Geroche 1

Taryn Geroche
Prof. Tricia Engelhardt
EDUC 450
Teacher Work Sample
21 November 2015

Students and Classroom

The class I am working with this semester is Mr. Widmiers second period Algebra II
class at Rocky Mountain High School. There are 31 students in the class, and it is evenly split
between boys and girls. The students sit in assigned seats, each at a table with a partner, with all
of the tables facing the front and set up in rows. A majority of the students are Caucasian, and
they seem to be from middle class families, though that is not the case for every student. Many
students are involved with sports, including softball, cross country, wrestling, and footballMr.
Widmier is a football coach, so that adds a dynamic to his relationship with his students.
The class is comprised of mostly sophomores, with several freshmen, a few juniors, and
one senior mixed in, so there are a good variety of ages. It is interesting to see how the students
in different grades interact. All of the students in the class get along well, and the distinction
between grade levels is not particularly obviousI had to ask what grade students were in
because I could not tell specifically from their class interactions. Students from different grades
are seated together as table partners, but that never seems to affect their ability or willingness to
work together. Only when students are allowed to pick who to work with, usually during
homework time, do the different grade levels become more obvious: most students choose to
work with their friends, and their friends are in their grade level. The most obvious class
difference is the freshmen, because they, understandably, do seem less mature than the other

Geroche 2
students. However, they are also some of the smartest students in the class, because they are the
most advanced for their age. Not to mention that their immaturity usually adds some fun to the
class!
Almost surprisingly, this class has only one student who is designated as special needs,
and all that her accommodations require is extra time on tests. Mr. Widmier is usually relatively
lenient on time with all of his students, giving them the opportunity to work during lunch or after
school if they need a different testing time and/or more time, so that is not an issue at all.
However, just because the students do not have IEPs or 504s does not mean that they all learn at
the same pace, in the same way.

Many students take advantage of Mr. Widmiers offer for help

or make-ups during lunchtime. One students grades started going down as the semester
progressed, so Mr. Widmier got a call from the students mother. Wid then talked with the
student to try to discover why he was starting to get behind, and he discovered that the student
was missing some of the basic skills and knowledge that he needed, likely because he hadnt
really grasped it in his previous math classes. So, Wid was able to spend time with him outside
of class in order to refine some of those necessary skills. Another student seemed to do well on
the homework, but he would never feel ready to take the test when test day came around, so he
got very behind. This student was struggling enough that the math teachers decided after the
first term that it would be best to move him to another math class. So even though there is only
one specifically designated special needs student, Mr. Widmier has made accommodations in
several cases where students needed special attention or special circumstances.
There are two students in particular, Connor and Peyton, who I have had a lot of
interaction with, since they are partners at the table right next to where I often sit to observe.
Connor is a freshman, and he is definitely the class clown. He is the student who will take Mr.

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Widmiers crazy stories and run with them, and he is often joking as soon as he walks in the
door. Connor runs cross country and track, and he participates in wrestling, which helps him
connect with other guys in the class who are in different grades from him. He is also clearly
competent at math, because he quickly understands new concepts and jumps at the opportunity to
answer his peers questions. Though I think some students get a little tired of his joking, he is
definitely a student I would enjoy having in my classroom because of his positive attitude and
willingness to learn. Peyton is a sophomore, and she is also good at math, though it usually takes
her a little bit longer to grasp the concepts. She is involved with volleyball, and is an incredible
model of school spiritno one was more excited than Peyton to participate during spirit week.
One of the best things about Peyton is that she is always willing to ask questions, and often her
questions benefit the whole class. Though she is not always confident in her abilities,
(particularly when test days role around), Peyton is a solid math student who is willing to work
hard. These students are just a small example of the variety of awesome students who make up
this math class.
The classroom itself is fairly plain. Wid has a few mathy posters on the walls, and a few
decorations that make the room his own, but the most important things on the walls are the
whiteboards and the SMARTboard, which are used every single day. To me, the most important
part of the room setup is how the students are sitting, in pairs facing the front, which is exactly
how I would seat them in my classroom. It is set up in a way that is effective for the way the
class is taught, since the majority of the content is taught through lectures from the front of the
classroom, and the students are allowed to work with their partners.
On the whole, the class is hard-working, cooperative, and motivated to succeed. The
class all jokes around together, (led by Mr. Widmier himself, of course), and this contributes to

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having a positive climate in the classroom. The classroom routines are not fancystudents just
pile their homework on the teachers desk when they turn it in, and all Wid does to quiet the
class is stand in front, waiting for them to stop talkingyet they are there nonetheless, and they
are effective. Students know how they are expected to behave: they know when they are allowed
to have their laptops out, and that they have to sit in their assigned seats until homework time.
They know that they must not open the classroom door before the bell rings, or theyll have to all
go back to their seats. And, they know that they are all expected to work hard, do their best, and
ask for help when needed, which helps the class as a whole to succeed.

Trash
Recycle

Door
Supplies

Papers to Hand Back

Tables
Teachers Desk

Filing Cabinets

White Board

White Board

Two Students per Table

Smart Board

White Board

Windows

Windows

Windows

Bulletin Board

Filing Cabinets

Filing Cabinets

Table

Geroche 5
Microwave
Teachers Things

Computer

Teachers

Geroche 6