CSN Education Department - Alternative Field Observation Activities Packet

Greetings Future Educator,

One of the most rewarding aspects of EDU 201, 202, or 203 is the opportunity you’ll have to
observe in a school classroom where students are actively engaged in learning. Each of these
three CSN courses require students to complete a 10 hour "Field Observation" in a Clark
County public school. If CDC Guidelines for Covid-19 prevent you from physically attending a
school campus during the current semester, this packet will offer the alternative experiences
required to satisfy your “Field Observation” requirements for this class virtually.

If possible to pair you with a cooperating CCSD teacher, your placement will be processed by
CSN’s observation coordinator, and you will receive details regarding your assigned school from
your CSN professor. Only then, will you contact the school and meet virtually with your assigned
CCSD “cooperating teacher”. Both you and your cooperating teacher will design a mutually
agreeable schedule to complete your required contact hours once you meet for the first time.

Within this packet, you will find the required field experience assignments that you must
complete in order to pass this class.

Your Name: Mia Kosmicki

CSN Course: EDU 201

Professor: Steven J. Saladino

Professor’s email: steve.saladino@csn.edu

CCSD School: Scherkenbach Elementary School

Cooperating Teacher: Lori Clark

DEPARTMENT OF TEACHER EDUCATION FIELD EXPERIENCE GUIDELINES
Standards of Conduct
You are student representatives of the CSN Education Department and the teaching profession.
Candidates are expected to maintain high standards of personal and professional ethics.

Attendance and Punctuality

Regular attendance and punctuality are mandatory. Once you determine a schedule with your
cooperating teacher, this becomes an agreement in which you are expected to adhere to. You
are expected to login and log-off to virtual meetings at the scheduled time. In case of illness or
emergency that would prevent you from joining a scheduled class virtually, you must contact the
cooperating teacher a minimum of 3 days in advance to let them know you will not be in
attendance on that day.

Relationships
You should exercise respectful discretion when voicing your personal views. It is important that
your demeanor and opinions remain confidential. Under no circumstances can information
about any students be released to, or discussed with, any unauthorized person. It is forbidden to
have any contact with students outside of the classroom you are assigned. This restriction
includes CSN students contacting CCSD students in person, through any electronic means, or
through the use of social media.

Dress Code
CSN Department of Education wants you to be a success. Therefore we have adopted the
CCSD dress code for students fulfilling their observation requirement in the assigned school
district. Appearance creates credibility; make a good first impression by dressing professionally,
even when meeting virtually.

Required Acceptable Attire: Males:

• Shirts with collars
• Ties (optional) with button down shirts
• Khakis, trousers, slacks; belts if pants have loops, (no sagging, rips or tears)
• Simple jewelry
• Shoes and socks that cover the toes and heels
Required Acceptable Attire:Females:
• Shirts or blouses that cover the shoulders & waist; no see-through or mesh
• Sweaters worn over shirt
• Pants, pantsuits, khakis, trousers, slacks (no sagging, rips or tears)
• Jumpers, dresses, skirts (in length from 2" above the knee to the ankle)
• Shoes and socks that cover the toes and heels
• Leggings worn under dresses/skirts/jumpers
• Simple jewelry or none
• Little (daytime) make-up
Not Acceptable Attire: jeans, shorts, tank tops, halter tops, muscle T-shirts, tight fitting
clothing, warm-ups, sandals, flip flops, stilettos; no cleavage showing, no sagging or frayed
hems; no head covering except for religious reasons, such as a yarmulke or turban-like. No
nontraditional hair colors/styles. Undergarments and tattoos should be covered. Remove facial
jewelry. *School principal/supervisor has the sole discretion on questionable clothing or
appearance that distracts from student learning.

Classroom Conduct: At all times, the cooperating teacher maintains legal responsibility for
pupils in his or her classroom. You should never assume that responsibility and be left
unsupervised with children. You should not discipline students. You are an observer, who
should take notes to discuss during your next education class meeting, or to record in your Field
Observation packet.

Professional Conduct:
Never speak to staff or students in an abusive manner.
Never touch or be alone with a student for any reason.
Never give a student food, drink, or other items without the teacher’s permission.
Never take photos/video of students or staff without written permission from the principal.
Never make or accept calls/text using any communication device while at the school.

CCSD WAIVERS
Review the terms of the CCSD Waiver Forms provided by your instructor.
“Student Statement of Responsibility” (Exhibit B)
“Student Confidentiality Statement” (Exhibit C)

These 2 waiver documents MUST be agreed to in order to secure your observation placement.
While submitting your Field Observation Request, you will be prompted to check that you have
read the waivers and that you agree to the terms. Completion of the CSN Field Observation is a
PASS/FAIL component of the course.

ONCE YOU ARE ASSIGNED A COOPERATING TEACHER WHO IS DISTANCE LEARNING

1. Pre-plan for initial contact with the school you are assigned and make sure that all interaction
with CCSD employees and students is respectful, courteous, and professional. You are a
representative of this class and the college. CCSD is allowing you to observe their teachers to
further your understanding of the teaching profession. It is imperative that your actions reflect a
willingness to learn, and are reflective of a future professional educator. The school will select a
teacher for you to observe and provide you with their contact information.

2. The first half of your field observation/experience will be centered around learning
background information about the school you were assigned, and focusing on the general and
unique characteristics of its culture. You will be looking at, and reflecting upon things that are
going on in the virtual classroom at the school level that you were assigned. You are simply
observing during this time. Your cooperating teacher may give you guidance on how your
experience can be expanded beyond simple observations, if he/she feels comfortable with your
professionalism and skills.
3. Contact your Cooperating Teacher to introduce yourself. Since this is your first contact, ask
the teacher for the necessary information to access their virtual classroom, and when the live
sessions occur that they would prefer you to join. Share this “Field Observation Activities
Packet”, with your cooperating teacher as well as the last 3 pages which contain the
“Cooperating Teacher Information”, the “Time Log” and the “Field Observation Student
Evaluation”. Let the teacher know that you will be taking notes during the observation for your
packet assignments, that you will be asking them to verify your hours of attendance, and
evaluate your participation once the total observation hours are complete.

4. When logging in with your cooperating teacher and their students during a virtual meeting, it
is recommended that you keep both your microphone and video camera OFF during the
observation, unless the cooperating teacher directs you to speak or be seen while observing. In
that case, make sure your home workspace is void of background distractions, or anything in
view that may be considered inappropriate for students to see. Your online attire should be the
same as if you were visiting the school in person. Employ the use of typical lighting and image
framing to make the most of your broadcast. The typical “Rule of Thirds” works well, whereby
the camera height is adjusted so that your eyes are positioned in the top third of the window.
Front lit subjects look better on screen than being backlit by a window or artificial light.

THE FIELD OBSERVATION PACKET ASSIGNMENT DIRECTIONS

Read through all the assignments and take notes during your observation visits. You will gather
information on more than one assignment during an observation. Then, using your notes
answer the questions for each assignment.

• All assignments must be word processed. Your detailed responses to assignment questions
must demonstrate careful analysis of the questions and the observation information.

• Questions and their responses must include thorough explanations and examples from the
classroom observation. All responses must be written as complete sentences.

Include the question number, along with your response as a short essay response as in this
sample below:

Assignment #2 - Question 1: What is your first impression of the classroom

environment?
Response: “The classroom environment is friendly and welcoming to the students and
seems a fun place to learn. The classroom is decorated with the students’ work,
interesting posters and the teacher shows respect to the students.”

When it is time to submit the Field Observation Packet for grading, these items must be
included:
 • The cover page of the Field Observation Packet

• All observation assignments

• Time Log verifying hours spent within virtual meetings

• The Cooperating Teacher Evaluation

THE FIELD OBSERVATION ASSIGNMENTS: Cooperating Teacher assigned to CSN student

ASSIGNMENT #1 (Culture): Using the questions below, carefully observe and evaluate the
culture of the school. School culture refers to the way teachers and other staff members work
together and the set of beliefs, values, and assumptions they share. A positive school climate
and school culture promote students' ability to learn. Remember you are evaluating the school
for its educational culture, place of learning, sense of safety, invitation for learning, promotion of
self-actualization, development of values and socialization. Use online resources such as your
assigned school’s CCSD webpage, http://nevadareportcard.nv.gov/di/,
https://www.publicschoolreview.com, and https://www.greatschools.org/nevada/las-vegas/ to
answer the following questions.

Physical Characteristics: Look at a picture(s) of the school to determine atmosphere, comfort,

and feelings the school creates for students in the educational setting.

1. Consider the school property: building, grounds, fencing, equipment, landscaping,

trees, parking lot, crosswalks, gates, signs and symbols. Describe in detail.
The school sits on a large piece of land that is pretty isolated. The only things next to it is
a park and another elementary school that is connected to it along the back fence. The
school has two large playgrounds and a large grass field with different sport courts. They
also had a smaller playground and field near the kindergarten section of the school.
There was also a large amount of pavement all around the school. They had a small
parking lot with crosswalks that went through it and the drop off line. They have a small
variety of dessert landscape with plants that seem fairly safe for children.

2. Next, (if available) study the interior of the school: halls, floor coverings, lighting,
doors, windows, hall colors and decorations and entrance security. Explain in detail.
Halls are filled with bulletin boards of different friendly greetings and art! It is very inviting
and warm! Brights lights were throughout the entire school and classrooms. There was
also a great deal of direct sunlight in the halls as there is an outdoor area in the middle
of the school. The entrance security consisted of a temperature check and sign in sheet
at the beginning of the day. If I left for lunch I would have to ring a camera doorbell to be
authorized to enter the campus as all doors were locked.

Culture of the School: Read, listen and/or observe to determine the climate, values, and
atmosphere within the school.

1: What are your first impressions of the school? Enrollment, graduation rate, proficiency
rates, student/teacher ratio etc.
Total enrollment is 585 students. The student to teacher ratio is 25 to 1. This ratio seems
normal and lower than when I was in school but is high for the district and state. No
graduation rate is available.

2: Please describe the student make-up of the school, including gender, ethnicity,
students with disabilities, ELL students, and any other attributes that are important to
note you found.
The school is made up of 47% caucasian students followed by 26% of hispanic students,
the remaining percentage is other students of color. I am unable to find statistics based
on gender, ELL and students with disabilities.
 3. Explain the school’s mission/vision statements, motto, and mascot.
Mascot- Scherkenback Stars
Motto- Dream Big, Reach Far, Shine Brightly
Mission Statement- “The community of Scherkenbach Elementary School works together
to create a positive environment that ensures that students will master essential skills
and demonstrate their strengths and talents through active learning.”

4. Examine school traditions, achievements and awards; community recognition or

community partners; extracurricular activities/clubs and athletics. Look for and
document sources of community pride and sense of identity through ceremonies,
assemblies, trophies, and artifacts.

5. Briefly describe three other pieces of information that can be found on your assigned
school’s website.

Culture of the Classroom: Each classroom has its own culture and way of life.

1. What are the teacher’s expectations for learning and success?

2. Evaluate the level of student participation in the class. Who participates? Who does
not?
Student participation varies based on the activity. All the children are mostly learning on
the chrome books, which seems to distract the children as they try to go on other
websites. I would say about half of the students are participating willingly and the other
half are needing to be told to participate or focus on the work.

3. Evaluate the interactions between teacher and students, rapport, cohesiveness,

distribution of power, teacher personality.
The students listen pretty well to Ms.Clark. She is very kind and calm but you can tell
that the students listen to her. She is pretty easy going and doesn't focus on the negative
aspects of the day.

4. Observe student-to-student interactions, inside and outside of the class. Are they
using any chat features to communicate with each other?
Inside the classroom students are very kind and interactive with each other. It seemed
like they were all friends and got along very well. The children in the physical classroom
are very interactive with the children at home as well. They would play game son the
computer with each other outside of instruction.

ASSIGNMENT #2 (Observations)
 1: What are your first impressions of the virtual classroom environment? Is it warm,
inviting, organized, etc? Describe the virtual environment in detail.
The virtual classroom environment as well as the in person environment is very friendly!
The online classroom is fairly organized and easy to navigate for the students.

2: Please describe the student make-up of the class, including gender, ethnicity, ELL,
students with physical challenges, and any other apparent attributes that are important
to note.
There are 6 males and 6 females in the physical classroom. There are 5 students of
color and 7 caucasian students. I was unable to get a count of the students that were
virtual. There were 4 ELL students.

3: Are their posted class rules or course expectations? If rules/expectations are posted
There were no classroom rules posted but there were some safety and incentive
posters.

4: Does the teacher enforce these posted rules/expectations? What rewards or

consequences are used for compliance or noncompliance?
Ms.Clark uses class dojo to reward good behavior. She also uses this point system to
take away points for bad behaviors. She mostly uses verbal warnings and takes away
distractions if the students are not complying.

5: What is the posted daily/weekly schedule for different subjects or periods?

Ms. Clark breaks up the schedule in canvas by subject and then she groups up the
activities for the certain day of the week. She mostly gives a verbal schedule and the
children seem to know that they have the same schedule every specific day of the week.

6: Do you see evidence of the school’s mission/vision statements in the virtual

environment?
I did not see it online or in person.

ASSIGNMENT #3 (Classroom Layout): Take screenshots of the learning management system

used by the teacher (Canvas, Google Classroom, Seesaw etc..)
 1: Describe the workflow of the online environment. Is the space and time used
efficiently?
Once the modules and class set up is explained then the virtual classroom is easy to
navigate. While on google meet students are alert and ready to learn. Ms. Clark uses the
google meet time very wisely and the in person students know that this is the time for
work.

2: In your opinion, how can the virtual arrangement of the room be improved?
If perhaps they had one module for every day of the week and then in that module they
had it separated into subjects? I feel like this might be easier to navigate.

ASSIGNMENT #4 (Instruction): Observe any instructional time with your assigned Cooperative
Teacher, and record your observations when presented with the questions below:

1: Is instruction delivered in small groups, centers, whole groups, individually?

Whole group including students in person and virtual.
2: Describe your cooperating teacher’s teaching style.
Ms. Clark tends to take the roll in the math lesson and has students follow along with
her. She has students read the passages in the math book regarding the problem they
are working on. She has students fill in the book with her and she calls on them to
answer the problems.
3: How does the teacher incorporate the sensory modalities (learning styles)? Give
examples.
Ms. Clark has students use hand signals in person and at home to see if they have
solved the problem or if they agree with a student's answer. She has them use thumbs
up or “raise the roof” to signal.
4: Do the students seem engaged in the lesson(s) presented? Please explain.
Some students are following along with Ms.Clark. Al ot of students needed extra
instruction to actually get their math book out and follow along in the lesson. A good
amount of the students seemed bored and not engaged.

5: Are there any students isolated or not present/participating in the class? Explain?
A good amount of students have their books open and are trying to follow along but a
couple of students keep going on the chrome book to go onto websites that they are
wanting to play on.
6: How does the teacher handle absences from the class?
Ms.Clark did not complete an outloud roll call but took note of who was not there in
person and virtually. I believe the absent policy is a little more relaxed right now due to
the pandemic.

7: How does the teacher handle transitions from subject to subject or activity to activity?
Are the transitions efficient?
Ms. Clark tends to do a “Go Noodle” in between each lesson. This is a video the children
watch to get up and out of their seats to move around and dance. The children loved this
and it seemed like a great way to transition and give the students a break.
8: List ways the teacher uses “attention getting” commands, word phrases, signals, etc.
Are they effective?
Ms. Clark used different hand signals to see if the students were grasping a concept or if
they completed a task. But I didn't see any other attention getters used.
9: What specific behavior issues does the teacher have to deal with? How does the
teacher handle the behavior issues? Be specific.
The biggest issue I saw during the observation is that students are getting off task or
instruction while on their chrome books. Students would act as if they are doing their
work but were actually using websites to play games. Ms.Clark did use a website at
points where it would show the students screen in person and at home so she could see
what they were doing and if they were on task. She would call out the students who
needed to do their work and stated that if they didn't she would have to block the
websites they were on.

10: Are there any policies or procedures that help or hinder instructional time? Please
explain them and how they help or hinder instructional time.
The policies that are in place right now that hinder instructional time would be things
related to the pandemic. In person students have to have their breakfast, specials, and
lunch in the classroom. Students never leave the room and it seems like they are never
100% focused because they don't have any sperations in activities. 2
ASSIGNMENT #5 (Observing a student): Discretely observe one student in your assigned
classroom during direct instruction.

1: What drove you to choose this student?

I chose Usher as he took a particular liking to me as Ms.Clark sat me near him.

2: Explain what the student did during the observation.

Usher was following along with the lesson but did not seem engaged and he was not
interacting until Ms.Clark asked him to.

3. Summarize the lesson given and the student’s responses to the lesson.
How to use length and width to find the area of a rectangle. Usher was able to grasp the
concept once Ms.Clark made him follow along and participate.
4. Make sure to document ALL behavior in relationship to what was being presented by
the classroom teacher.
Ms.Clark had to come give additional instruction to Usher as we was not engaged or
following along in the beginning of the lesson.
5. Please describe what you discovered about the student’s learning styles, involvement
in class, and his/her educational needs.
Usher needed to be more engaged in the lesson to want to participate and do the work.
Usher was more engaged in other activities where there was more interaction and
attention.

ASSIGNMENT #6 (Cooperating Teacher Interview): Arrange for a convenient time to

interview your cooperating teacher either on the phone or by video conference. Ask the
questions below. Include any school document, handouts, etc. the teacher provides..

1: What was the primary reason you became a teacher?

I knew from a very young age that I wanted to be a teacher. I loved being around
children and it's what made me the most happy. I felt like I could make a difference in the
lives of children, and I couldn't imagine really doing anything else. I babysat as a teen,
worked at summer camps, and in high school volunteered to work with special ed
students. I think it's in your soul, if you have patience, like teaching things to others, and
want to be creative. I also knew I wanted to have a family, and it was a perfect fit for
having my own kids as well. You'll have the same schedule for the most part once they
start school. I definitely didn't go into it for the money.
2: What are the main challenges you face as a teacher?
The biggest challenge that I face is separating school from home. It's difficult to put
boundaries on your time so that when you're home, you're "home." You shouldn't have to
take work home, but it's almost inevitable some days.
3: What is the best part of being a teacher?
The best part of teaching for me is when students feel good about their learning. You
will see a student that has struggled with a concept, and when they start improving their
self esteem goes through the roof. It's exciting to help students reach their goals. It's so
awesome when students you've had in the past reach out to you, and you may barely
recognize them as young adults, but when they tell you how you were their favorite
teacher, it's amazing! Also, if you run into students at the store, or anywhere outside of
school, they act like they've seen a celebrity. What you do and say really matters to
them. You never really know what kind of impact you are making on a student's life, so I
try to make sure they have a positive experience in my classroom. It's a safe place
where they can feel respected.
4: How do you determine where students sit in class?
This year of course has been extremely different, and nothing I'm doing now would I
typically do as far as seating arrangements. So I'll tell you how I would normally do it. I
place students in groups of 4-6. Every student has a shoulder partner and a face partner
for collaborating, questioning, and support. I try to put a medium student near a low
student, and a medium student near a higher student. I also change seats about once a
month, which allows students to form relationships with a variety of students. This year
due to covid my students must be placed 3 feet away from each other, and the seating
arrangement is supposed to remain the same for contact tracing.
5: How do you select members of any flexible groups?
One way that I select flexible groups in math for example, is after a math lesson I would
have students do a task or give them a quick exit ticket. Based on how they perform on
that task I would form groups. It's really fun actually. They don't have to know why you
grouped them a certain way. But if a student really did not understand the task, they
would be working with me for 15 minutes. If a student really understood, I would hand
them an enrichment page that would take today's lesson to a higher level. The medium
kids would get to buddy up and play a game that supports the concept of the day. *Some
days I will group like this: I will ask students how they feel about "making arrays" for
example. Show me a 1,2,3,or 4. 1 means I still don't get it. 2 means I think I get it, but
can I still ask you questions. 3 means I get it now, I don't really need any more help. 4
means I totally get it, and I could go to another friend and teach them how to do it. It will
have students that are 1 come see me, then I will pair the 2's with 3's and some 3's with
4's. Sometimes pairing the high kids with low kids doesn't work well because the high
students may get frustrated with the low student and just do the work for them. In my
opinion, mediums work better with lows.
6: How often do you interact with parents in person? What are the main reasons for
interactions with parents?
I honestly don't interact in person very much with parents unless they attend a
conference or if they attend a school sponsored event. I do interact with parents daily
though. Not a day goes by that I don't send a ClassDojo message, make a phone call, or
send an email to a parent. The best thing you can do to build parent support is to reach
out at the very beginning of the year. Call them, tell them you're excited to meet their
child, and tell them how important communication is to you. If you set this foundation
from the beginning, you will have parent support. Get every parent to join your
ClassDojo(or whatever app your school uses). They feel connected to the classroom and
you have a quick way to contact them. The parents have quick access to me, and I can
answer them quickly throughout the day. Always let the parent know how important their
child's learning is to you, and you will have their support, which is key to a successful
year.
7: How much grading do you complete on a daily/weekly basis?
I spend 3-4 hours each week grading work.
8: How long does it take to prepare lessons for the day/week?
I spend about 2 hours making lesson plans for the following week. I work with an
amazing team and we plan everything together. It takes the full load off of you, and a
strong team can make your life so much happier.
9: What procedures or strategies do you use to maximize instructional time?
Some fun things to do are play multiplication games when lining up to go to the
restroom, or ask students spelling words as you exit for the day. Kagan strategies are
super fun and definitely maximize instructional time. There are always those teachable
moments, and you can find fun ways to review skills, my class loves Jeopardy to review.
I might make some categories like suffixes and prefixes, and put them on teams. They
select prefixes for 50 points and you tell them an answer "joyful" and they say, "What is
full of joy". Have fun with those free minutes throughout the day if you can.
10: What positive reinforcements have you used successfully? What behavioral
consequences seem most effective with this age group?
My favorite incentive program is Class Dojo. Students earn points for following
classroom expectations. At the beginning of the year I have the students help me come
up with classroom norms like: raise your hand to talk, show respect and kindness
towards others, following directions, turning in homework, try your best, etc...! Then we
also discuss what do you think a student should lose a point for? Some ideas we come
up with are calling someone a name, hurting someone's feelings, not following
directions, etc. They earn and rarely lose points. We create a list of incentives that they
can "buy" with their Dojo points. Some favorites are: Sit wherever you want for a day,
lunch with the teacher, visit another classroom for 30 minutes, bring a stuffed animal to
school, pencil, prize box, awesome phone call home, awesome email home, etc!! They
really love this program and they enjoy saving up points to buy things, and it's relatively
cheap for me because most things don't cost money. Class Dojo has a feature to
"redeem points" and I just type in what they spent points on and it subtracts the points. I
have Class Dojo on my phone and it's super easy to give points throughout the day.
Parents have the app on their phone and are notified when students earn, lose, or
redeem points. I can also text parents, and post things to our class story. I take tons of
pictures and post what we are doing in the classroom. At the end of the year I use these
photos to make a slideshow.
11: How are specialist teachers involved in your instructional planning and process?
Specialists are not that involved with the planning process, although they will
accommodate you if you communicate with them. For example, third grade was doing a
fairytale unit last year, and the art teacher and music teacher incorporated this theme
into their classes, which was awesome. If you communicate with them, a lot of
collaboration might happen. I guess it depends on who you work with though. It's not
something that occurs "naturally" but could be awesome.
12: How often are you evaluated, and what measurement tool is used by the
administration for determining your teaching performance?
The administration typically visits my classroom about 3 times a year or more. They do
two informal evaluations and then they do a "planned" observation. For the planned
evaluation you tell the principal what your lesson will be and you meet prior to the
observation. You discuss how you are going to address the NEPF standards.
13: What consequences are there if your evaluation is not favorable?
If your administration feels that you are "in danger" of getting a 2 or less in any area,
they should work with you to help you better understand the standard that you may be
lacking in. This again depends on your administration. They are usually supportive and
just want you to be successful. I've never had an unfavorable evaluation, but I do work
hard to get 4's and the way that you do that is document things that you do throughout
the year. For example: if you volunteer at the Harvest Festival , write down the date and
time. Keep a google document going throughout the year. Then when it's time for
evaluation, you have everything recorded and there's no scrambling. (Take classes: free
or paid PDEs, create a survey for your class to take about you, send families a survey in
the spring for feedback, volunteer to run a club at your school, attend events, etc.)
14: What surprised you most about teaching as a profession?
I was surprised how important who you work with and who you work for makes such a
difference. I have worked for all types of administrators, and they can make or break the
school climate.
15: What drives their lesson plans? What standards do teachers use during lesson
planning?
We use "Curriculum Engine". It's actually super helpful for planning. Every single
standard for every subject is listed there. As you write your plans you are looking at the
standard, and what you expect the student to know at the end of the lesson or unit.
Using Curriculum Engine, you click on the standard and it adds it to the bottom of your
lesson. It keeps a record of how many times you have taught that standard, and you can
easily see which standards have yet to be taught. We have a year long plan to touch on
every standard, some multiple times, and the goal is that students will have mastery by
the end of the year.
16: If they are teaching at a Nevada Charter school, are there lessons prescribed from
core standards or from other resources?
I've only worked at public schools.
17. How do you accommodate ELL, GATE, General Ed and Special Education students?
I have specific material for ELL students in the area of reading. These books use a lot of
labels on pictures and helpful text features. I have learned that techniques for teaching
ELL students are really just good teaching practices for any student. The more you can
bring teaching to "life" with video, pictures, and conversations, you can help all students
connect to their learning better. GATE students are accommodated by not having to turn
in work that they miss unless it's an assessment. They have opportunities to do projects
and I-Searches if they are finished with work, and so does any other student. You have
to be very flexible with the Special Ed schedules. Students will be in and out, and you
have to go with the flow. It's important to collaborate with the Sped. teachers and know
from the BEGINNING who will be giving this student a grade on the progress
 report/report card. It gets tricky if they are with you 50/50. Always read a student's IEP
plan or 504 plan so that you know what their accommodations are. For example, the 504
plan may say "needs to sit near the teacher" or maybe they need directions reread to
them.

ASSIGNMENT #7 (Summary): Thoroughly summarize and reflect upon your entire 10 hour
Field Observation. What did you observe, learn, realize about teachers, students, instruction,
the school environment? How has this observation better prepared you to understand the
teaching profession? How does the observation relate to the text information and class
activities? What specific ideas on teaching will you remember to include in your classroom?

The entire observation was very eye opening about how the daily classroom life is. I realized
even more how hard our teachers and faculty are currently working to make the in person
classroom possible. I learned that teaching right now is very difficult. I watched Ms. Clark
simultaneously teaches virtual students and in person students. Since she is having to do this
all the work is on chrome books in canvas. It almost seemed pointless to have students in
classrooms at the moment due to that. But you could see the students brighten up when they
were able to speak and interact with their pears so I think it's worth it and things will hopefully go
back to normal soon. The observation prepared me to be more open minded to what
classrooms and teaching may look like in the future and that you need to be flexible and easy
going in this field of work. I could see Ms. Clark using different styles and techniques we learned
about in our textbook. I also was able to use my knowledge of student diversity in the classroom
and schools to be able to observe the population and makeup of the school. I also was able to
better understand the lessons Ms. Clark was teaching and got some ideas on how to plan and
teach lessons. I will definitely place Ms. Clarks use of the website that allows you to see
students screens into my teaching arsenal. As well as her use of class dojo and the different
items that the students can be awarded with. I loved her idea that the things they can be
rewarded with don't have to cost money.
_____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________

Remember that before receiving the final grade for this EDU course, the CSN student must
submit the completed Cover Page, Field Observation Activities, Time Log, and Student
Evaluation to the CSN instructor for grading.

The cooperating teacher must also email the instructor to confirm the successful completion of
the observation. The student is required to provide the CCSD cooperating teacher with their
CSN professor’s email, so the cooperating teacher can send an email to verify that the student
has successfully completed the 10 hours of observation. The instructor’s email must be
provided on the first page of this packet, and on the next page for the cooperating teacher.

Remember that completion of the Field Observation is a PASS/FAIL component of the course.
Students must save this completed packet in digital form, and as a hard copy for the Education
Department’s capstone course, (EDU 299) Education Portfolio or (EDU 220) Educational
Psychology

COOPERATING TEACHER INFORMATION - CSN FIELD OBSERVATIONS - VIRTUAL

Dear Cooperating Teacher,

Thank you for assisting in the preparation of a new generation of Nevada teachers. Our
education majors are required to complete 10 field observation hours in: EDU 201 Introduction
to Elementary Education
This class is where many of our students actually make the decision whether they will continue
further study of the profession. We appreciate you joining us in providing these students with a
wonderful first experience in the virtual classroom. If at all possible, please utilize the student to
assist you in supervised classroom instructional activities if you deem them ready.

We are hopeful that the information we have enclosed with this letter, which has been approved
by the Nevada College Consortium, will help you with a clear sense of how this field experience
works. When the student has completed his/her required 10 observation hours, please complete
and sign the “FIELD OBSERVATION TIME LOG” and “FIELD OBSERVATION STUDENT
EVALUATION” (along with the student). Then, return these two pages to the student who will
submit them to his/her professor.

For your convenience, the student has provided you with CSN contact information below.
Please contact the CSN instructor if there are any questions or concerns.

Also, before a final grade for EDU 201can be assigned, the CSN professor MUST receive your
official email verification that the student successfully completed the 10 hour observation.
Please also “cc” the student on this email. The student WILL NOT receive a final grade in the
course until the email is received from you.

CSN Course # & name: EDU 201 Introduction to Elementary Education

CSN Professor: Steven J. Saladino

CSN Professor’s phone: (702) 651-3105

CSN Professor’s email: steve.saladino@csn.edu

Student’s full name: Mia Angelina Kosmicki

Student’s email: MIA.KOSMICKI@student.csn.edu

Should you have any concerns or questions about this process, please feel free to contact the
instructor directly, or the CSN Education Department at: (702) 651-4400.
TIME LOG - CSN Field Observations - VIRTUAL MEETINGS

CSN Student: Mia Kosmicki

CSN Instructor: Steven J. Saladino

CCSD School Assigned: Scherkenbach Elementary School

CCSD Cooperating Teacher: Lori Clark

CCSD Grade/Department: 3rd Grade

CCSD School Principal: Kristy Muffoletto

CCSD School Phone: (702)799-3401

Date Log On Log Off Hours

04/23/2021 09:10 03:25 6

04/30/2021 09:05 03:00 6

12

Total Hours

CCSD Teacher Signature: _________________________ Date: 5/2/2021

___________________
FIELD OBSERVATION STUDENT EVALUATION - completed by Cooperating CCSD teacher

Please complete the following evaluation using the Performance Indicator Scores below (with
the student) once the total observation hours are met. Your constructive comments are
extremely valuable to the student. Return this page to the student along with their Time Log to
be submitted to the instructor with the completed Field Observation Packet.

Enter the appropriate “Performance Indicator Score” in the spaces below

(4)=exemplary (3)=consistent level (2)=not consistent (1)=lacking

 4
_____ Professional appearance, adherence to CCSD dress code
_____
4 Reliability, punctuality
4
_____
4 Communicates effectively with teachers and staff
_____
4 Demonstrates manners, graciousness
_____
4 Reflects upon observations using critical thinking
_____
4 Demonstrates enthusiasm and curiosity toward the profession
_____
4 Models respectful behavior with students
_____
4 Uses appropriate language
_____
4 Exhibits pre-service educator success indicators

Comments:
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
I really enjoyed having Mia in my classroom. I liked how she was
____________________________________________________________________________
willing and open to interacting with the students when appropriate.
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
The students enjoyed having her in the classroom as well. Mia
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
was punctual and professional at all times. I enjoyed having another
____________________________________________________________________________
adult in the classroom. She would be welcome to come back at any
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
time, or reach out with any questions in the future. I wish her the very
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
best as she continues on her path to becoming an educator!
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________

5/2/2021
Cooperating Teacher’s Signature: __________________________________ Date:__________