Reflections

25/5/16
9HSIE2: First period I took my first lesson with 9HSIE2. I had the class line up out
the front and have them listen to the instructions before they entered the room,
the students listened and went into the room quietly though as the lesson began
they were talking and it was hard to get their attention. I had to keep pausing
and get their attention to mark the roll and to have them focus on their work and
at times I did speak over the top of some of the chatting students. I really should
have stopped the class every time and have them refocus their attention. Next
time I will use the hand up strategy where all the class will put their hand up and
be quiet and to get their attention. The class responded well and enjoyed
analysing the propaganda posters with open discussion amongst their chosen
groups. It was hard to get some of the students engaged, though when the group
work was taking place they would answer and do the work when I confronted
them and stood at the desk. It was a little bit flustering to know all of what to do
since I came into the room full of ideas and strategies but when thrown into the
situation it is all forgotten. I felt good to be in front of the class though I know for
next time I need to ensure I tackle the behaviour as much as it disrupts learning
it needs to be addressed initially on all scales to ensure the message is gotten
across.
7ATP: Second period, I then taught the 7ATP history class and this lesson
focused on the use of ICT and researching ancient Greek inventions used in the
modern world. The class responded really well to this class and got straight into
the work. However there was quite a lot of technical difficulties due to some of
the students not having laptops and the internet was not connecting. They used
their phones or their books to get as much work done as they could and were
also placed into groups to space out the resources. They were attentive with the
work using Word and Power point to present their work and chose very different
places to conduct their research. I was circling the room for the entirety of the
lesson; observing and discussing the work that was being done and overall the
class was pleased to have been doing it. I was hoping to have them present their
research at the end of this lesson though with the interruptions i postponed it
until the next lesson. The class was chatty though responded well to having the
hand up to indicate silence and to bring focus back to me.

26/5
7ATP: Today I had year 7, period 3. There was a bit of tension with some
of the girls but they continued with their work. There was an incident with
a few of the girls at recess, causing some disruption to the lesson however
they were taken from the room to work somewhere else. I circled the room
again and the class were finishing up their work and making the final
touches. There was a little chatter and the rest of the girls were distracted

with what happened, though I continued to tell them to keep on going

with their work. In the last ten minutes of the lesson a few of the groups
were eager to present their work and we got through three presentations.
They had done a bit of research and spoke really well in front of the class.
The rest of the presentations were to be finished in mentoring Monday
morning.
9HSIE2: I had year 9 period 6 today and I had organised them with a piece of
paper and a number between 1 and 7, which was their table to sit at for the
lesson. The class was quite unsettled and I had to constantly stop and wait for
silence using the hands up method of silence and attention. The piece of paper I
had given them was to write 5 facts from the video I was about to show at the
beginning of the lesson and they did that eagerly writing their facts as a way of
being able to leave in the afternoon. I had to stop and pause the video saying
that I would not start it until there was complete silence and after a few times of
this there was silence so I could continue. This lesson we looked at life in the
trenches; engaging in the work book and answering questions. This was done
collaboratively; the class answered and discussed the questions and answers
while I collated these ideas on the board for them to write down as well.

27/5
7ATP: Had these guys Friday period 6 and they came in ready to work on their
research tasks again though today we were going to look at the work booklet and
get through some of the content before engaging with the activities. They were
cooperative and once again we collaborated our answers and recorded them on
the board to be copied. We went through a few pages of activities and completed
the work as a class, while they worked in their groups. The class ran smoothly
and on time, going through the work at a steady pace. Had to stop a few times to
get attention however they enjoyed working through the task of Athenian and
Spartan life. The next lesson they are going to look at the government in both
city-states and they were looking forward to the fact there was a collaborative
activity involved for that part of the topic.

30/5
9HSIE2: The class was after recess so they were chatty and unsettled before
they entered the room. They had their phones out and headphones in and I had
to constantly tell them to put them away. I did not realise until after that most of
the students had their bags on the desk which I will keep in check for tomorrow. I
had to keep stopping and starting and the girls at the back of the room were not
focused. The next lesson I will go back to implementing the seating plan because
allowing them to sit where they want did not work. They were able to answer the
questions and worked well when told. I had them work on the key developments

in medicine still used today writing down next to each development what WW1
diseases these medical breakthroughs are dealing with. They understood and
worked very well coming up with ideas and placing the treatment with the
disease for example; Antiseptic wound treatment is linked with shot wounds.
They found this task interesting and I know that next time instead of printing off
the worksheets I will access it online and place it on the projector for everyone to
see with a more structured worksheet to answer the questions on.

31/5
7ATP: First period with year 7 today and we had a look at the government in
Sparta and Athens. The class worked really well and eager to get into the fun
activity I had planned for them. I began the class with a discussion on what a
democracy is and had one person from each group table write a few of their
answers on the board, their answers were well thought out and it involved the
class moving from their seats. I had organised the main activity to split the entire
class into two groups; Sparta and Athens and have them work out the
governmental structure, form a discussion and come up with three proposals
relating to their discussion. The class worked well collaboratively, working with
different people and came up with some great ideas for their discussion points
and working in their groups as to how they were going to respond to this. The
class was timed well and there were no issues regarding the timing of the lesson,
however they just had to finish off the work during Thursdays lesson.

9HSIE2: Before the class entered the room I told them that the previous days
behaviour would not be tolerated, I gave them forewarning of the consequences
of having their phones out or talking- they would be staying in for lunch. I placed
them in their numbered tables as they entered the room. They began the lesson
very well, though they began chatting and the noise built up. The class became
off task and I just waited for them to finish. I could not go through the work as
quickly or as effectively as I would have liked though when I got their attention
and had them on the newspaper article task. They worked well and most of the
class had the work finished. They were kept in for a few minutes at lunch time
and I told them again that the behaviour would not be tolerated and that
tomorrow should be a better lesson. So I am just going to remove the disruptors
as it happens and implement the seating plan each lesson as it gets them
working more than when they choose where they sit.

1/6
7RH1: IN the previous lesson I had organised the class to bring in their laptops
or tablets to complete the research task. When they came to class they were
organised and were easy to settle. I had hoped to have the worksheet accessible
online however their devices did not have the appropriate connection to the
school network. There were also issues with internet connections- I placed

students into pairs or groups of three and were able to get their work done. Next
time I would ensure that there is a way to access the work through the school
drives. They adapted well to the improvised task of having them draw their
personality rather than copy and paste an image. I had to keep repeating
instructions so the next time I would spend more time clarifying the task at the
beginning. Before the end of the lesson I had them raise their hands to which
Greek personality they chose and asked a few people a fact they discovered. I
should have spent more time finishing the activity earlier to focus on the
students discoveries. Overall it was a good lesson, they engaged in ICT and were
able to adapt to different tasks and had the ability to discuss in their groups and
work together.

2/6
9HSIE2: I looked at the ANZAC legend with year 9 today and they were difficult
to focus and settle. I stopped and started the video for them to listen to and to
consider the importance of Anzac Day in their lives and in Australia and if there
were any similarities to how each country commemorates the day. They took
note of the way the statues and memorials were similar in the different places
and picked up on the fact that it is celebrated to remember and to give a place
for the dead who will not come back. I had them complete their worksheet
having them write terms that refer to our National Identity and the ANZAC
Legend and whether there are differences in these. They needed some
assistance in coming up with ideas though once they were given that start they
got most of the work done. Near the end of the lesson I had the class take turns
coming up and writing some of their ideas on the board for the class to expand
and develop on. This was the last lesson before having them review the topic
before the test.

3/6
9HSIE2: I had year 9 last period today and it was quite a structured lesson I had
their equipment ready on their desk with their group name stuck on the table. I
gave each student a team name as they walked in to the room and explained the
exercise of it being a quiz using the white boards on their desk. It was difficult to
get them focused but a few questions into the quiz they engaged into the activity
and enjoyed it because they knew it was a little bit of a competition. They were
getting the hang of the answers though they had some trouble hearing due to
the noise. If I was to conduct this lesson again I would have the questions on a
power point and have the answers slide in when ready, it would have a focus
point and would aid all learners if they were to listen to the question and read it,
saves having to repeat myself and is another way to make a connection to their
work.

7/6
7H: I took this class at the spur of the moment and had to have them enter and
be seated, they wouldnt settle and I had them stand up as I marked the roll for
them to be quiet. They did book work and focused on everyday life in Sparta and
Athens, they were able to answer the questions and have a discussion though
they had to be brought back to attention quite regularly.
9HSIE2: Year 9 started WW2 this lesson and I had a power point organised to
bring in the topic. There were issues with the file not being compatible with the
school laptop and that led to me having to work from the workbook instead. I had
them complete the map of Europe and discussed a couple of points about the
link between WW1 and 2. They started to recognise the similarities from they
had studied the last topic and knew a little bit about WW2. They engaged well
with the improvisation of work though were quite chatty and I had to keep
bringing them back to the point. They had to do some reading but were hard to
engage. The next time I have a power point I will ensure that I have it saved to
multiple areas and ensure to save it properly.

8/6
9HSIE2: I had fixed the power point and had it emailed to myself with a little bit
edited to cater for this follow up lesson. They came in and appreciated the
change of the lesson however they wouldnt settle and I had them sit down when
quiet and when they wouldnt quiet I had them stand back up again I had to do
this 4 times before they settled and I was able to begin the lesson. I had the
expectations of the lesson written on the board and they worked through the
reading and the power point and they were able to engage in the overview
questions to think about what they had learnt this lesson. I did have a bit of a
moment when I forgot where the D-Day battle was, though the class didnt seem
to notice that-thank goodness. I have had a few technical difficulties throughout
this prac which has been overwhelming though I have been able to adapt
relatively quickly and make the best of the situation. The class seemed to
engage really well to using the power point and I would aim to use this at least
for a section of most lessons.
7ATP: I had the group work through their work booklets to get through the
necessary information on everyday life in Sparta and Athens. I had them read a
paragraph each and underline the necessary information they engaged well and
retained the information as we discussed the information. Instead of working on
the Venn Diagram on page 33 I had them come up with one fact each to put on
their page and then went around the room and had them announce it to the
class. They worked really well with this and all had very different ideas and
information which I then brought back into refer to the fact that we all interpret
history differently and engage with information completely different. As the bell
went I had them stand up before leaving and exited them by saying we would
work on the group activity I had planned for them.

9/6

I am down in Sydney until with the Legal Studies, Ancient and Modern History
students for an excursion to the Jewish Museum and to the HSC Lecture days. In
the last week I have prepared work for classes for the three days I am away. I
have collated worksheets and activities from the work booklets to complete and
handled using the Buddy Extra system implemented through Tweed River High
School.

10/6
Today I had gone to the HSC Lecture day for modern history and sat in the
Germany 1933-39 lecture which was increasingly rewarding as I got a heap of
information relevant to teaching the year 9s in the WW2 topic though a bit of
information to use when teaching the topic for senior classes. I also went to the
Nicholson Museum and had a workshop handling the ancient artefacts from
places including Egypt, the Near East, Sparta, Pompeii and Greece. This was very
interesting as it broadened my understanding of sources as artefacts and how
they are different depending on the place that they come from. Had a little walk
around the museum to continue furthering that information on interpreting
sources and to assess all different sides of the information to clarify and create
the narrative of history that goes with it. It was a very rewarding experience as I
can take quite a bit of this information into the classroom with the year 7 and
year 9 kids.

14/6
7ATP: I had year 7 first period this morning and I was going to continue on with
the Olympic Games however the class had not yet finished the activities that
were left for them last week. I had then restructured the lesson to have them
work backwards from Friday to Wednesday on all the work they had no yet
finished. They worked very well and independently with small chatter every so
often. They completed a majority of the work and most had finished it all and I
had to find something else for them to do in the meantime. I think it was a great
idea to continue on with the work they did not finish as it allowed for a little more
focus on the ideas they had already developed and means that they are not
being rushed through the work too quickly and allows for them to expand and
develop the ideas they have already established.
9HSIE2: This period I had to spend time going back over the work from the
previous lesson, I let them sit in their own seats and had one of the girls moved
to the front. They were chatty and quite unsettled though they got the work
done. It was period 4 and backed onto lunch so I had made sure they went
through the work I listed on the board and I checked it as they had left to lunch.
The majority had finished their work and left. I know that next lesson I will put
them back into a seating plan to keep it organised.

15/6
9HSIE2: I had the tables organised into numbers and gave each student their
number once they were quiet and entered the room. They settled quickly and I

had given them clear instruction for bags on the floor, hats off and books out. I
introduced the topic of the Holocaust and the expectations of the lesson. I had
review questions and the students worked well with those and really enjoyed the
topic. I used a power point with a mind map to discuss what the holocaust is and
they were very attentive copying the work into their books. On the following slide
I had a map to show the distribution of camps and had the students read the
statistics. It was a very successful lesson, I felt confident, knew the topic well and
responded to the behaviour in the room. I moved one girl for continually chatting
but otherwise it was just a matter of bringing the class back to focus. I had very
clear direction and tone in my voice where the students responded well and
engaged with it.
7ATP: Period two, this class were chatty and quite off task , I had given them
reading and questions to complete and then I was hoping to get onto the activity
I had planned for them by matching the source with the Olympic event on the
timeline. I had to stop and start and the girls were chatty. Tomorrow I will have
the class set up like I have for year 9 to see if there is an improvement in the
work and the behaviour.
7HH: I was not expecting to teach this class though I had them come in and
quiet though the noise rose almost instantly. They followed instruction though
would comment on everything being said and it was difficult to bring them back
on task. There was an incident with two of the boys and I had Miss Wolthers
remove them from the room. It meant a further disruption from the rest of the
class trying to get involved with what had happened. They were working on
myths and legends and I incorporated IT through googling examples of myths
and legends for them to read and choose. I had them think about why there are
myths and they came up with ideas such as; They teach us lessons about life. I
reiterated the fact that they are to be quiet and speak one at a time with their
hands up and they began to respond to that. It was a little bit skewed because of
the disruptions though I now have some time to prepare some work on the
Olympics for them to work on.

16/5
7ATP: Period five these guys were so restless, to try and settle them down I had
them come up with one fact about Sparta and Athens as we went around the
room, they became very restless and I just stopped and started again. I put on
the British Museum website which was useful it drew the attention to the website
and had them work on their resource sheet, thinking critically and analytically
about the source using their own perspective based on the facts they can
produce. They worked well with this task coming up with great theories and ideas
behind the Spartan sources with relation to the variety of aspects of their lives. I
collected their work and have attached some of the students responses to the
lesson plan. It helped immensely to have the focus on one particular source for

the entire class it meant they were all expected to do the work at the same time.
Next lesson I would aim to be a bit more organised in setting out the work and
having it ready to move through so the class cant stop and chat.
9HSIE2: The class was restless and I spent a lot of the lesson disciplining them
to stop talking and focus. I had them exit the classroom and walk back in quietly
and had them come in and stand behind their desk silently, I had to reiterate the
same instructions to remove bags from desk and to put phones away but they
ended up seating when they were quiet but the noise rose again. I had them
focus on the power point with some directed questioning relating to the pictures
and to the segment of Unbroken which they responded and worked well with. It
was just a shame to see them so restless and unfocused when they had worked
so well yesterday.