Sonja Kelly

EDE 4504 Routine of Your Choice Inquiry Reflection Assignment

Part 1
My CT performs a small instructional group in a very strategic way. She picks the kids
that need the most support in the activity they are doing or what they are learning in class. She
then brings them to the small group table and works with them there. It depends day to day what
she is going to do with them as well as the kids she is going to be working with. But when she
does work with them it’s very structured. My CT said to me that that is something she has
always done for the kids that tend to be a little behind. The developmental levels of the students
has impacted the way the CT does this routine because she tends to do this routine with kids who
are struggling more and are behind in their development in the classroom. So depending on the
child’s developmental level, it determines if she will need to work with them or not. When my
CT wants to perform this routine she will usually say something along the lines of “alright class
we will be doing shared reading, right now I want Olivia, Jill, and Samara to join me at the
table.” Then when the students are at the table she will explain to them what they will be doing.
The one I observed was some flash cards and she just explained to them that they were going to
play a game and have to say the name of the letter and the sound when they see the card. She
made sure she explicitly said the expectations to the students. My CT did the individual work
with them, in this case the flashcards. She would flip through them all and hold them up, then
ask them what letter it is and what sound it makes. She will give them praise when they get it
right and then will also encourage them to try again if they get it wrong. It helps the students a
lot because it gives them the one on one time they and can get them on the level they need to be
at. The student she was with did not give her any problem but I asked her what she does when
they aren’t performing the routine correctly and she said that she just reinforces them more. This
routine can take anywhere from 5 minutes to 20 minutes. It is all depending on the time she has
in the classroom.

Artifacts:

My CT worked with three kids in a My CT working with the group I

small group. Ffffffffffffffffjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjjj.described above.
 Part 2
When I performed this routine I was working with a group table of 3 students. They all
needed my help and my CT suggested this is where I am work on my routine. They all needed
help with a writing assignment. The writing assignment was where they must write about a
character that they like. The prompt they had to write was “I like…” and then they fill it in with
their favorite character’s name as well as draw a picture. During this small group time I
explained to them in more detail what they were going to be doing with the writing assignment.
One of the student did really well with my help. The other two did well as well. I think me
helping with one on one allowed them to be able to talk about their writing out loud instead of in
their heads, which later helped them with spelling. I did get my desired results because all the
students were able to complete all their writing with almost correct spelling. I think what led to
my access was trying to create a system and a flow of things while working with them. I told
them to raise their hands and be patient while I am working with another student. I think this
helped me be able to help them all in the end. I think the developmental levels impacted me
because all three of the students were at different level. There was a lower level student, and two
average students that were also in different places. So this did pose a challenge as they all wanted
my help but some needed it more than others. So trying to find that balance was what was a big
struggle. One of the things the students in my group would do was try to tap on my shoulder or
whine to get my attention. Whenever they did this I told them that they need to raise their hands
in order for me to be able to help them. I want them to raise their hand because we did not whine
or rudely tap shoulders.

Artifacts:

This is me doing my small group This is the finished product of one my

instructional. student’s work.
 Part 3
One of the most important things I learned while performing this routine would definitely
be time management. While they were all able to get their work done in the right amount of time
it felt like we were rushing. I think knowing how fast the time goes will really help me manage
my time more when working with the smaller groups. I also learned that with that short amount
of time you need to remember to make sure all the students are getting the same amount of help.
As well I do not think my students were fully used to the small group setup so they did not fully
understand the procedures which I had to explain to them what to do, like raising their hand and
not calling out. I felt like because they were in a small group with me they felt like they could do
whatever they wanted since they were only disrupting two other students rather than the whole
class. I had to ensure I was able to get them to understand the procedures for the small group.
Like Levin & Nolan (2021) explained, “procedures are routines that call for specified behaviors
at particular times.” I think the students were not used to this in small groups, therefore it needed
to be explained to them and I had to give them examples on what to do. Like we talked about in
class it is important to maintain those procedures so the students know when to act certain ways
for different activities. I don’t think my CT established many procedures for small groups
because she figured maybe not all of them would ever do one. Once I got them on track for the
procedures they did begin to learn that they should not be acting out, calling out, and poking me
to get my attention just because we are in a smaller group, regular classroom procedures apply.
This did help meet the developmental needs of my students because even though they are at
different levels, they were all still able to understand the assignment and get support in the areas
they needed.

Part 4
Something I will continue to do when implementing this routine is to ensure the students
understand what the procedures will be. I want them to be acting like they always do when they
are in a big group and be polite and respectful of each other. As well I really liked how I began
by telling them the assignment and helped them all with the part that will be the same for each of
them. Then broke off for their individualized parts and told them to raise their hands if they need
more help. Some things I would do differently would be the way I was seated. Both me and my
CT were doing small groups during this time, so she was at the normal small group table, while I
was just sitting with them at their desks. This was kind of awkward for me as I was next to two
students and the other student was further away from me. Next time I perform this I think I will
change the set up to be a little more inclusive for all the students to hear me. One connection I
can make is the importance of a classroom setup. We talked a lot about how important it is to
have a classroom that is set up where every student can achieve success. I do not believe the way
I was sitting with them for the small group instructional allowed for that. Next time I want to
ensure my set up is perfect so all of them can hear and see me clearly because set up is extremely
important.

Part 5
The FEAP I represented in this routine was 2f. Maintains a climate of openness, inquiry,
fairness and support. I demonstrated this FEAP by giving all the students in the small group an
opportunity to be able to get help and support from me. They were able to demonstrate openness
from me due to the fact that they felt like they could ask me any questions without judgment
from their peers. I was able to maintain inquiry because they were always allowed to ask me
questions and I always gave them information back. I was able to maintain fairness because I
gave everyone an opportunity to ask for help and gave them all the same amount of attention.
Finally, I was able to maintain support through being able to always be there with them during
the small group for any questions they may need to ask.

Sources

Levin, J., & Nolan, J. (2021). Principles of Classroom Management: A Professional Decision-
Making Model (8th ed.). Pearson.