Leah M.

Michajluk
EDU 410/610: Student Teaching
Eastern University
January 28, 2016
For my first observation, I had the opportunity to join a second grade art class. Similar to
my cooperating teacher, the art teacher had designated jobs for certain students (floor checker,
paper passer, supply monitor, etc.). I noticed that the art teacher began the lesson by reminding
students of what they already know based on information covered in the previous class. She
made sure to tell the students, This is what we are going to cover today...., followed by an
explanation of the featured class topicthe value of color. Students took turns guessing what
they thought the value of color means. Using what they already knew, they hypothesized that
value pertains to the lightness and darkness of a color. Another strategy the teacher used was
incorporating imagery by reading a beautifully illustrated book titled Little Owls Night by Divya
Srinivasan. During the story time, I noticed something that differed from my cooperating
teachers instructional style. The art teacher used very little wait time, if any, while the students
voluntarily read passages out loud from a handout. If a student stopped to try and figure out a
certain word, the teacher would immediately give them the word rather than the student taking
the time to decode the text. This may be a result of a very limited amount of time allocated for
the art class. The other thing I noticed that was different from my cooperating teachers style is
the art teachers habit of trying to talk over the students rather than using an attention-grabber.
Because of this, there were many students that missed important directions. A very positive
difference I saw was when the art teacher would explain a process, she was extremely thorough
and provided thoughtful, age-appropriate modeling. For example, she held up a sample drawing

and said, Look at my example. Do you see what kind of line I used to draw the ground here? Is
it a straight line? What kind of line is it?. She then proceeded to walk them through the process
of how to draw different lines to create different shapes and how to use values of color to create
different effects. Her attention to the process was very helpful for keeping the students on track.
My cooperating teacher is a little less descriptive in her directions and, as a result, I will hear
students asking each other what they are supposed to be doing.