Field Report Number 1

Kirstyn N. Jones

Tarrant County College

EDUC 1301

Wood

September 25th, 2023

Author Note

First paragraph: Introduction and Classroom Layout

Second paragraph: Behavior Management

Third paragraph: Routines and Procedures

Fourth paragraph: Overall Impression of Classroom

I had my first observation at Carl E. Schluter Elementary School. This is a collection of

the observations I took during the duration of my visit. I will be discussing classroom layout,

behavior management, routines/procedures, and the overall impression of the classroom.

Classroom Layout

I observed at Carl E. Schluter Elementary School in Northwest Independent School

District. I attended Ms. Hanson’s Kindergarten classroom. She had a total of 19 students and is

self-contained meaning she teaches all core subjects.

When you first walk into the classroom you see the teacher's desk and the carpet where

students attend morning meetings. There are colored dots on this carpet that are assigned to

specific students. Each student's color depends on their table color. The desks are arranged in

groups of five and are placed in the middle of the classroom making both the main whiteboard

and secondary whiteboard visible to all students. The theme of the room is very colorful. All the

colors of the rainbow can be seen. The main fluorescent lights were off. Lamps and other string

lights were used to illuminate the classroom. All around the class are educational posters and

anchor charts for the students to view. She has one bulletin board used for students' sight words

they are working on that month. The student Chromebooks are located at the back of the room

near the bookshelves. They are numbered and color-coded for each student. There is one

projector on the main whiteboard near the teacher's desk. The overall impression of the

classroom was inviting and educational.

Behavior Management

Being a teacher is not all about curriculum and learning. Teaching also entails teaching

young students how to behave in class and even in society. I observed in a Kindergarten
classroom where they were learning how to act at school for the first time. Some of these

behaviors being taught include transitioning quietly, not talking while the teacher is talking,

staying on task, and being respectful to others. There was no poster of the rules available on the

wall, but even from observing the classroom, it was clear that these expectations had been talked

about and set into place.

The behavior standards were created between the teacher and the student. They all

collaborated, and the students helped the teacher come up with the expectations, Ms. Hanson

made sure the students understood how to execute each expectation. To reward the students, she

uses two different systems. She uses something called table tallies; this is a school-wide positive

reinforcement strategy. The students' tables are grouped into fives, every time a table is on task

and working exemplary the teacher will award the table a tally, and at the end of the week the

table can vote to cash in their tallies for some reward. These rewards can include no shoes

Friday, a teacher chair, extra recess, spending fifteen minutes with Sammy the turtle, and even an

open mic. The next positive reinforcement strategy was the warm and fuzzy jar. This is a class-

wide reward and when the jar becomes full it allows the class to have a pizza party on Friday.

Monitoring Student Behavior

To monitor student behavior the teacher would walk around the room making sure

students are on task and working diligently. For example, when she sent the group off for silent

reading there was one student who went and got his Chromebook instead. She walked over to

him, got on his level, and began asking redirecting questions. She said, " Is this what we should

be doing right now?” The student shook his head no. She would ask another question like, “What

should we do instead” and the student replied, “Get my book and read”. The teacher then praised
the student for remembering directions and he promptly ran over to his book bin, grabbed a

book, and began reading with the rest of his class.

I also observed Ms. Hanson monitor student behavior during carpet time. She would say

“Body Check” and all the kids would say “Feet check, hands check, legs check, bubble check”.

This allowed for a safe learning environment while also keeping the children accountable for

their own bodies. There were countless other techniques and behavior modifications, but these

two stuck out to me the most during my observations.

Routines and Procedures

At the beginning of the school day, students unpack their backpacks in the hall and place

them in their cubbies. After this, they make their way to the table near the front door of the room

and grab the warm-up sheet. After getting their sheet they go quietly to their desks and begin

working on their sheet. The warm-up I observed was a simple coloring sheet that had to do with

the lesson they did yesterday.

At the end of the day, about fifteen minutes before the school day is over, they begin

taking all of their belongings back to their backpacks. They are dismissed one table at a time.

Once one table returns another is dismissed. This is when they could begin their open mic if they

earned it that week. They get up on the “stage” and sing a song, tell a joke, or even a funny story

about what happened to them that day. Once this was over the teacher began playing Kidz Bop

and let them dance around on the carpet.

Procedures were both leadership-based and student-based. During carpet time the teacher

gives them jobs for the week. These jobs include line leader, door holder, passing out papers, and

even teacher helper. She draws these using “lucky duck” sticks with each student’s name. To

turn in work, students have two folders on their desks: an “unfinished work” and a “finished
work” folder. When students pack up at the end of the day, they turn in their finished work folder

to the teacher and the unfinished work goes home in their backpack for homework.

If students finish their work early, the teacher will give them two options. Students can

either work on their imagined math or complete unfinished work. All supplies needed for the day

can already be found on the student’s desks. The only thing that needs to be passed out is paper

worksheets, and there is a designated student to do this job.

When students need assistance, they must stay at their desks and raise their hands quietly.

The teacher will come over and the student will quietly ask their question. If the student is

raising their hand and blurting out that student is ignored until they are raising their hand the

correct way.

If a student needs to go to the restroom, nurse, office, etc. They must use the symbol for

what they need. For example, when a student needs to go to the bathroom, they will raise their

hands with two fingers crossed. This shows the teacher that this student needs to be excused for

the restroom. Only one boy and one girl are allowed at a time, and the pass must be worn and

taken when leaving the room.

Overall Impression

Overall, I had a very pleasant experience observing Ms. Hanson’s Kindergarten class.

When I left, I was feeling excited to learn more about what happens day-to-day in a classroom. I

was also excited to learn more about classroom control and redirection techniques as she had a

class of 19 students, and they were mostly all on task and excited to learn.

I have learned that every classroom is different, and every group of students is different. I

was told by Ms. Hanson that it takes time to get a class this way. She says you must set clear

expectations from day one and be consistent if you want your students to understand and execute
those expectations. I am feeling much more excited about my educational journey to become a

teacher.