Pullin Teacher Work Sample

Maps and Globes Unit

Savannah Pullin
Teacher Work Sample
Spring 2017

Olander Elementary, Fort Collins, CO

Context and Setting

Community

Olander Elementary School is located in Fort Collins, Colorado in Poudre School

District. Fort Collins is a city in the Front Range of Colorado located approximately one

hour north of Denver. The city is home to Colorado State University, which serves over

33,000 students. Fort Collins has a population of approximately 158,600 people. The

median annual household income is $53,359 (fcgov.org). There are many small

businesses, quality medical centers and biking and hiking trails within the community.

District

Poudre School District contains 52 schools, 31 elementary schools, across

Wellington, Timnath and Fort Collins. Poudre School District serves 29,053 students

enrolled pre-kindergarten through twelfth grade. The demographic breakdown of Poudre

School District is as follows. Seventy three percent of students are non-Hispanic/Latino

students; 18% are Hispanic/Latino students; 1% are African American, .14% of students

are Native American/Alaskan, 3% are Asian, .14% identify as Hawaiian/Pacific Islander

and 3% of students identify as two or more (psdschools.org). Approximately seven

percent of students are Emerging English Language Learners (Poudre School District,

2013).

School

Olander Elementary is a Project Based Learning (PBL) school that offers

kindergarten fifth grade levels. The PBL approach encourages students to collaborate

on multidisciplinary projects while investigating real-world driving questions (Olander

School, n.d.). The curriculum is grounded in Colorado Academic Standards and is

designed to equip students with the problem solving and critical thinking skills they will

need to be successful in a globalized economy (ola.psdschools.org). Grade level teaching

teams plan three unit projects that students complete over the course of the year.

During my internship and student teaching at Olander my class took part in three

engaging projects. In the fall we investigated the Wampanoag people and the Pilgrims in

the 1620s. The students learned historically accurate information from multiple sources

about the Pilgrims journey to the New World and the culture and daily life of the

Wampanoag tribe. The students created models of Wampanoag and Pilgrim villages and

crafted a teaching trunk with various items that would help them teach others about the

topic. After winter break we started a project focused on important U.S. symbols and

leaders. Students worked in partners to research a symbol or leader and presented their

findings to the class. As a part of their presentation students wrote informational

paragraphs about their topic and created a project of their choice to compliment their

work. Some students created life size sculptures of leaders; others chose to create clay

models, Pixie presentations, costumes or posters. The final project taking place in April

and May helped students unpack concepts health and wellness through interacting with

the schools community garden.

Olander community enjoys support and involvement from parent volunteers.

Frequently when I would arrive at school in the morning I would see parents placing on

nametags ready to help with word work or other classroom tasks. In my classroom we

were extremely fortunate to have parent volunteers during the Daily 5 block and math.

The school offers both Gifted and Talented and Integrated Services programs

(Olander School, n.d.). Olander employs 28 teachers, as well as a school psychologist,

principal and assistant principal, speech/language therapist, occupational therapist, and

several PERA professionals (Olander School, n.d.). Olander implements the Treasures

literacy curriculum and the EnVision math curriculum. The schools mission is to

empower children to reach their full potential and foster the love of learning through a

collaborative, creative, and purposeful education.

Cooperating Teaching Classroom 1st Grade

My cooperating teacher and I have 24 students in her first grade classroom. My

cooperating teacher is an experienced teacher who has been teaching for over twenty

years within Poudre School District. Her room is colorful and organized. The 24 desks

are arranged in the center of the room in groups of four or five. By her desk are two

desktop computers the SmartBoard and a shelf area that makes up the listening and math

center. Shes fortunate to have lots of storage at the back of the classroom with cabinets

and a sink. Shes designated one corner by the exterior door as the library that has bins of

texts separated by level and topic. There is a half-moon shaped table by the back door,

which is home to lots of small group work throughout the day. The walls are almost

completely covered with posters for various disciplines, the jobs chart, and anchor

charts. An area by the door features a top banana display of the student whos been

chosen top banana of the week. The student is invited to bring in family photos and

creates a small poster of their interests and preferences. In the front of the classroom is a

large oval shaped rug, easel, and white board. We frequently use this space for whole-

group instruction.

Six students receive literacy support in the schools Literacy Lab during Daily 5

rotations. One student struggles with severe behavior problems and works closely with
Pullin Teacher Work Sample

Integrated Services professionals. He takes breaks outside of the classroom and PARA

professionals visit him in Beckys class every morning and afternoon and frequently pull

him from the classroom for small group work. To ensure his safety and the safety of the

other students an adult supervises him during recess. Becky works closely with

administrators and the IS team to meet the students needs and facilitate his IEP. He is on

a behavior plan that uses a graphic organizer to monitor progress. Becky is great about

providing multiple paths for learning to all students and is aware of students unique

learning needs and preferences. She is warm and sets high expectations for students

academics and behavior. She readily suggests accommodations such as wobble chairs,

fidget toys and headphones to students. Becky uses a myriad of positive classroom

management strategies, including natural consequences, praising positive behavior and

noncontingent reinforcement strategies.

Olander has a school-wide behavior management program called the BEST Code.

The BEST Code stands for Be responsible, Expect the best of yourself, Safety first, Treat

yourself, others, and property with Respect. Accordingly to the literature Olander

provides families the BEST Code supports Olanders culture of mutual respect, personal

responsibility, safety, and doing your best. Additionally Olander utilizes Positive

Behavioral Interventions (PBIS) as a school-wide framework of prevention and

intervention that promotes high behavioral expectations for students. Teachers and

administrators at Olander reinforce positive behavior with Flying Highs. Flying Highs are

small slips of paper that are awarded to students exhibiting BEST behaviors. Students

enter their flying highs in a contest each week to receive prizes.