Elementary Education Program

Department of Teacher Education & Learning Sciences

Formal Observation Reflection

Directions: Complete the reflection questions and submit your response to your observer prior to
having a post-conference to discuss the observation. If a conference is held immediately after the
observation, you will submit your responses to the observer the following day via email.

Name: Eduardo Herrera-Rodriguez Date: 11/22/21

1. How effective were your instructional strategies? What changes would you make in your
instructional approaches if you taught this lesson again? Why?
I believe that my instructional strategies for this lesson plan were effective and allowed me to achieve
the learning outcomes I had hoped for. Using a piece of text and a corresponding worksheet with
appropriate scaffolding provided, allowed my students to make connections and meet the standards.
The only changes I would make if I were to teach this lesson again would be to incorporate more of the
language I would hope my students would grasp. We were looking at comparing a time in history to
present day, and while the worksheet allowed my students to do so, I could have enforced this idea
further by using terms that are differentiating when my students speak about the past and the present.
This way, they know what they are looking at and making stronger connections from the book to real
life.

2. Compare how students actually responded to the lesson verses the way you anticipated they
would respond. Explain how you scaffolded or extended students’ thinking.
My students responded well and as I would have wished for this lesson plan. Getting to know my
students throughout the semester, I anticipated that they would easily agree with the message of the
book, so my focus was on the standards of working on skills of comparing times in history to present
day. In like manner, my students understood the difference of what was acceptable for women to wear
back then and what is socially acceptable today. Prior to reading this book with my kids, my teacher
had read a book called Pink is for Boys by Robb Pearlman to the entire class with a similar message of
tearing down gender stereotypes. Knowing this, I referenced that book’s message to the book I read,
Mary Wears what She Wants by Keith Negley, which helped my students to quickly grasp the message
of my book. When it came to completing the worksheet, I provided an explanation of the structure of
the table and what was expected to be done in each section. I provided sentence starters to help my
students complete their thoughts that would allow them to compare the two times in history as well as
make a connection to their personal life. Scaffolding provided was useful for students and appropriate
for their needs.

3. Describe how you assessed whether your students achieved the objective of the lesson. Was
this effective? If not, what would you change about your assessment?
I used a worksheet that my students would be able to turn in to me and I could see the connections they
made with the text to the learning goals of the lesson. I also offered a time for students to share out
with their classmates what they wrote about as another way for them to share their understanding. I
think that these two instances were effective in assessing my students understanding of the lesson
because it would have their own explanations in print and verbally. While I personally believe that the
form of assessment I used to be effective, I do think that a different approach or small changes could
Elementary Education Program
Department of Teacher Education & Learning Sciences

have made a bigger difference. I was debating the use of a Venn Diagram to assist my students in
explicitly seeing comparisons, but I was unsure if this would have required additional scaffolding and
explanations. For the table I used in my lesson, I think that having terms that explain that they were in
fact comparing life back then to life today could have been a minor change but led to a stronger
understanding of the goals of assignment on my students’ end.

4. How effectively did you motivate your students, set and enforce expectations, and handle
transitions? Would you change anything and if so, why?
I feel that this was the area I need the most work on as an educator and something I know will continue
being a learning process. Setting expectations must have been dedicated a time and place in the lesson
to reinforce behaviors that would respect others and lead to smoother transitions. I believe this kind of
stuff comes with classroom expectations and while I have been working with these students, they
mostly listen to my mentor teacher. Nonetheless, I wish I could have worked with my students to come
up with expectations we all agree on and will abide to throughout the lesson. This strategy could
handle students who may share out of turn or ones that may struggle to focus and keep a cam body.

5. Did you make modifications to your lesson plan during the lesson? If so, what were they and
what motivated these changes?
The only modification made to the lesson was the use of a video to conduct the read aloud instead of a
physical book. I hoped to find a physical copy of the book, so my students had the chance of looking at
the book if they desired throughout the lesson, but I was unable to do so. The use of a physical book
would also be used to address concepts of print (front of the book, title page, spine, etc.) with my
students during the read aloud which is something that my students are practicing with in reading and
can be easily tied in during any read aloud. Nonetheless, my students were able to enjoy the story and
they clearly understood the message from it.

6. How did you meet your Teaching Behavior Focus? If you did not meet it, what would help
you to meet it next time?
My teaching behavior focus was “Align Tasks with Learning Goals” which I was able to meet
though the use of both a read aloud and corresponding worksheet. Our learning goals were to compare
life back then to present day. I was able to do this with a book that discussed historical events of a
figure known as Mary Edwards Walker and how she changed society’s perception of what women
could and couldn’t wear. Students would use the story of the book to understand society back then and
then use their own experience of current day to make comparisons. The worksheet used, our task, had a
chart divided into three sections: life back then, life today, and my life. I wanted students to draw and
write their comparisons within this chart that was divided with titles, so they knew what they were
referring to when reading over it and sharing to their classmates. Having a “My Life” section was a
time for students to make personal connections and share a bit about themselves and what they feel
comfortable wearing.