Reflective Journal

Entry 2: Physically, the desks in my class are divided into half. On one half of the room there are three rows of three desks side-by-side, while the other half has three rows of two desks side-by-side and a row of single desks sideways facing the desks grouped in twos. I have a pretty good group of kids, so classroom management isn't a huge issue. There are still the normal problems of kids talking when I'm talking or when a classmate is talking, but there aren't any major concerns. I usually just use wait time to get their attention and it is working better for me now that I have talked to the class about showing me the same respect that they would to any other teacher. One of the important issues between the teacher and students that I have noticed is homework. I think grade fives aren't used to having to do much, if any, homework. They don't get very much right now, but often the little bit that they do get itsn't finished. Students have all sorts of excuses, like they forgot to take it home, or forgot it at home, etc. This is a constant struggle that sometimes involves the parents because each day at the end of the school day the students write their homework in their agendas and they are supposed to get them signed by a parent.