Wednesday, April 14, 2010
Week of April 15
Our final discussions in class centered upon citizenship education. Have you seen evidence that your students understand the concept of citizenship and their roles in the school and wider community? If yes, what lessons/activities were completed to facilitate this? If no, how might you introduce these concepts to your students?
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Citizenship is definitely something that is important within my school as a whole. The 3 R's is one of the main mottos of the school, Respect, Rights and Responsibilities. This states that each person has the right to feel safe, ask for help,learn, and be respectful. To be respectful each person is expected to complete their homework,control body, use appropriate language,walk respectuflly and respect everyone in the school, care for people,and be accountable for their actions.
ReplyDeleteI think this policy teaches the stduents about citizenship because the rules are clearly stated and the rules that the schoo lgoes by are rules that students need to carry with them outside of school. I think most students realize this and the students in my class do a good job helping each other, respecting eachother,a nd listening. If students do misbehave or are disrespectful I have seen my co-op simply have a conversation with them outside the classroom and their behavior changes. Also, if disagreements occur between more than one student is encouraged that they work to solve the problem together using conflict resolution strategies. In my classroom, citizenship and the 3 R's do not seem to be an issue.
At Tri-Community, school citizenship is definitely stressed through their behavior reward system of "Bulldog Bucks." A bulldog buck is rewarded for a variety of pre-determined reasons, and can be used to "buy" rewards which differ from teacher to teacher. Essentially a behavior management system, the bulldog buck program is designed to emphasize each student's role in the school community.
ReplyDeleteAs far as actual education in the classroom when it comes to citizenship, I can't say that it is a subject that is stressed in currciculum. As I've said before, 2nd grade at Tri-C is strictly reading and math, so I have not seen much Social Studies integration. However, because of PSSAs, the reading skills section of the day was not in the schedule this week, and Mrs. LaPenta gave me the opportunity to teach a S.S. lesson. I decided to readh the book "National Treasures" and then talk about "Community Treasures" from the students communities, and had each student make a "book page". Though this didn't touch directly on citizenship, it was great to see and hear the students' ideas of what was important to them in their community, things all the way from McDonalds, to City Island, to Hershey Park, to the Capitol Building were mentioned and used.
If given another opportunity to teach a S.S. lesson, I will incorporate a lesson about citizenship, relating to their school and personal community. Even without a "scheduled time" for Social Studies, I think that it is definitely possible to integrate concepts of citizenship and community respect into a 2nd grade curriculum.
I have seen citizenship education in my placement school-wide, and in my classroom especially. The students are held to a standard of respect and responsibility, and if students do not respect their peers, teachers, or staff, at Taylor Elementary School, there are consequences like in society.
ReplyDeleteIn my observations, the students in my fourth grade classroom happen to be a pretty respectful class and they are a fun, easy-going group to teach! They like to talk, but who doesn't? :) Each week, I hear good responses from teachers that the students have, other than my cooperating teacher, about how they have acted. The students work as a community, helping each other and being cooperative learners. They listen to the teacher, and me, when we are teaching, and a lot more learning occurs because the students are respectful to each other and the teacher. My cooperating teacher does not have rules in her classroom, but has expectations of the students as far as behavior and learning goes. If the students misbehave or are disrespectful, they are talked to and the behavior discontinues, so problems are addressed. However, behavior is not usually a problem and a lot of learning occurs because of it. The students know they are at school to learn and they do just that! I don't know if my cooperating teacher established classroom expectations at the beginning of the year or what, but they sure act like citizens of a school community.
Citizenship plays a very important role in within my classroom. Every single day it is emphasized to the students to be respectful to others and make responsible choices. When it comes to being respectful to others, this entails completing assignments on time, using appropriate language, using manners, helping out other students, and being held accountable for their actions. The students are expected to carry this high level of responsibility and integrity with them both inside and outside of school. The students understand that it is impolite to speak out while others are talking or interrupting when others are involved in a conversation. They also use their manners when asking questions. Those are just two examples of respect for others that my students show on a daily basis.
ReplyDeleteThe students are able to best show their role of citizenship in their centers. Within these centers, students are able to work together in small groups and help each other complete the tasks that are expected of them. It is amazing to see these students work together and help each other figure out the activities without having to bug the teacher. When certain students leave the classroom for various outside programs. Upon their return, all of the students at their center help them get caught up and figure out the activity. All of the students refer to each other as "friends."This generosity and respect for others surprises me every time I enter the classroom.
When being reprimanded for acting out my teacher uses the phrase, "(name), please make a good choice." This lets the kids know that they have a choice in all of their actions and it is their responsibility to choose the appropriate action. I don't believe that I can place a specific activity or lesson that has shaped these students. The idea of citizenship is reinforced through the school/classroom rules as well as student interaction on a daily basis.
Citizenship is not a very important part of my classroom. The students constantly disrespect their peers. My cooperating teacher follows the “Taylor Guidelines” of respect, but they are never enforced. However, my teacher does hold students to a high standard. She regards them as adults, as they are responsible for everything they do in the classroom. She tends to remind them things more often that not, but there is an underlying current of responsibility for their own actions.
ReplyDeleteSomething that the students regulary participate in the class are their afternoon jobs. Each student has a job they must complete before the end of the day. Most of the time they are completed, but my teacher does not check to see if they were, she just expects it. I believe that with the discipline issues in my class, the best way to show their role as citizens is a class rule list, or some type of guideline. The “Taylor Triangle” is great, but its schoolwide and not really effective in the students classroom. A list of rules that directly affects them would be great for them. It could teach them their role in the classroom, as well as integrating with HOW to make rules and enforce them. As effective citizens, it would now be their responsibility to live and enforce the rules.
Citizenship within the school, and classroom, is a big part of the daily routine of the classroom that I am in.
ReplyDeleteAfter the students say the Pledge of Allegiance they recite the School Creed. The creed essentially says that they will be respectful and do what they need to do to be good citizens of the community within the school.
My co-op has done a great job of facilitating a classroom environment that is full of positive citizenship. Each week a student is given a job, and it is clear to any observer how seriously each child takes his/her job. The jobs that can be found in the classroom are your normal line leaders, paper passers, and calender pairs. However, there are also a few other jobs thrown into the mix. For example, there is a Floor Monitor. It is the Floor Monitor's responsibility to check the floor at the end of the day and pick up any loose objects (pencils, crayons, papers, trash, etc). There is also a Mailman/woman. It is this persons responsibility to put important papers into the student mailboxes.
In addition to these jobs/responsibilities, each child is responsible and accountable for themselves. It is expected that they will be kind to one another and that each child will keep his/her work space (desk) neat.
Since the children belong to two communities during the school day, the whole school community and the classroom community, I think that they are being taught/exposed to community responsibilities at a young age. Even though they are not being explicitly taught about the other communities that they are a part of such as family, town, state, country, and global, they are able to see, on a much smaller scale, the positive results of an effective community.
It is apparent to me that my students understand the concept of citizenship. Mr. Keefer has definitely instilled the concept of citizenship in the students from the very beginning of the year. He has a community of learners and the students have a say in specific activities that they do. Mr. Keefer doesn't make all the decisions, he allows his students to have a choice. This idea is evident in the Ross and Bondy article on Citizenship. For example, yesterday the students had a math test and a timed division rocket math quiz. He allowed the students to choose what they wanted to do first. Although this may seem small, it is really important to the students because they can tell that Mr. Keefer includes them in the decision making process. I think allowing students to make choices in the classroom is an excellent way to teach kids about citizenship because we live in a democracy and as adults we are allowed to make our own decisions. If there is a student that is misbehaving, Mr. Keefer always makes sure to hear their story rather than just punishing them right away. For example, he made two students sit out because he thought they were misbehaving. He told them they weren't allowed to participate. He talked with both of them and found out that the one student was not actually involved. After hearing the student's story, he apologized and then allowed him to return to the activity. He is modeling respect, which is evident in everything that he does.
ReplyDeleteThe students are extremely respectful of their classmates and Mr. Keefer. This is an expectation that Mr. Keefer takes very seriously. This level of respect is upheld throughout the entire school community. I mentioned this in my last blog entry, but it fits in perfectly with the concept of citizenship. One of the students misbehaved during gym class and he was disrespectful to the gym teacher. In response to this, Mr. Keefer made him write a letter to the gym teacher apologizing for his actions. Mr. Keefer is modeling what it looks like to be a responsible and respectful citizen. He is modeling what it looks like to take ownership of your behaviors.
The students also have jobs, which allows them to be responsible for their classroom. Some of these jobs include, paper passer, line leader, board eraser, etc. The jobs rotate, so each student gets an opportunity to have each responsibility. The students take these jobs very seriously and if one of their classmates needs help with a job, they are more than happy to volunteer.
I have not seen any actual lessons on citizenship, but I can definitely tell that there is a sense of community within the classroom. I think good citizenship is a concept that should be learned through "doing." Students should participate in activities that promote citizenship, rather than just reading about it. In my future classroom, I hope to create a community of effective citizens. I want my students to be active participants in everything that we do.
Citizenship is definitely an important part of the school the community. As Teresa said before, students throughout the school are awarded "Bulldog Bucks" for good behavior. There is also a lot of emphasis on recognizing a bully and what to do if you or someone else is being bullied by another student. Unfortunately, while students understand what they need to do as a member of the school, this is never expanded or connected to being a citizen of their town or country.
ReplyDeleteDuring the two weeks, my teacher would like me to completely take over teaching reading out of the Houghton-Mifflin basal and the unit we will be working on during that time is on families and communities. I'm really excited about this, because this will be the first time I'm able to integrate Social Studies at all. I think this will be a great unit to get kids thinking about citizenship, what it is, and how they act in school can be transferred to a larger scale.
In first grade, many of the children are just learning what it is like to be part of a community. Perhaps at home they have rules, but in school, rules certainly exist and might be stricter. I feel that my students have a grasp of the concept of citizenship or being part of a community. They know that they must follow rules and that they are responsible for their actions or misbehaviors. They are just learning (and are reminded countless times each day) to consider the feelings of others or to respect the rights, property and space of other children. My teacher holds the children accountable for their actions and proper consequences are put in place for behaviors not appropriate in the classroom or school community—like running, yelling, or fighting. By knowing and respecting boundaries, they experience the rewards of citizenship such as friendship and security. If there are issues with classmates, they are prepared to resolve their differences in a socially acceptable way.
ReplyDeleteAs for lessons to facilitate citizenship, not much time exists in the busy first grade schedule to have separate lessons, so in our classroom it is taught through activities and modeling more so than specific lessons. My teacher and I use cooperative learning activities to teach children to listen to the ideas of others and to develop a “team” mentality. They learn the importance of respecting others like, not talking when someone else is speaking. Likewise, we teach them and encourage them to admit when they were wrong and remind them to apologize when they make mistakes. We encourage them to be honest and kind and we teach them not only to respect each other but also property. Through modeling behavior, we show respect for one another, demonstrate the use of manners, and remind the children to do the same. My teacher and I are generous with praise, smiles and the occasional treat to teach the students the importance of acknowledging a job well done or appreciation for something.
The students have shown concern for others by making cards for a boy who was leaving the school because his family was moving to another city, and they have made welcome back cards for their principal as she returned from her important family trip to China. Through these simple activities and the modeling of good and appropriate behavior, they are learning to be caring and compassionate individuals in their school community. Finally, through some educational activities prompted by the trip to China, they are aware of different cultures and that they are also part of a larger global community.
Citizenship in the classroom and wider community is apparnt in Milton Hershey. Similar to Kristen, my students also state the schools pledge following the pledge of alligance. The pledge specifically states the roles the student has within the school and classroom as well as in the community. Because the community is so closely connected to the school (the students live "on campus"), the two work together. Many of the standards that are upheld in school are the same ones that are expected at home allowing consistency.
ReplyDeleteHowever, I feel that my students are lacking the concept of citizenship within our country. Aside from the President projects that were completed in the beginning the semester, I have yet to see another social studies lesson. After sharing my DC trip with my students and briefly talking about different parts of the captial and government, many of them expressed that this was their first time learning about it and how they wanted to learn more (YAY!). If given another chance to teach a social studies lesson, I would definiately address our roles as citizens within our country and integrate/connect it to our role in our community and classroom.
Citizenship is definitely important in Linglestown Elementary. In the fifth grade classroom I am in, the students created a classroom constitution that they all signed. The school as a whole also has ways of showing the students what types of responsibility they have. They have paper buckets that have different words on such as respect, friendly, caring, and responsible. They tell all the students that they should be bucket fillers. When a student does something that could fit into one of the categories, the student gets to write his or her name on the bucket and what they did. These buckets are placed all over the school to show how Linglestown students are caring, friendly, respsonsible, and respectful.
ReplyDeleteWithin the classroom, the students also know what is expected of them and know that they need to contribute. They all participate in classroom jobs and follow the rules determined by the teacher and students together. I like the constitution that the class developed. Since they all signed it, the teacher can then use that if a student would do something that did not agree with those rules. If the student signs the constitution, they are saying that they agree with those rules and that everyone should follow them. These are the two most used things in Linglestown that show how the students are expected to act towards the rest of the school community.
Citizen is important within my kindergarten classroom. My co-op has set the stage with the students that "they know what their job is". There job as a student, a listener, a learner, a helper, a friend. I think that my teacher holds the kindergarteners responsible for themselves and their school work. This has made them grow as individuals. I have seen much of this growth throughout my weeks at the school. I find that the afternoon kindergarten class is more independent/mature than the morning class. However, when the morning class is reminded of their responsibilities to themselves and their role in the classroom community they are quick to respect it.
ReplyDeleteAs a whole, the school seems to stress the attitude of citizenship. The represent good citizenship in the form of "gold falcons" which are given at the end of the year as rewards.
I really like that the kindergarteners have a sense of responsibility for their role as a student and in the classroom as a whole. I would like to carrying this attitude over into my classroom someday to help create a strong sense of cooperative learning and "our classroom".
I would have to say that overall my students don't see a lot of citizenship education. They seem to understand school community but I don't know where that understanding has come from. The school itself seems to stress the school body and the rank and file of students, teachers, and administrative staff. I'd like to introduce more ideas about citizenship outside the school in the community. They definitely don't have a grasp on government or their importance in society. This is a hard concept to introduce to fourth graders. I think I would start by talking about where they are headed. What kind of careers do they want? What impact will that have on the country? How will they make a difference? I think it's important that they see what a citizen is and how society is made up of many different people and families.
ReplyDeleteI also think that the lessons they've learned about community in the school setting can be translated into the larger society. How can their role as a student be seen outside of the building. Who is the principal when they aren't in school? I think tying their current knowledge into the larger scale will help make them feel like more viable members of community.
I haven't seen a lot of citizenship education throughout my classroom. While the school implements character traits of the week such as responsibility and other words, they are explained but rarely taught in my classroom.
ReplyDeleteWorking together is an important issue in my classroom. Playing games is a time in which citizenship is rarely acknowledged. My teacher is working towards having the students respect each other. Last week, she started an activity called the 'Friend Carwash'. Two students are chosen each day, and the students each say some trait they admire about the person as the person goes through the "carwash".
In order to enhance citizenship education, I would start something like a classroom constitution in the hall. Students work together to create it, and then use it as a guideline throughout the school year.
In 5th grade, my students aren't being exposed directly to citizenship education, but from what I understand the citizenship education is taking place in lower grades and their knowledge should be in place by 5th grade.
ReplyDeleteThere is a sense of citizenship within the classroom, though. Students have different "classroom jobs" each week, and they do have some input as to what is happening in the classroom during the flex period. Otherwise, it's a clean cut dictatorship in which Mrs.Funck is in charge and has laid everything out in a very concrete fashion (understandably so, as we have two students with autism integrated into the classroom).
I think to enhance citizenship education the simple addition of a classroom meeting at some point during the day would be a good time to accomplish it. I visited a fourth grade classroom this week, and during their classroom meeting they talk about citizenship issues, and even have a notebook to record questions/concerns relating to their classroom community. The students offered suggestions as to how to solve the issue at hand and the students were really working together as a classroom community, which I really liked. It keeps the classroom interacting and growing together, and allows for citizenship discussions throughout the school year.
In my second grade classroom, there is one student who is chosen to represent the class. I am not sure how often this occurs but it is set-up as a student senate. The representative is always a different student so that a lot of students get this opportunity to participate. Together as a class, the students come up with ideas of what they would like added, changed, taken away, etc. Some students asked for new equipment during recess such as basketballs. Some students ask for different types of food at the cafeteria. The teacher writes down all the suggestions and gives it to the class representative who shares the ideas at the meeting. This is a great way for students to be involved in the community of the school and to be able to give their input about what they would like to see. It makes them feel like valuable citizens who have a say in the school rather than just having the adults make all of the decisions.
ReplyDeleteWithin the classroom, each student has a different job. These jobs are rotated. One person may bring papers to the office and another person is in charge of the calendar. These jobs give students responsibility. Each job is important for managing the classroom and keeping it running smoothly throughout the day.
I haven’t really seen many lessons focused on citizenship. I think I would try to implement some lessons because it may improve how the students get along with each other since this is one of the major problems that the children have in this classroom.
I haven't really seen any lessons on citizenship but it is definitely present in the school. As Janelle said, in Mountville Elementary there is a student representative from each class (the students get to decide if they would like to run or not, and their names are written on popsicle sticks which are then mixed up and drawn at random!) who goes to senate meetings and fills in the teacher about what has been said at the meeting to the best of their ability. The students have a say in certain cases, such as the selection and design of a school mascot.
ReplyDeleteThere is also a citizenship award ceremony- I believe each month. The whole school gathers in the gym and the different classes are awarded different rewards for good behavior (such as the three quietest classes in the hallways, best behavior at lunch, etc.) That is a really good motivation for students to follow the rules of the school.
Students also have to follow the rules within the class, and on the playground. Their good behavior is awarded for each individual every month, for example, this month one of the students in my class was awarded for empathy.
The students also have their jobs in the classroom, to help the classroom community run. They realize that all of these duties need to be completed in order to run the classroom.
Although I have not seen the overall concept of citizenship being discussed or developed, I like to think that it exists in my classroom. Students are always in charge of themselves and take responsibility for when they do something wrong. School wide, when students misbehave or do something wrong, they are given a slip of paper with what they did wrong on it (forgot their book, spoke out in class, etc.), and this then is returned to their homeroom teacher, who then decides on the punishment. Students in the class are given assignments and jobs that they are responsible for. If they all complete their assignments or jobs on time, the teacher adds a letter to the board, which will eventually spell out CELEBRATE. When this occurs, they have a “celebration” for their good work.
ReplyDeleteStudents are also given jobs throughout the classroom that include being a teacher’s helper, writing on the board, paper passer, fish feeder, turtle tank cleaner, etc. In this way, they assume responsibility for aspects of their classroom community. My classroom also has a daily classroom meeting which addresses any problems that the class may have. I feel that this is a great way to make the class feel like a community and family. The other week, my teacher brought up the topic of bullying during the class meeting because there was a student being bullied on the bus in the morning. The teacher and class mapped out a plan of action for the class to help this bullying stop.
My teacher is pretty strict and intimidating, but her students fully respect her, and this is visible. Overall, students are expected to be responsible, respectful, and in charge of their own learning and I feel my teacher implements this well, but there is always room for improvement. I would love to see a classroom constitution made for the room or even the school in which there would be rules to follow by. I would also like to see students be able to connect these citizenship and community aspects of the classroom and school environment and have them to connect them to real world concepts. I would love to do a lesson about this!!
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ReplyDeleteThank you for sharing such thoughtful insights. As always, we are seeing a wide range of experiences....
ReplyDeleteI would say that citizenship is definitely an integral part of my kindergarten classroom. Mrs. Moritz uses the Love and Logic classroom philosophy, which really sees the class as a community.
ReplyDeleteAll of the students know their roles in the classroom, and know what they are supposed to do. Mrs. Moritz demands that everyone in the classroom respects her, and one another.
I have seen many good traits in the classroom that exemplify citizenship and community: the students are listeners, learners, and friends with one another, which are all key factors that play into a successful community and learning atmosphere. The students do an amazing job of communicating with one another, and giving each other a hand, when necessary.
Each student in the classroom also does a swell job of doing their classroom jobs the correct way, and rarely without any prompts. The students in the class also always enjoy helping Mrs. Moritz whenever she needs a task done, such as taking something down to the office.
The students in Mrs. Moritz's classroom all give Mrs. Moritz the utmost respect, and I have no doubt in my mind that she taught them that respect from day one. Along with this, she respects the students.
Mrs. Moritz thinks very highly of the community within the classroom. Organization and respect are the two factors that really shine in her room. She always uses phrases and words like "us" "we" and "our class" to show that they do everything together.
All in all, I would say that the kindergarten students in Mrs. Moritz's classroom have an extremely strong sense of community and citizenship within the classroom. So, naturally, I believe that they would have an idea of community outside the classroom, and will be something that they can quickly adapt to in the future.
Citizenship has been one of the the main focuses in Mrs. Ober's classroom. One of my first lesson plans with them was on patriotism. We discussed what it means to be patriotic and how we can be patriotic. They already knew a lot about the topic. We talked about being how patriotism relates to being a good citizen. Lessons after that we talked about diversity, which I think ties in nicely with citizenship. One of the traits of being a good citizen means being accepting of your community. We have also talked about classroom community. The students seems to really like the topic of citizenship and it holds their attention. They like when social studies relates to their personal life or classroom.
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