February 11, 2008: Third day of Kindergarten

WOW!!! Today was so much fun! I absolutely love these kindergarteners! They have so much energy and excitement for learning. Even when they feel discouraged, or are having a hard time figuring something out, they continue to persevere and find the answer. I feel so comfortable in the classroom. I know that I have not had a extreme amount of exposure to diversity, but I feel more myself in this classroom than I do in any other classroom that I have been in before. Until I sit and think about what happened throughout the day, I do not even realize that my cooperating teacher and I are the only white people in the room. There is such a level of respect from the teacher to the students, from the students to the teacher, and from the students to each other. It is never even a question as to if a student's race is a factor in the education being received. It is clearly apparent that my cooperating teacher has love for her students.

I think it is extremely important that these students, who are mostly Hispanic, are taught in English. I believe that school is the primary place where children learn standard English and can perfect it without being judged or criticized. I think it is an effective teaching technique to speak in English while teaching a lesson or giving instructions. When the students do not understand because of a language barrier and not because of comprehension, then should the native language be used. This is how my cooperating teacher runs her classroom. It is clear that the students are learning English in a non-threatening manner. They feel comfortable to make mistakes and know that the teacher will still love them. However, she never discourages them from speaking their native language. During any and all time where my cooperating teacher was not actually teaching, Spanish could be heard. During choice time, work time, transition time, lunch, and recess the children all felt comfortable to speak Spanish. I believe that this method is very effective for having children learn English while still being encouraged to speak their native languages. Both are necessary components of these students lives.

So...tomorrow. I am in charge of the entire morning meeting - which means I have to write the morning message. I never realized how much pressure goes into that. (my cooperating teacher laughed when I told her that :) ) First, what you write on the board is what goes into their brains, the standard English that they are learning. And second, I have to write letters properly...I have horrible handwriting!! Not only am I in charge of the morning meeting I am also teaching the math lesson for the day. 40 minutes of me being completely and utterly in charge. scary. Needless to say. I am a little nervous for tomorrow.