Again as I entered Mrs. Anderson's physical education class, I noticed a change. Mrs. Anderson was no longer the teacher in charge. In her place was a student teacher leading the class. This provided me with the opportunity to see what the next semester holds for me as a student teacher, as well as allowed me to converse with Mrs. Anderson to better understand her teaching philosophy and her class.
As Mr. Hertz led stretches and warm-ups, Mrs. Anderson visited with me about this new group of students. It was during this conversation that I learned that 8 of the students in that particular class were students with some form of special needs. Suddenly, the issues from last week became more understandable. Knowing this about the class allowed me to view the happenings of the class through a different lens. I became interested in seeing first hand how the instructor met the unique needs of each student in the group.
Some of the methods I found Mr. Hertz employing were modeling some of the exercises he wanted the students to do. I found that this method could easily be transferred to my own future classroom; modeling can be a powerful tool in determining behavior and in showing students your expectations. He also took time to talk with students who seemed to be struggling. This was another method I felt could easily be used in a primary classroom. Lastly, Mr. Hertz was very patient with his students. He maintained high expectations of them but these expectations were reasonable and attainable for the students to meet. I felt that this was an especially important aspect of the morning to take away with me. If my expectations for my future students are too high, they will become frustrated and I will, as well. If my expectations are too low, all involved parties may become bored. However, when expectations are high, yet attainable, results are visible.
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