Movement can be fun! (Cluster 3-4 Fieldwork Assignment)

I recently visited a second grade classroom in the Newburgh school district. I particularly interested in how Attention Deficit Hypertension Disorder was defined in cluster 4 because of the classroom I was observing in. This classroom had twenty-five students and only one teacher. Out of those twenty-five students, fourteen of them were male and eleven were female. When I spoke with the teacher at the end of the day, she shared with me that within her class, she had eight receiving services, such as reading or speech and five students were diagnosed with ADHD. Although this teacher is experienced and has been working with elementary students for the past fifteen years, she said she had to change the way she taught in order to accommodate her students needs.

ADHD defined by American Psychological Association as "a pervasive pattern of inattention, impulsivity, and/or hyperactivity that is more frequent and severe than is typically observed in individuals at a comparable level of development" (Woolfolk, 2014, p. 156). In this particular classroom it was evident that the five students were more inattentive and impulsive then their fellow classmates. Mrs. Apple (name has been changed to protect her identity) changed the way she structured her lessons. Normally she would teach her math lesson in the afternoon, but this year she needed ti switch her schedule. She found that she had her students attention more in the morning than the afternoon. I was able to witness their attention lapsing after lunch time. The children seemed restless, as if they had ants in their pants and could not sit still. These students would make random trips to get a tissue or sharpen their pencil during the afternoon lessons and would take the long way back to their seat.

In cluster four they give examples of different accommodations teachers can make for students with ADHD. The chart was developed by students who have the ADHD character trait. It includes "Don't just lecture, it's boring!, let me walk around the classroom, and be patient" (Woolfolk, 2014, p. 159). This teacher took the heart what her students needs were. She broke up her afternoon lessons and guided the students in calisthenics workouts, such as jumping jacks, stretches. She also allowed a five minute break to color, draw, and read. This broke up the instruction but gave the students the needed break during the day. I asked if she found this effective and Mrs. Apple said "I saw a great improvement in my students overall attention during the afternoon. Yes they still get impulsive at times. The strategic breaks I have implemented have seemed to help". The observation and reading have given me a good ideas of ways I can accommodate my future students. I have always felt that students need mini breaks throughout the day and seeing it put into action and seeing the effect it has on the students makes me feel confident that it will help my future classroom.