Elementary School Observation

Observation Report I chose College Grove Elementary School in Williamson County for my observation report. The school is situated in a rural setting and provides classes for grades K through 5th. College Grove Elementary is a relatively small school, but I was informed by one of the teachers that the number of students had nearly doubled in the past two years. Although the student population had increased dramatically, it did not appear to me that it was overcrowded in the regular classroom settings. I noticed as I entered the building that many students seemed comfortable approaching teachers and staff and were excited to talk to them. The classes I observed were physical education for grades K through 5th taught by Mr. David Dunn and

Cones, bowling pins, bowling balls and iPads were arranged throughout the room. It felt like the gymnasium had been transformed into an actual bowling alley. I observed the second grade students waiting in the hallway for their physical education class to begin. The students seem eager and impatient to enter the room. They kept giggling and peeking their heads around the corner to look inside the gym for clues as to what they might be doing for the next hour. Students weren’t allowed to come into the room until they heard Mr. Dunn turn on music. The music was the students’ cue to enter the room. To release all the excitement and energy of his second graders, Mr. Dunn had the students run into the gymnasium for the start of class. Warm ups are important when participating in any form of physical activity, but instead of merely instructing his students to perform jumping jacks or pushups, Mr. Dunn turned on a Kidz Bop playlist and allowed the students to run around the gym. Once the first song began, the children were permitted to run, skip, hop, dance, walk, or whatever else they wanted to do, as long as they weren’t bothering anyone and were moving in a loop around the gymnasium. The students had the freedom to be silly for the duration of the first song, but then were expected to listen carefully for instructions from their teacher for the main activity. I thought this

Dunn’s students knew they were supposed to run as fast as they could to their designated spots and have a seat. Several numbers were placed off to one end near the front of the room. This is where the children ran to once the music was turned off. The children appeared much more focused and ready to listen after their warmup. Every student had a specific number they were assigned to sit on. The numbers were far enough apart so the students couldn’t touch each other, but close enough that the class was still all together. This allowed Mr. Dunn to give instructions without having to worry about students becoming distracted by their peers or fighting over who to sit by. Mr. Dunn said placing the students in a specific location helped him learn the names of each child. He stressed that recognizing the names of each of your students is very important. Getting to know students is critical to classroom management because when you really know your students you understand which children work well together and which children might cause the most trouble and chaos. Knowing your students may also help you become aware of any behavioral changes that might indicate they are struggling in some