Wonderings

My second day in the classroom was wonderful! I felt much more comfortable and confident because I was familiar with the atmosphere and what the teacher expected of the students. I was able to sit down and talk with my teacher about a struggling reader, in which she suggested a little girl who has low self-esteem and breaks down in tears within a few minutes of reading. I pulled this young girl aside and asked her about her reading habits. She was very excited to talk one-on-one with me, and responded with enthusiasm after every question. The only thing that upsets her about reading is that her siblings will occasionally bother her when she is reading. She has many brothers in her family, along with a new baby boy, which is when my curiosity began. As a result of my observations, I don’t think she is getting the attention she desires at home, and acts out in order to receive some of that attention that is lacking. I wonder if I can motivate this student to feel more confident by asking her to read to me during independent reading time, and making sure she is receiving that attention. In order to make this effective, I need to find ways to make sure she understands her reading and doesn’t just recite it back to me. I will need to create a few activities within the next couple weeks with my CT to evaluate her reading comprehension.