1. ATLANTIC CAPE COMMUNITY COLLEGE
Historical Foundations of American Education
EDUC-101
Class Observation Notes
Student _____________________________ Date and Time of Classroom Visit ____________________
Directions: This form has been adapted from a teacher education textbook* associated with national universities. Use
this form to record information regarding the identified elements of the instructional process. The form is available on
the course Black oard shell i the Class Assig e ts folder. Your otes will e typed o the fi ished for whi h will
be a part of your portfolio. Note: Space allocations on your final draft may vary.
School Name ____________________________ Teacher _________________________________
Subject of Lesson ______________________________________ Grade ____ Number of Students ______
Lesson Topic/Objective ___________________________________________________________________
1. What did the teacher do that exhibited planning for this lesson? (Ex: Lesson plans, handouts, use of
technology, posters, bulletin boards, manipulatives, teaching aids, tools, equipment, etc. What did the teacher do
prior to the lesson to make it successful?)
2. What did the teacher do to demonstrate classroom management during the class? (Ex: Were the
students aware of the classroom rules /procedures? How were teaching materials managed?
Jennifer Gagnon March 19, 2015
10am-1pm
Memorial Elementary School Ms. Laurie Long
KReading/Writing/Social Studies 15
Blends, listening skills, counting
There were handouts for the blends where the children would look at a picture of
an object and finish the word using the blends shown. They both wrote it and
colored the appropriate blend. There was also a few pages printed out called "My
Xx/Jj book. Students practiced tracing Xx and Jj as well as writing J words. There
was also a wall with sight words the kids practiced with and bulletin boards with the
number of school days left in the year, where the children would identify how many
days were left. Two ten frames by the calendar were used to identify the date of
the month. The teacher always prepped the students with the lesson to be taught,
what they were going to do, and what was expected of them.
The students were clearly aware of classroom rules and procedures, as they put
away their pencils boxes when told to do so and when it came to changing rooms,
they lined up in a straight line. They had little cubicles in the classroom where
students could put their jackets and lunch boxes. The children were well behaved
and generally listened well. They were fidgety especially in other classrooms,
because they are children, but Ms. Long was able to keep their attention by
keeping them interested.

2. 3. How did the teacher build interest in the content/subject?
4. How did the teacher involve students in the lesson? (Ex: Were students given group tasks? Were
students called on for answers? Did they write on the board or use technology?)
5. How did the teacher plan to evaluate the effectiveness of the lesson? (Ex: Homework assignment?
Quiz at end of lesson? Test at end of week? Other type of assessment?)
6. Other Comments:
*Teaching: An Introduction to the Profession; Frank J. Orlando (Editor), Lynne C. Levy (Editor), Joseph J. Pizzillo (Editor), D. Mark
Meyers (Editor); Pearson Publishers; 2008
The teacher built interest by telling stories involving the lesson, such as reading a
story about baby animals before they were to write about it. During the social
studies unit, she really got into the lesson by singing with excitement and at one
point she even danced! She got involved and so the children kept their eyes on
her. If a child was done with their paper quickly and it was checked to be accurate,
they were allowed to color their papers, such as after they wrote a sentence about
baby animals, they had time to draw it on the paper.
The teacher got the kids involved by keeping it fun so they would not be bored.
Such as when they did sight words, she did them in groups, such as boys together,
girls together and individually in the find the ice cream eraser game. Students were
called on for answers as well as reading a line in a book. They were asked to pick
their favorite page in the story they had read and when she turned to the page, the
people who had chosen that page were to read it out loud; sometimes it was one
person, other times a group. Also, after they wrote their sentences about the baby
animals they chose, they shared with the class. When students were in gym, some
were chosen to be "jumping jack helpers" at the front of the class.
The teacher integrated evaluating their comprehension of the lesson by checking
what they wrote as they wrote it. At the kindergarten level, they are taught a lesson
and quizzed throughout class. An example would be that when writing their sentence
about baby animals, some were able to actually spell it but others had forgotten it.
By calling on them, you could tell if they had been listening and understood.
Ms. Long is a great teacher and the students loved her. She really got involved in
lessons and got the children involved. The students respected her and so they paid
attention to her better. Her enthusiasm is the thing I noticed the most and the way
she was able to correct them while encouraging them at the same time. I hope that I
can do this as well as she does in a classroom one day.