July 10, 2013
We began our visit by learning about the school. Through a presentation and question time we gained so much insight on what this school is all about. Gongshang is a co-ed neighborhood school that operates on 2 sessions. Similar to our previous school, the P3-6 session runs from 7:30am-1:30pm and P1-2 runs from 12:15-6pm. They serve around 1,500 pupils and will be working on expanding their campus to serve all pupils in one session. Gongshang truly believes in educating the whole child to build strong academics and character for all students. Their school values include: Perseverance, Thrift, Integrity, and Respect.
They also have a comprehensive program, PALS, to incorporate subjects like Dance, Gymnastics, and Cartoon Drawing (depending on the time of the year, activities will vary). As part of our schedule for the day, we had the pleasure to visit these classes. It truly is an awesome opportunity for the students. We watched as kids learned a choreographed dance, gymnastics moves, and practiced drawing cartoon faces. It would be amazing to have a program like this at all American schools.
For the last part of the day, we had the privilege of having a session with the schools LSM (Learning Support for Maths) teacher. Her work is primarily with the students who enter Primary 1 (P1) who do not have the foundational skills necessary for P1. All students are tested at the beginning of the year and those who are at a certain level are designated to the LSM class. These students only have Maths with the LSM teacher who provides differentiated instruction for these students. A similar structure is in place for English literacy.
For the last part of the day, we had the privilege of having a session with the schools LSM (Learning Support for Maths) teacher. Her work is primarily with the students who enter Primary 1 (P1) who do not have the foundational skills necessary for P1. All students are tested at the beginning of the year and those who are at a certain level are designated to the LSM class. These students only have Maths with the LSM teacher who provides differentiated instruction for these students. A similar structure is in place for English literacy.
As she described her work, we learned that she has to put a greater emphasis on the concrete, using many manipulatives during her class. From her prior experience teaching P1-2, she always has a few strategies she can use to teach each subject. This type of intervention had proved to be very effective.
She also shared with us her typical lesson plan structure, this structure was provided for LSM teachers at a training with the MOE (Ministry of Education). We were very excited to see that it was similar to our lesson structure. Here are my notes from her explanation:
*Lesson Introduction: ~10 min
What did we learn yesterday?
Revoice the concept
Review task
New learning
Read objective
Explain
Example
*Lesson Development: ~20-30 min
I Do: teacher demonstrates using visuals
We Do: give students an activity and T checks for understanding (adjusts as needed)
*Lesson Consolidation: ~15 min
You Do: students do it on their own, T checks for mastery, generally involves a worksheet
*Lesson Closure: ~5 min
Recap what they have learned
Probe for interest (did they like doing it?)
Revoice for students
Update charts and word cards
Things we are curious about:
-we learned about a test used in Singapore to determine a students Math Age. Is there anything like this in the US?
-the last few schools we have seen use leveled math classes starting in P3. Would this be beneficial to our students?
-teacher specialization is very common and teachers know their subjects inside and out. Could we promote this among elementary school teachers in the US?
It was great to spend the day learning about all that Gongshang has to offer before entering the classrooms to see some Math lessons. Now we have the proper lens to understand better!
We are looking forward to tomorrow when we will be able to see the teachers in action!
-the last few schools we have seen use leveled math classes starting in P3. Would this be beneficial to our students?
-teacher specialization is very common and teachers know their subjects inside and out. Could we promote this among elementary school teachers in the US?
It was great to spend the day learning about all that Gongshang has to offer before entering the classrooms to see some Math lessons. Now we have the proper lens to understand better!
We are looking forward to tomorrow when we will be able to see the teachers in action!
Arriving at the school
School campus
Cartoon Drawing Class
Collaboration room with awesome group tables
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