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Observation Report 1/22/15

Mary-Margaret Anderson

My observation took place on Thursday, January 22, 2015 from 8:45 a.m. to 10:30 a.m.
The observation took place in an Upper Elementary Classroom at Brockman Elementary School
in Columbia, South Carolina.
Brockman Elementary is located in Columbia, South Carolina. There are a total of
fifteen classes in the school. Five classes are Early Education (ages 3-5). Six classes are Lower
Elementary (ages 6-9). Four classes are Upper Elementary (ages 9-12, but only grades 4-5).
There are a total of 335 students that attend Brockman. The students that attend Brockman are
students zoned for three larger schools in Richland School District One. Parents must apply for
their child to attend Brockman. Parents must also attend an information session and observe one
of the classrooms at Brockman. Once applications have been submitted, students are randomly
chosen by computer; based on the school they are regularly zoned for, gender, race, and other
background information. This is done to create a school that is culturally diverse.
The classroom teachers at Brockman are Montessori certified and have duel certification.
Brockman is a public Montessori school. Being that Brockman is part of a public school system;
they are required to adhere to some procedures that may not follow the Montessori philosophy.
The administration at Brockman is very vocal at the district level and encourages all staff to
follow the Montessori philosophy. All classrooms at Brockman are considered Montessori
classrooms, and all of the teachers (except one) are Montessori certified.

I am currently the

only teacher among the classroom teachers who is not certified. After the completion of my

program (in May 2015),I will be Montessori certified 6-12. The Principal of Brockman is
Montessori trained and certified in all areas, Early Childhood, Elementary I, and Elementary II.
Within the classroom I observed, there were two adults, one assistant teacher and one
lead teacher. The assistant has a teaching certificate and is Montessori trained; she has
completed all of the coursework, but has not taken the practicum. The lead teacher is Montessori
certified in Early Childhood, Elementary I, and Elementary II. She has many years experience
teaching in a Montessori classroom.
The classroom I observed has an open floor plan. Several desks are available for students.
All the materials are accessible. The art in the classroom is at eye level. The room does seem
crowded in certain areas by the desks.
The students in the classroom all appear to be very comfortable. They are free to talk and
share their ideas. The room is well lit, and everyone appears to play an active role in the
classroom. The students were directed to gather on the rug for the lesson. Students choose their
own place to sit, and this seemed very natural to the students. All students treated one another
with respect and they were very courteous to one another.
When I arrived to observe the classroom, the environment was one that encouraged
independent choice. When the students changed classes for the group science lesson, the lesson
was not one that encouraged independent choice. The students were, however, encouraged to
discuss and talk about their work.

For the majority of the science lesson/time students were being directly instructed by the
teacher. From 9:20-10:20, the teacher conducted a science lesson with all of the Fourth Level
students in her community.
The students were given handouts to attach to their journal; they were beautifully colored
and followed the power point presentation given by the teacher. Students were later given a
questionnaire about being a meteorologist. Students were encouraged to talk about and discuss it
with a friend. The intention was for them to share, but the time was not available.
Unfortunately, only the teacher and assistant were able to present.
The majority of the students had appropriate discussions only related to the topic and the
noise level was appropriate. This expectation had clearly been established. The printouts that
the students received to go along with the lesson showed much planning on the teachers part.
They were beautiful, colorful, and informative. The materials that the students used (glue sticks,
pencils, and scissors), were also ready and available for the students to use. This also showed
planning on the teachers part. A sense of community was clear in the classroom. The respect
and courtesy that the students showed one another was wonderful to see (especially at this age).
It was clear that these expectations had already been established.
For the science lesson, I would have tried to make it more interactive. The students were
just watching the smartboard and receiving the information. It would have been beneficial if
they had a weather map from the newspaper that day or possibly tablets (which are available) to
research the weather in other areas of the country. While the teacher was trying to have fun with
the students, she would ask questions. If an answer was incorrect, she would make a loud buzz.
If the answer was correct she would make a loud ding. I did not think that was appropriate.
Also, I would have had more open ended questions that allowed more of a discussion. There

would not have been so many right/wrong answers. I also think placing the students in small
groups, instead of one large circle, could have been helpful to discussions. Students could have
created some of their own questions or pictures to compliment the lesson. Finally, I would have
allowed time at the end for more student presentation or independent choice. Possibly even
having a variety of activities to choose from could have been helpful

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