related to her lesson plan, so it helps the students

to focus on the lesson being taught. While she is teaching the students how to code their

Periodic Table of Elements, she goes through each step thoroughly and gives an

appropriate time for the students to match her coding. Her teaching style is visual, hands

on, and interactive which is wonderful for a classroom that is filled with students with

different learning styles.

4. Ms. Sahi does a great job in incorporating the sensory modalities in each of her lesson

plans. The students are currently learning about the Periodic Table of Elements, so she

handed the students their own copy of the table. Next, she placed her copy of the table on

the projector. She then began to labeled different components and instructed the students
 to do the same. In addition, she instructed the students to color the different element

families. This was a great combination of visual and kinesthetic modalities as students

got to see the final product of the table on the projector as well as physically create their

own table. As for auditory, Ms. Sahi provided a video that sang about the different

elements as well as sounded out the spelling of the more challenging elements. She even

incorporates multiple videos in the beginning and end of her class as an introduction to

the segment or to review what the students learned.

5. The students are definitely engaging with the lesson presented. It is evident in the way

that they were actively coloring, consistently answering the questions, and professionally

communicating with Ms. Sahi their concerns about the material. They were not extremely

excited to learn about the Periodic Table, but they were still curious and interested to

learn more about it. During periods of instruction, the students are attentive to the

information on the board rather than having side conversations.

6. Ms. Sahi is constantly transitioning from instruction to assignments. When she is

teaching her students a new lesson, a PowerPoint is projected on the screen for the

students to write their own notes. She then turns off the PowerPoint and projects the in-

class assignment to transition into the classwork. In the middle of her PowerPoint notes,

Ms. Sahi will show a video related to the notes. After the video, she summarizes what I it

was about and what she wanted the students to learn from it. She makes sure that all of

her students are ready for the next segment before moving on. Occasionally, she will

communicate with her students the amount of time they have left before she moves on to

the next item on her agenda. This transition is effective because it helps the students

understand how much time they have left to complete their notes or worksheet. Ms.
 Sahis worksheets always relate to her notes, so the students are always utilizing the

information they learned during the class period.

7. The classroom is mainly quiet since the students always have something to work on, so

Ms. Sahi would just begin her instruction and the students listen right away. To signal that

she was going to start her lesson, she would say, okay class and then begin educating

them on the Periodic Tables columns, periods, and atomic numbers. To grab their

attention to the material, she would point to specific parts of the worksheet or hold up the

worksheet itself to show the class their assignment. If the students are talking to each

other and collaborating, she would simply quiet them down first and then begin teaching.

If there is one particular student that is making the noise, she would say their name to

grab their attention and then politely tell them to sit down.
8. There are not many behavioral issues in the classroom. At most, she just had to make sure

that the students are not excessively talking to each other while they worked on their

worksheets. There were a few times where there were students sharpening their pencils

while she was talking, or they were standing up while everyone was sitting down.

However, there were more students who broke the dress code than students who were

disrespectful and rowdy. The students breaking the dress code did listen whenever Ms.

Sahi instructs them to take off their hood or their hat. I also noticed that the Second

Period students were a lot rowdier than the first period. These students were the ones

occasionally talking between rows and making unnecessary sounds. It didnt extremely

affect the learning environment, but it was distracting at times.

Assignment Three (Classroom Layout):

1. The work flow of the room begins at the door where students grab the worksheet and

homework for the class. Students then sit in their seats that are placed as rows. Next, they

begin working on the worksheet that was assigned that day. The small space is filled with

large tables in four rows. It is cramped and hard to maneuver around, but it does allow for

a larger amount of students to learn about science. The edges of the room contain sinks,

bookshelves, cabinets, and a chemical shower. These are not used on an everyday basis

by the students or the teacher, so it is good that they are off to the side.
2.
Assignment Four (School/Classroom Culture):

A. Physical Characteristics
1) On the way to the school, there were crossing guards that helped students cross

the four way stops. There were also multiple sidewalks for the students to walk on

or ride their bike to safely get to the school. The rectangular layout of the school

is made in order to control the flow. Outside, all the cars are instructed to enter

one way and exit the other. It is similar inside as students are guided to their

classrooms that are located only on the right half of the school. The left half of the

school contains the elective rooms, lunch room, and gymnasium. The school

grounds are cement in the courtyard, but the classrooms and hallways either have

carpet or tile. Canarelli Middle School has a wonderful grass area for field sports

and the greenery continues inside in their planters. There was a lack in some

flower arrangements, but the trees and bushes were just enough for the students to

enjoy their school setting. I was able to maneuver around the school with ease

since they had signs over each door and hallway entry. In addition, they also

created a silent space at the end of the school courtyard to commemorate the

students who passed away.

2) The first room I entered was the Principals Office. There was a mural of their

school mascot as well as a large trophy case and plaque that represented all of the

schools achievements over the years. Majority of the rooms and hallways in

Canarelli are carpeted, but the science classes have a tile flooring to compensate

for their experiments. The hallways are a little crowded due to the lockers on both

sides of the hall. However, they are decorated with the students work and

achievements. The lights are always on in the hallways, but teachers are able to
 control the lighting in their room. They are able to turn the light on or off, but

there are always one or two lights that remain on in the room. Similar to all

schools, the doors appeared to be large with a small window to see whats on the

other side. The only rooms in the building that had windows were the ones near

the exterior; nonetheless, these windows were small to make sure that the students

were focusing on the classroom rather than what was happening outside.
B. Culture of the School
1) Canarellis mission is to have their students experience the vision of the

Canarelli Middle School where all individuals work together in unity to challenge

learners to both dream and achieve. Their school mascot is the colt and their

motto is enrich, believe, excel, become. Looking at their trophy case, Canarelli

has many achievements in basketball for both girls and boys. Currently, they are

in the middle of Nevada Reading Week; to celebrate, they created a spirit week

inspired by popular books in the school. They are also hosting a play about Shrek

for the students and their families to attend in the theater. In the middle of March,

the Colts are also having their Spring Dance and Carnival. After school

clubs/activities include Basketball, Cheerleading, Dance, National Junior Honor

Society, and Yearbook. I read over their February Newsletter, and it looks like

every month they award a student who was caught Being the Change.
2) The staff and visitor interactions in the main office went well. The staff was

attentive and understanding; they also tried their best to help the visitors with their

questions or concerns. The staff was always aware of the visitors who came in,

and they made sure that we all checked in on their school computer. Although

they are attentive to the visitors, the staff does help the students first because they

need to send the student back to class as soon as possible. In other parts of the
 schools, I noticed that a small handful of students interacted with the hallway

monitors and staff. Their conversations were light and minimal, but it seems that

the students developed a sense of security as a result of the conversation. In the

hallways, students enjoyed talking to the teachers that they developed a positive

bond with. It would either be a quick talk as the student passed by the teacher or

the student would stay in the room till the classes would start.
3) Student-to-student interaction mainly occurs in the school courtyard. In the

morning, the students are standing in the courtyard socializing with one another as

they wait for class to start. As soon as the bell rings, the students walk to their

classes where there is minimal interaction. The students mainly talk to each other

in the first five minutes of class or when they are instructed to do so. They

occasionally talk to each other in the middle of instruction, but they eventually go

back to being silent. Students only talk in the hallways when they are walking to

class because they are not allowed to stay there for a long period of time. Students

can interact with each other in the cafeteria, but it is only during their designated

lunch period.
4) The school is organized in a rectangular shape with the offices, hallways, and

cafeteria along the side of it. Starting at the entrance, the Principals Office and

Registrar are on the right side while the Deans Office and the Health Office are

on the left. Going along the left side of the school, there appears to be the

electives hallway, gymnasium, cafeteria, and staff lunch room. On the right side

of the school, there is a library, 6th grade hallway, 7th grade hallway, and 8th grade

hallway.
C. Culture of the Classroom
1) Ms. Sahi expects her students to have their materials ready for class, to be quiet

when she is speaking, and to remain seated when she is teaching. In order to

succeed in class, students must understand when to work silently by themselves

and when to work collaboratively with other people. She also expects them to

remember the lessons taught from the previous class. Sometimes she will review

them to help her students solidify their understanding of the lesson. She also

expects them to respect each other and the classroom. The students have to keep

their space organized, and they cannot use the science equipment without her

instruction.
2) There is a good amount of student participation in the class. Even when the

students are unsure of the correct answer, they still try to answer the questions that

she asks them. Majority of the students that participate are located in the front and

the middle of the classroom. The students in the back are less likely to participate,

but they do once in awhile when asked to. The class has an even number of boys

and girls, but the boys are the ones who are mostly raising their hands and

answering the questions.

3) Teacher and student interactions are respectful and joyful. Occasionally, Ms. Sahi

talks to her students before class starts and during class. The students are

comfortable enough to talk to her about their individual lives without going too

personal. During these conversations, both Ms. Sahi and the students exchange

jokes, sarcasm, and witty remarks. Its clean fun that boosts the moral of the

students; it also lets them know that their teacher is welcoming and easy to talk to.

When Ms. Sahi has to enforce the rules, her tone is much stricter and pronounced.
 I noticed that she only has to repeat herself once because the students have a clear

understanding that she is in charge and they must listen to her.

Assignment 5 (Cooperating Teacher Interview):

1. I always looked up to my teachers. Many of them inspired me to teach and I think it is a

profession that is very challenging and also very rewarding at the same time.
2. Motivating students to learn and understand why what they are learning matters. Making

the most mundane topics exciting for them to be interested.

3. Feeling rewarded by their growth as a learner and a person in the 9 months that I have

them for.
4. By ability and behavior, personality, who would make a good/productive team when

sitting next to each other.

5. On an as needed basis. Sometimes, two-three times a week, with others, maybe only once

a year. Usually to discuss grades and/or behavior.

6. Average 3 assignments a week. Sometimes, at their seats, in class, sometimes before/after

school/lunchtime, about 50/50.

7. 2-3 hours.
8. Contact home, send to another science classroom if being disruptive, after school

detention.
9. Evaluated once a year with at least 3 classroom observations. NEPF standards are used

for evaluation.
10. The number of students who lack the motivation to learn and succeed, due to distractions

within and outside of the classroom.

Assignment 6 (Observing a Student):

I am discretely observing the female student next to me. The first thing she did when she

sat on her desk was the daily warm up. She does a great job at using her notes to help her

understand the assignment, but, every now and then, she talks to the student next to her
 for help. When Ms. Sahi asks a question, she is only quick to raise her hand when she is

confident that she knows the answer. If she doesnt raise her hand, she sometimes says

the answer under her breath; she just might be afraid of getting it wrong in front of the

whole class. Today, the class is learning about the properties of the different families in

the periodic table: alkali metals, alkaline earth metals, metals, non-metals, metalloids, and

noble gases. The students are mainly taking notes in this class, and the student that Im

observing is doing a good job at writing down everything she sees on the slide. She does

not slouch, and her hands are always placed on the desk. Her facial expressions told me

that she was uninterested in learning about the period table, but she was still attentive and

punctual in taking notes. To accompany her lesson, Ms. Sahi showed a video to the class

of the different alkali metals reacting to water where majority of them exploded. Majority

of the class found it interesting, but she was not even startled; she just yawned after the

video was over. There were many videos throughout the class, but it seemed like she

preferred the PowerPoint notes as a way of learning the material. She participated in the

questions more often in the beginning of the class, but she was always taking notes

throughout the whole class period.

Assignment 7 (Reflection):

My 10-hour field observation at Canarelli Middle School was very refreshing and

insightful. For starters, I was able to observe the layout of the school and how it affected

the students education. The administrative offices are in the front; the cafeteria, gym, and

elective classes are on the left side; and the classrooms for 6th, 7th, and 8th grade are on the

right. This plays a significant role in a students education as it allows them to easily
transition from one room to another. The setting is also welcoming and organized, so they

are not constantly having to worry about where to go and what is happening to the

building. The Canarelli school environment is promotes education and good citizenship.

The after school activities and events allow the students to explore their many talents as

well as enjoy the company of other students. The teachers are a collective group, but they

do work alongside the students to produce an engaging learning environment. On top of

formal instruction, they form relationships with the to make the classroom setting

comfortable and fun. This observation has helped prepare me for the teaching profession

because it showed the significance of each factor in the students education. The building

layout, school environment, after school activities, teaching styles, and student-teacher

relations all play a key role in helping the student succeed in school. After observing Ms.

Sahi, I will make sure to develop friendly and respectful relationships with my students

as well. She does a great job at incorporating different teaching styles, but I believe that it

is her relationship with her class that encourages them to participate in her class. She is

very welcoming and nonjudgmental, so the students were not afraid to participate even if

they were unsure of the right answer. Her relationship with the students made the

classroom setting equally engaging and entertaining, and I hope to do that for mine as

well.