Since I was little, electronic devices have changed drastically. When I was younger, not everyone had a computer or smartphone. In my household, we didn’t even own a laptop we had a computer for everyone in the entire house. I didn’t receive my first phone until I was in seventh grade because I started sports. I didn’t have a computer or ipads located in my classroom to play educational games, math problems, listen to books, etc. I was unsure if I ever received technology during kindergarten through second grade so I decided to ask my mom if she remembered any time I used technology in the classroom. She stated that I did not have access to anything when I was in lower elementary but started having computer lab special around third grade. It’s interesting to see how much technology has changed even within the last fifteen years.  Technology is seen all over the place; in classrooms, daycares, grocery stores, etc. Someone is always on their phone or even giving their child technology to distract them. This is not a good way to introduce technology to a child. It should be introduced in a meaningful and educational way. Technology also needs to have limits to not give children so much screen time and more physical activity, or books, etc.

My experiences with writing instruction from kindergarten through second grade rapidly change. When I first looked at this assignment, nothing sparked about reading instruction when I was younger. When I mentioned to my mother that I had to complete this assignment she surprising had most of my work from elementary school. In kindergarten, I was required to see words and write them independently. I don’t remember completing this assignment but I assume I had to cut out the words and then glue them down in the correct order to make a complete sentence.

In first grade, my teacher wanted us to complete monthly journals. We used to write in these journals every day about something that happened to us or that we wanted to tell our teacher. Most of these journals are about weekends where I would spend the weekend with my dad and I would complete this writing assignment with a colorful picture. I have a lot of these journals for every month that we were in school but I specifically picked out the month March to include in this blog post. I wrote about how my teacher Mrs. Seipp bought a betta fish.  In the corner, you will see that my teacher would grade each journal post based on capitals, punctuation, complete, neatness, spelling, and quiet worker.

In second grade, I remember starting to write more independently. Writing about aspects that we enjoy was key during this year which allowed me to become more involved in writing. I have a lot of stories that I write about living in a suburb, going on vacation, inviting pilgrims to Thanksgiving, etc.  All of the work I have from when I was in second grade is extremely creative and they mean something to me even so many years later. I attached a writing assignment in which I also drew a picture to go along with it. I notice that I included periods where they belong, capital letters start a new sentence, etc.

My experiences with reading instruction from kindergarten through second grade rapidly change. When I first looked at this assignment, nothing sparked about reading instruction when I was younger. When I mentioned to my mother that I had to complete this assignment she surprising had most of my work from elementary school.  In kindergarten, throughout the year I completed an ABC book. We worked on this book since we started the study of the alphabet at the beginning of the year. Each week we wrote the letter, pasted in the homework pictures and made something special for that letter. Once I saw this book I remembered sharing it with my mother once I brought it home. I tried to read the songs on each sheet by pointing to the words and looking at the pictures.

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In first grade, we started learning about beginning blends and sounding out words more accurately. During the morning circle, my teacher would read a book to the class and we would have to discuss what happened throughout the book. Sometimes she made us draw pictures of significant points in the book and compare the picture to the text displayed in the book. She also assigned us reading every night; sometimes books that we didn’t always enjoy. Now looking back at this memory, I believe that it was probably a good thing that she assigned us books that were not always enjoyable . It teaches individuals life lessons that throughout education a person will not always like what the teacher assigns.

In second grade, I remembering having a word wall and having to reference the wall throughout the day. At the beginning of the year, my teacher would have us read independently. Once the year went on we would read in smaller groups and then sometimes to the whole class during circle time. When I was little, I wasn’t always confident in my reading and writing skills so this task was nerve-racking to me. We would have to ask the class questions about the reading and make predictions on what is going to happen. All of these tasks would take me a little bit to think of and did not come to me right away. This made me lack confidence in my reading ability. I was also expected to read directions on a worksheet and follow them accordingly.

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