This week I had the chance to sit in on another class here at Penns Manor. I observed Mr. M in two of his 8th-grade biology classes during their unit on microscopes. It was very interesting to see another subject being taught as I haven't observed any other subjects outside of agriculture since I myself was a high school student.
Overall, I thought it was an interesting lesson and I felt that the students stayed fairly engaged. The lesson focused on the parts of a compound light microscope and how to use it. The class started by taking notes from a PowerPoint in their guided notes packet and I made a few different observations during this portion of the lesson. One thing I noticed was that the lecture was very conversational which kept the students engaged. Mr. M was constantly asking questions, giving examples, checking for understanding and asking the students what they thought. He also did a very good job of helping the student to break down vocabulary words and understand their roots and meaning, which can be especially important in a science class.
Another observation I made was the fact that Mr. M used a formative assessment to ensure that the students understood the components of the microscope before they began using it. He projected a picture of a microscope on the screen and the students had to take turns labeling the various parts. I found this useful because it was engaging and a simple way to check for understanding. However, this exercise did not allow all students to participate because when one had written a word they would pass the marker off to a friend so not everyone was included. Mr. M also informed the students that they would be taking a quiz on this material in a few days so that they would be prepared for the unit.
My final observation was that Mr. M did a good job of giving the students an idea of what the unit would look like. He gave an overview of some of the labs and explained how and when they would be done. I think this was helpful to students because it got them excited for the upcoming labs and showed them why they would need to know the information. He also talked about some of the classes they will have in the future at Penns Manor and how they would be using the compound light microscopes in those classes.
I enjoyed observing these periods and I think it was beneficial to see how other classrooms operate. My main question and something that I think would be a challenge for me is having multiple class sections of one prep. Mr. M teaches three sections of the same 8th-grade biology and the three often do not run at the same pace. This was evident to me when Mr. M told the third section to grab the microscopes and they had to remind him that they had not learned the parts yet. I am very curious about how teachers manage to balance multiple sections of one class and how they keep track of where each class is in the curriculum.
All in all, I am thankful that I got the chance to check out some of the other classes here at Penns Manor and got to learn from another great teacher!
Another observation I made was the fact that Mr. M used a formative assessment to ensure that the students understood the components of the microscope before they began using it. He projected a picture of a microscope on the screen and the students had to take turns labeling the various parts. I found this useful because it was engaging and a simple way to check for understanding. However, this exercise did not allow all students to participate because when one had written a word they would pass the marker off to a friend so not everyone was included. Mr. M also informed the students that they would be taking a quiz on this material in a few days so that they would be prepared for the unit.
My final observation was that Mr. M did a good job of giving the students an idea of what the unit would look like. He gave an overview of some of the labs and explained how and when they would be done. I think this was helpful to students because it got them excited for the upcoming labs and showed them why they would need to know the information. He also talked about some of the classes they will have in the future at Penns Manor and how they would be using the compound light microscopes in those classes.
I enjoyed observing these periods and I think it was beneficial to see how other classrooms operate. My main question and something that I think would be a challenge for me is having multiple class sections of one prep. Mr. M teaches three sections of the same 8th-grade biology and the three often do not run at the same pace. This was evident to me when Mr. M told the third section to grab the microscopes and they had to remind him that they had not learned the parts yet. I am very curious about how teachers manage to balance multiple sections of one class and how they keep track of where each class is in the curriculum.
All in all, I am thankful that I got the chance to check out some of the other classes here at Penns Manor and got to learn from another great teacher!
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